The Best Things I've Seen Recently

[sanspoof]

The best metatalk thread (about transporters); the best Todd Alcott post (about how Darth Vader is totally gay for Boba Fett); the best new Ang Lee trailer (WW2 Shanghai); the best dinosaur skull cast collection, the best Transformersthemovie post.

Comments

[jwgh]

Regarding the transporter thing, james_nicoll pointed out to me at some point that, in the Star Trek universe, a lot of doctors seem to have an aversion to being teleported.

[sanspoof]

I have completely noticed that! I generally figured it to be a 'humanist' sort of thing; they all seem to have a certain measure of the 'common sense' approach, which I guess is... how Gene Roddenberry thought of doctors? I don't know.

[jwgh]

Also, one thing I like about debates regarding the nature of consciousness and identity (which the teleporter debate plays into nicely) is that eventually each side accuses the other of dualism. Although I don't think that happened in this particular debate (although I only got halfway down before I got distracted by other things).

For that matter, maybe people should start accusing each other of dualism in the Darth Vader/Boba Fett discussion, although it is hard to see how that discussion can be improved on. (There's even a nifty reference to the Star Wars Christmas special!)

[sanspoof]

I don't think anyone said that explicitly, but there was an accusation of believing in a soul.
Honestly I think it's about continuity of electrical activity in the brain.

Maybe the droids can be dualist. Uh.

[jwgh]

Looking down in the thread I now see:In the end I wouldn't expect any strict materialist to say anything but that the transporter is a suicide-box
Yay!

[sanspoof]

Man... I know exactly jack shit about philosophy.

[jwgh]

Me too. I think that makes it more fun for me.