Ah, but that is the fundamental problem. Is the "transfer" of consciousness from one brain to another possible? Does the idea of transferring consciousness even make sense?

Consider this scenario. We have a machine that can "transfer" your consciousness from your organic brain to a synthetic brain. Let's assume that the process ends with your organic brain being melted into goo after your consciousness has been transferred to the synthetic brain.

In your new robot body with synthetic brain, you wake up and say, "I'm Cabius, and it's great to be a robot!"

Now, suppose the machine malfunctioned and your original organic brain was not destroyed. It wakes up in your original organic body and says, "Wait, I'm Cabius, and I'm still human."

They can't both be you, and it seems self-evident that the organic you, with your original brain, is the real you (it was the real you before you entered the machine, after all). The "transferred" consciousness, if it even exists, cannot be you. Inasmuch as you are your consciousness, there can be only one of you. A consciousness separate from your own phenomenological experience is, by definition, not you.

I would argue that consciousness, by it's very nature, cannot be transferred. Consciousness is not an object. It is not physical. We humans have been attempting to objectify consciousness since the beginning of human thought, and it has only led us around in circles.

Depends, does cyborg me still have a sense of taste? 'Cause the ability to enjoy pastries is a deal breaker.

You talk as if we where to copy the consciousness, I know as it sits now there is no such thing as transferring, in a computer it copies data from one spot and deletes it from the other, it doesn't actually transfer as it appears. The only way I would do it is if we could come up with a way of transferring without deleting. As an example of what I mean it would be like me going from my bedroom to the living room, I just transferred myself from one point to another there is not a version in the other room, and I did not delete myself to be put into the other room. So my organic body would become a brain dead husk because I am no longer in it. As this is not yet possible and may never be possible we can only leave it to Science Fiction to see the possibilities.

My prediction is that it will never be possible, and the idea itself arises from our inability to intuitively grasp the nature of our own consciousness and it's neural correlates. However, it does make for interesting Sci-fi scenarios.

I would unless one of two realities were the case:

1. I was forced into the military.

2. Crazy fundamentalists went around killing them (quite likely, unfortunately)

My reason is pretty lame: I've got a couple mild health issues that'd be nice to not have to deal with anymore.

Also: what makes you human is your free will, ability to think and rationalize, and your personality. Not some sack of flesh.

Where do you think the consciousness is "stored?" What's so unrealistic about taking our brain (which I'm assuming contains our personality/memories/conciousness etc.) and transferring it to a synthetic body? The brain requires certain proteins and chemicals to function and keep from decaying, and if those are provided, whether naturally or through synthetic means, what's the difference? What makes you "you" would still be intact, simply in another body.

Transferring the brain is something entirely different from transferring the consciousness and leaving the brain behind.

I don't know about these, humanity has plenty of idiots.

No it isn't, you are a human being; if they took you out of that and put your consciousness into a macine or whatever you'd just be an intelligent lifeform formally of the human species.

Again, a bunch of meaningless nonsense.

Okay then smart guy, define humanity for me; define what it is to be a human being with the potential to transfer your conciousness into a machine.

EDIT: Simple enough to me, if your not in a human body, you aren't a human; as far as definations go it's pretty clear-cut. Your just opposing for the sake of it, it's not like I was saying your last post was wrong.

Okay then smart guy, define humanity for me; define what it is to be a human being with the potential to transfer your conciousness into a machine.

EDIT: Simple enough to me, if your not in a human body, you aren't a human; as far as definations go it's pretty clear-cut. Your just opposing for the sake of it, it's not like I was saying your last post was wrong.

But then you have the problem of incremental replacement. Certainly, someone with an artificial limb is still human. A person with an artificial heart is still human. How much of the body can be replaced by synthetic variants and still be human? Would a person who lost the lower half of their body in an accident, and had it replaced with a synthetic abdomen and set of legs still be human? What about a person whose body from the neck down is replaced with a synthetic body, but their head remains completely organic and original. Still human?

Of course they are, you stop being a human - as far as I can tell - when you have your conciousness transferred to an entirely artificial body; otherwise your just a augmented human, your still in a human body, it's just been heavily changed.

So when you are entirely transferred, what does that make you?

Okay then smart guy, define humanity for me; define what it is to be a human being with the potential to transfer your conciousness into a machine.

EDIT: Simple enough to me, if your not in a human body, you aren't a human; as far as definations go it's pretty clear-cut. Your just opposing for the sake of it, it's not like I was saying your last post was wrong.

It doesn't need to be defined. Really, it can't be. Any definition would be arbitrary because you'd be trying to define a concept with no meaning or value.

Of course they are, you stop being a human - as far as I can tell - when you have your conciousness transferred to an entirely artificial body; otherwise your just a augmented human, your still in a human body, it's just been heavily changed.