I am me, right? What if I wasn\'t completely me? Would I still exist?
 

Physically, I was once a single sperm and a single egg, right? What if in the race to the egg, the sperm beside the one that created me had won? Would I still be alive today? What is it that makes me who I am? Is this a stupid question? That's the thought that has always confused me about identical twins. They both came from the same egg and sperm, right? So even though they split and became 2 different people, what if they hadn't split? Which one of them would exist? I'm probably going to be roasted for asking such a dumb question. I'm just curiuos about some of your thoughts.

Re: I am me, right? What if I wasn\'t completely me? Would I still ex
 

[ QUOTE ]
Physically, I was once a single sperm and a single egg, right?

[/ QUOTE ]

No.

[ QUOTE ]
What if in the race to the egg, the sperm beside the one that created me had won? Would I still be alive today?

[/ QUOTE ]

No.

[ QUOTE ]
That's the thought that has always confused me about identical twins. They both came from the same egg and sperm, right? So even though they split and became 2 different people, what if they hadn't split? Which one of them would exist?

[/ QUOTE ]

Neither.


[ QUOTE ]
What is it that makes me who I am?

[/ QUOTE ]

Being you.


oops, I'm getting to wordy, luckyme

Re: I am me, right? What if I wasn\'t completely me? Would I still exist?
 

[ QUOTE ]
Physically, I was once a single sperm and a single egg, right? What if in the race to the egg, the sperm beside the one that created me had won? Would I still be alive today? What is it that makes me who I am? Is this a stupid question? That's the thought that has always confused me about identical twins. They both came from the same egg and sperm, right? So even though they split and became 2 different people, what if they hadn't split? Which one of them would exist? I'm probably going to be roasted for asking such a dumb question. I'm just curiuos about some of your thoughts

[/ QUOTE ]

The sperm and egg built you a bicycle and you're riding it.Your brother was also waiting at the same time and his was red. The assembly line has better computers than you think ergo manufacture two. Happy days!

Re: I am me, right? What if I wasn\'t completely me? Would I still ex
 

wow. I'm not very impressed with your response. It has done nothing for me, and in fact, makes you seem (to me) a little arrogant.

Re: I am me, right? What if I wasn\'t completely me? Would I still ex
 

Read the last chapter of Poker Gaming and Life.

Re: I am me, right? What if I wasn\'t completely me? Would I still ex
 

[ QUOTE ]
wow. I'm not very impressed with your response. It has done nothing for me, and in fact, makes you seem (to me) a little arrogant.

[/ QUOTE ]

You asked a lot of questions. Rather than answer each one with a detailed explanation of one viewpoint, I "took a position" on each one. your move is to pick as many as you want, respond to the position in agreement, disagreement or tangentially even.

The brevity was meant to convey that I am fairly confident in the positions, along the lines of "is there some problem with this view?" Remember you didn't express an opinion I can counter or consolidate... cheeesh. It should have done something for you if yow were swinging to the opposite view of the one I expressed. If you tend to agree, then no, it's just me head-nodding.

I didn't respond to "is this a stupid question?", it was obviously not to me, just needed some foundation for a discussion.

luckyme

Re: I am me, right? What if I wasn\'t completely me? Would I still ex
 

[ QUOTE ]
Physically, I was once a single sperm and a single egg, right? What if in the race to the egg, the sperm beside the one that created me had won? Would I still be alive today? What is it that makes me who I am? Is this a stupid question? That's the thought that has always confused me about identical twins. They both came from the same egg and sperm, right? So even though they split and became 2 different people, what if they hadn't split? Which one of them would exist? I'm probably going to be roasted for asking such a dumb question. I'm just curiuos about some of your thoughts.

[/ QUOTE ]

I wanted to start a similar thread so the hijack is intentional but related:

I’m a sci-fi fan, and like to dwell on some of the ramifications of fantastical technologies. A lot of stories I’ve read recently offer immortality by re-constituting your body exactly (or nearly so) as it was at time of death and/or offer some form of instantaneous travel that does the same/similar using this technology (ala Star Trek transporter/replicator).

An Outer Limits episode was like this: We are in contact with an advanced alien race that sets up on the moon and transfers select individuals to their planet in some kind of exchange program. Once the transmission of “you” is complete and confirmed, they destroy the orginal “you”.

It bother’s me, that although I’m an atheist, I’m uncomfortable with the idea, and would never consider the reconstituted “me”, me but a duplicate. I don’t believe in a soul/spirit/essence. I still can’t shake the idea that putting some atoms together in the exact same configuration as mine is “me”. I don’t have issue with me being dead, (I’m dead, duh) I have issue with me voluntarily choosing to be killed/rebuilt (to go to Mars for example).

If something were to happen in the process, or If the two could be separated. I’m pretty sure I and all the me 2.xx would all be trying to hunt down and kill each other. The only real benefit to having duplicates IMO, would be to sacrifice them; yet as exactly “me” they would not cooperate to any such plans (or more likely betray me 1.0).

Thoughts?

Re: I am me, right? What if I wasn\'t completely me? Would I still ex
 

You are you. Any scenario where you aren't you means, wait for it, you aren't you. You being someone else means, wait for it, you aren't you.

Re: I am me, right? What if I wasn\'t completely me? Would I still ex
 

"You" are an illusion. Every moment a new illusion is formed. This new illusion seems to be the same as the previous illusion, but that is also an illusion.

Re: I am me, right? What if I wasn\'t completely me? Would I still ex
 

[ QUOTE ]
"You" are an illusion. Every moment a new illusion is formed. This new illusion seems to be the same as the previous illusion, but that is also an illusion.

[/ QUOTE ]

"Illusion" seems a bit off the mark, in the sense of "what is suffering the illusion?" It's beautifully recursive though, rather like a rolling average effect.

That this instances me is the same as the last instance me, that does seem to be clearly a rounding error.

luckyme