Isn't there a real possibility that being subjected to circumstances that allow us to perceive reality, psychological trauma could result?
Or maybe every computer on Earth is right now a mind in a perpetual state of torture. I don't see how a brain in a vat shouldn't be any less objectionable, especially if we're relying on blind conjecture.
Is it? If the Mona Lisa were set on fire, there would be effectively zero hope of reconstructing it from the ashes. Can a sane original mind be reconstructed from insanity caused by severe trauma or extended sensory deprivation or dementia? There too, the pattern has been destroyed; there's effectively zero hope of restoration.
You are not. I am.
And I choose to live.
Have you ever seen firsthand a person in the final stages of Alzheimer's disease? If life is so precious to you that you are willing to exist for eternity in such a state, far be it from me to tell you otherwise.
May you enjoy the outcome of your choices.
Presuming you would actually live in such a state even - perfecting this technology will require other ground breaking research, some of which might be able to handle Alzheimer's.
Sure but questions arise:
"How much mental trauma/cognitive damage can a normal human mind sustain before it is no longer capable of comprehending its choices (or even the concept of "choice") at all?"
"Will the brain-in-a-vat scenario exceed that limit?"
> ...some of which might be able to handle Alzheimer's
As I alluded to before, is it possible to unscramble an egg?