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Comment by kragen | Hacker News Reader

I wonder how hard it would be for an LLM interpreting the neural signals to perform a convincing simulation of speaking for the paralyzed person while doing things they don't actually want, or after they've suffered a loss of mental function that leaves them not really wanting anything. Like the autism scandals surrounding Facilitated Communication. Not that I think that's what is going on currently.

This Greg Egan short story is a useful intuition pump about the possibilities. Not recommended for children. Or before trying to sleep. https://philosophy.williams.edu/files/Egan-Learning-to-Be-Me...

It would be great if instead of "a clinical trial to demonstrate that the Link is safe and useful" we could have a clinical trial to determine whether or not it is.

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I liked the line

> My parents were machines. My parents were gods. It was nothing special. I hated them.

and how the story mixes adolescence and feeling special with philosophical ramifications (hinting that focusing on the philosophical ramifications is just an adolescent attempt at feeling special?)

The narrator falls into the same trap at the end, assuming that he is the 1-in-a-million exception. He doesn't realize that everyone has the same experience, they just process it in a healthier way. AI Catcher in the Rye.

I really enjoyed that read. Is it hinted that everyone has the experience though?

There's a week where the jewel and the brain are still paired, but the jewel is in control. The hospitals monitor that the two are similar to within tolerance, but somehow this jewel slips through the net. What makes you think there's more to it than the 'one in a million' explanation?

SPOILERS

He sets up a conspiracy theory, where the system knows he's the only one out of sync and forces him through anyway.

If you are reasonable instead of rational, the slippage that occurs within that week is fine. It's expected, as he notes, because the jewel doesn't replicate neurons constantly dying, so it can't be a "perfect" copy.

Adolescence is typified by feeling like everything is happening to "me", for the first time ever. It fits the theme to have him solipsistically dramatize a normal experience. You can see this in the last line, where he wonders if the person him ever felt as "real" as he does.

Thank you for sharing this short story. I read it with my coffee and really enjoyed it, turns out existential dread goes well with the first hit of caffeine of the day. You made my morning :)

You're very welcome!

Warning, comments in this thread include spoilers for the short story.

If you upvote this comment, people will see this spoiler warning before the spoilers.

Probably that would be beneficial to a substantial fraction of the people reading the thread.

Highly recommend Diaspora by Greg Egan as well.

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