Susan Schneider
Susan Schneider is a person.
References
2015
- (Schneider, 2015) ⇒ Susan Schneider. (2015?). “Alien Minds.” In: (forthcoming) Discovery, Stephen Dick (ed.), Cambridge University Press.
- QUOTE: How would intelligent aliens think? Would they have conscious experiences? Would it feel a certain way to be an alien? It is easy to dismiss these questions as too speculative, since we haven’t encountered aliens, at least as far as we know. And in conceiving of alien minds we do so from within – from inside the vantage point of the sensory experiences and thinking patterns characteristic of our species. At best, we anthropomorphize; at worst, we risk stupendous failures of the imagination.
Still, ignoring these questions could be a grave mistake. Some proponents of SETI estimate that we will encounter alien intelligence within the next several decades. Even if you hold a more conservatively estimate -- say, that the chance of encountering alien intelligence in the next fifty years is five percent -- the stakes for our species are high. Knowing that we are not alone in the universe would be a profound realization, and contact with an alien civilization could produce amazing technological innovations and cultural insights. It thus can be valuable to consider these questions, albeit with the goal of introducing possible routes to answering them, rather than producing definitive answers. So, let us ask: how might aliens think? And, would they be conscious? Believe it or not, we can say something concrete in response to both of these questions, drawing from work in philosophy and cognitive science.
- QUOTE: How would intelligent aliens think? Would they have conscious experiences? Would it feel a certain way to be an alien? It is easy to dismiss these questions as too speculative, since we haven’t encountered aliens, at least as far as we know. And in conceiving of alien minds we do so from within – from inside the vantage point of the sensory experiences and thinking patterns characteristic of our species. At best, we anthropomorphize; at worst, we risk stupendous failures of the imagination.
2009
- (Schneider, 2009a) ⇒ Susan Schneider, (ed.). (2009). “Science Fiction and Philosophy: From time travel to superintelligence." John Wiley & Sons.
- (Schneider, 2009b) ⇒ Susan Schneider. (2009). “Mindscan: Transcending and enhancing the human brain.” In: (Schneider, 2009a).
- QUOTE: Suppose it is 2024 and, being a technophile, you purchase brain enhancements as they become readily available. First, you add a mobile internet connection to your retina, then you enhance your working memory by using neural circuitry. ...