On Fri, 10 Sep 2004 03:08:41 -0400, Bryon Daly <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > On Thu, 9 Sep 2004 20:12:07 -0700 (PDT), Maru <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > > > > After reading the whole of Brin's Uplift novels, I find myself puzzled by > > something: Why undertake the massive, expensive, intricate, and morally tricky > > process of Uplift at all? There must be some intrinsic reason (that is, you can't > > say 'Because the Progenitors did'. Then why did they begin the process?). > > Creating more sentients can't be the answer because then it would be far more > > efficient to multiply your own kind. Creating specialties (like dolphins would > > have been turned into ebcause of their piloting skills) seems grossly inefficent, > > and again morally questionable. 'Prestige' (power) could only be a reason once > > the system is in place and generally accepted. Thus far, I can only see two > > viable reasons- it might be done for the purposes of having, to put it baldly, a > > slave species or more altruistically, to gain the benefit of another world-view's > > advice and thinking-style. The formers is unjustifiable and the latter seems > > unlikely. Has Brin esposed any feasi bl > e > > explanations that I've completely missed or could someone help me out here? I'd be > > grateful for a defintive answer on this nagging question. > > My take on why the humans did it: > Because they could. I have no doubt that if today we could produce > human-level intelligent chimps or dolphins through genetic engineering > and breeding programs, etc, that someone'd be doing it. At first > perhaps just for the scientific knowledge, further on, perhaps for > filling roles they are well adapted to, and in the end, because they > discovered the galactic civilization revolved around uplift. > > As for why the galactics did it: > I'm thinking the Progenitors did it for the company, (presumably they > were alone in the universe). Dr. Brin touches on this theme of > loneliness in his great short story "The Crystal Spheres" (one of my > favorites). In another story (on his web site, I think), humans > realize that they are biologically unsuited to go out and expand into > the universe, so they "adopt" AI's or robots (I forget the exact > details) to instill human nature in them, and it is those "children" > that will explore the stars. > > As for the later galactics, I think for them it is instilled tradition > and established science, with many benefits and low risks. They > think for the ultra long-term and see their clients in a way as > essentially their children and eventual inheritors.
Maru - I never even questioned this. If there are other species just a few genetic steps away from sentience you would find people who would help them achieve it. I would think many would think it more morally wrong to modify their own species to create new slave species or another world view. Gary Denton -- #2 on google for liberal news "I don't try harder" _______________________________________________ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
