[CT] Re: New story at QueenOfAngels: Strings

[Dan Moran]

I thoroughly disagree with this. (Obviously, or I wouldn't have written
a story with this as an essential element.) The render doesn't need to
be as real as reality; it just needs to be real enough to fool _you_.
That is, a fairly narrow auditory channel, a video channel with maybe
8000x4500 pixels resolution. Smell is dead simple; you record a library
of smells and replay as necessary. Taste is a lot more complex (maybe
the most complex) ... duplicating the texture and taste and scent of
food would require a lot of bandwidth and processor power. Feel,
kinesthesia -- duplicating the various pains and pleasures of a real
body -- probably simpler than taste since you can record & replay most
of it.

Duplicate reality? I don't need to duplicate reality; I just need to
convince you that I have. Sitting on the beach watching the waves? Fine;
I'm not even going to render the beach behind you, or Pacific Coast
Highway or the cars traveling it -- not until you turn your head,
anyway.

The fact that I think this is possible is one of the reasons I think
that strings are a doomed species in the long term. Who really wants to
be fooled on an ongoing basis, even if it's possible? Ints have a
richer, realer experience of the world than strings -- and look at
confirmed strings the way I look at drug addicts. If you really need
that drink/drug to function, I won't take it away from you, but I feel
some contempt for you just the same.

-----Original Message-----
From: continuing-time-bounces at ralf.org
[mailto:continuing-time-bounces at ralf.org] On Behalf Of William Case
Sent: Friday, January 02, 2004 2:52 PM
To: 'Discussion of works/books of Daniel Keys Moran'
Subject: RE: [CT] Re: New story at QueenOfAngels: Strings

-----Original Message-----
I have problems with the premise of modelling the world, anyway.  My
suspicion is that in order to get anywhere near the fidelity of reality
would require a computer as huge and complex as reality. 
-----Original Message-----

____________________________
continuing-time mailing list
continuing-time at ralf.org
http://www.ralf.org/mailman/listinfo/continuing-time