S-risk

picture info	S-risk Risks of astronomical suffering, also called suffering risks or s-risks, are risks involving much more suffering than all that has occurred on Earth so far. They are sometimes categorized as a subclass of existential risks. According to some scholars, s-risks warrant serious consideration as they are not extremely unlikely and can arise from unforeseen scenarios. Although they may appear speculative, factors such as technological advancement, power dynamics, and historical precedents indicate that advanced technology could inadvertently result in substantial suffering. Thus, s-risks are considered to be a morally urgent matter, despite the possibility of technological benefits. Sources of possible s-risks include embodied artificial intelligence and superintelligence, as well as space colonization, which could potentially lead to "constant and catastrophic wars" and an immense increase in wild animal suffering by introducing wild animals, who "generally lead short, miserable liv ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu]
	Existential Risk From Artificial General Intelligence Existential risk from artificial intelligence refers to the idea that substantial progress in artificial general intelligence (AGI) could lead to human extinction or an irreversible global catastrophe. One argument for the importance of this risk references how human beings dominate other species because the human brain possesses distinctive capabilities other animals lack. If AI were to surpass human intelligence and become superintelligent, it might become uncontrollable. Just as the fate of the mountain gorilla depends on human goodwill, the fate of humanity could depend on the actions of a future machine superintelligence. The plausibility of existential catastrophe due to AI is widely debated. It hinges in part on whether AGI or superintelligence are achievable, the speed at which dangerous capabilities and behaviors emerge, and whether practical scenarios for AI takeovers exist. Concerns about superintelligence have been voiced by computer scientists and tech CEOs such ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu]
	Suffering In Simulations Suffering in simulations refers to the ethical, philosophical, and metaphysical implications of conscious or potentially conscious experiences of suffering occurring within simulated reality, simulated realities. As advances in artificial intelligence and virtual environments increasingly blur the boundary between simulated agents and sentient beings, scholars have begun examining whether suffering experienced in simulations may hold moral weight comparable to suffering in non-simulated ("base") reality. Potential causes of simulated suffering As technology advances, there is a risk that simulated suffering may occur on a massive scale, either unintentionally or as a byproduct of practical objectives. One scenario involves suffering for instrumental information gain. Just as animal experiments have traditionally served scientific research despite causing harm, advanced AI systems could use Sentience, sentient simulations to gain insights into human psychology or anticipate other ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu]
picture info	Suffering Suffering, or pain in a broad sense, may be an experience of unpleasantness or aversion, possibly associated with the perception of harm or threat of harm in an individual. Suffering is the basic element that makes up the negative valence (psychology), valence of affective phenomena. The opposite of suffering is pleasure or happiness. Suffering is often categorized as physical or mental. It may come in all degrees of intensity, from mild to intolerable. Factors of duration and frequency of occurrence usually compound that of intensity. Attitudes toward suffering may vary widely, in the sufferer or other people, according to how much it is regarded as avoidable or unavoidable, useful or useless, deserved or undeserved. Suffering occurs in the lives of Sentience, sentient beings in numerous manners, often dramatically. As a result, many fields of human activity are concerned with some aspects of suffering. These aspects may include the nature of suffering, its processes, its orig ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu]
picture info	Global Catastrophic Risk A global catastrophic risk or a doomsday scenario is a hypothetical event that could damage human well-being on a global scale, endangering or even destroying modern civilization. Existential risk is a related term limited to events that could cause full-blown human extinction or permanently and drastically curtail humanity's existence or potential. In the 21st century, a number of academic and non-profit organizations have been established to research global catastrophic and existential risks, formulate potential mitigation measures, and either advocate for or implement these measures. Definition and classification Defining global catastrophic risks The term global catastrophic risk "lacks a sharp definition", and generally refers (loosely) to a risk that could inflict "serious damage to human well-being on a global scale". Humanity has suffered large catastrophes before. Some of these have caused serious damage but were only local in scope—e.g. the Black Death ma ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu]
	Suffering-focused Ethics Suffering-focused ethics are those views in ethics according to which reducing suffering is either a key priority or our only aim. Those suffering-focused ethics according to which the reduction of suffering is a key priority are pluralistic views that include additional aims, such as the prevention of other disvaluable things like inequality, or the promotion of certain valuable things, such as pleasure. Nevertheless, these views still prioritize reducing preventable suffering over these other aims. Different suffering-focused ethics 'Suffering-focused ethics' is an umbrella term that includes different normative positions sharing the common feature of giving priority to the reduction of suffering. One type of suffering-focused view is negative consequentialism. On this kind of view, we should act so that we bring about those situations in which there is less suffering. A particular type of negative consequentialist view is negative utilitarianism. According to this view, we s ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu]
	Experience Machine The experience machine or pleasure machine is a thought experiment put forward by philosopher Robert Nozick in his 1974 book ''Anarchy, State, and Utopia''. It is an attempt to refute ethical hedonism by imagining a choice between everyday reality and an apparently preferable simulated reality. A primary thesis of hedonism is that "pleasure is the good", which leads to the argument that any component of life that is not pleasurable does nothing directly to increase one's well-being. This is a view held by many value theorists, but most famously by some classical utilitarians. Nozick attacks the thesis by means of a thought experiment. If he can show that there is something other than pleasure that has value and thereby increases well-being, then hedonism is refuted. The thought experiment Nozick describes a machine that could provide whatever desirable or pleasurable experiences a subject could want. In this thought experiment, psychologists have figured out a way to stimulate ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu]
	Ethics Of Terraforming The ethics of terraforming has constituted a philosophical debate within biology, ecology, and environmental ethics as to whether terraforming other worlds is an ethics, ethical endeavor. Support On the pro-terraforming side of the argument, there are those like Robert Zubrin and Richard L. S. Taylor who believe that it is humanity's moral obligation to make other worlds suitable for Terran life, as a continuation of the history of life transforming the environments around it on Earth. They also point out that Earth will eventually be destroyed as nature takes its course, so that humanity faces a long-term choice between terraforming other worlds or allowing all Earth life to become extinct. Dr. Zubrin further argues that even if native microbes have arisen on Mars, for example, the fact that they have not progressed beyond the microbe stage by this point, halfway through the lifetime of the Sun, is a strong indicator that they never will; and that if microbial life exists on Mars, ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu]