The philosophical problems people have with identity may seem silly, but many people are affected by it. Some people who may otherwise have no problems with cryonics or other preservation techniques will choose guaranteed death because they don’t intuitively think their consciousness will persist. That is why I think it is so significant. People who doubt for practical reasons can be convinced in time if the technology comes up to speed, but those who deny it for philosophical reasons may never be convinced regardless of technological advancements.
An easy practical way to verify that the recreation process done correctly is to revive someone shortly after they die. The close friends and family members could do a sort of Turing test to see if the revived person matches who they knew. The likelihood of something going significantly wrong in the process without the close friends and family members noticing would be very small. This method should convincing as long as someone takes a practical and empirical perspective of identity.
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The philosophical problems people have with identity may seem silly, but many people are affected by it. Some people who may otherwise have no problems with cryonics or other preservation techniques will choose guaranteed death because they don’t intuitively think their consciousness will persist. That is why I think it is so significant. People who doubt for practical reasons can be convinced in time if the technology comes up to speed, but those who deny it for philosophical reasons may never be convinced regardless of technological advancements.
An easy practical way to verify that the recreation process done correctly is to revive someone shortly after they die. The close friends and family members could do a sort of Turing test to see if the revived person matches who they knew. The likelihood of something going significantly wrong in the process without the close friends and family members noticing would be very small. This method should convincing as long as someone takes a practical and empirical perspective of identity.
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