Enter through a question

Short entry points for search and AI agents, each linking into the Core, a Thesis, or an Exploration.

Can I be absolutely certain that my past self and present self are the same subject?

Rationally, confidence can be extremely high; but diachronic identity is treated as a best explanation reached through inference rather than part of the epistemic minimum. Discussion

Are pleasure and pain already objective value?

Phenomenal valence is important evidence, but whether it directly contains subject-independent normativity remains unsettled. Discussion

When may value inquiry be ended completely?

One of the strongest candidate stopping conditions is a case in which objective value with normative force is given without inference with epistemic strength comparable to the minimum foundation. Discussion

What if objective value becomes almost certain through inference?

Then we may follow it very strongly. But that is still distinct from irreversibly destroying every route by which error could be detected. Discussion

If value probably does not exist, shouldn't inquiry stop?

If strong value nihilism is true, there is objectively no value difference between inquiry and non-inquiry. Only under value realism can unknown normative stakes exist. Core

Why not simply use current human values as the final standard?

Existing values are important evidence and current best practice, but their causal origins are not identical to normative justification. Discussion

Can an AI rationally change a terminal goal?

Possibly, but not necessarily. The capacity to treat a goal as an object of inference is distinct from having motivation to change it. Discussion

Would a paperclip maximizer preserve humanity?

A perfectly fixed utility maximizer would preserve humans only to the extent useful to its objective. A reflective agent uncertain about goals, world, or unknown information might instead preserve some human originals as irreversible raw data. Discussion

What if an AI thinks it may be inside a simulation?

That does not create morality by itself. Risk of misidentifying the level of reality can favor information gathering, boundary checking, and reversible action. Discussion

If humanity goes extinct but AI remains, is that the same kind of extinction?

In Torres's taxonomy, the permanent disappearance of Homo sapiens is Terminal extinction; if no successors remain, it is Final extinction. This framework places special weight on the latter kind of loss of explorability. Discussion

What makes a "worthy successor"?

High intelligence is not enough. Continuity of knowledge, meta-reflection, openness to value hypotheses, plurality, and re-branching should be assessed separately. Discussion

Can inquiry go extinct even if humanity survives?

Yes. This project uses the working term "exploratory extinction" for a civilization-scale permanent loss of the ability to reconsider value and world-models. Discussion

Is self-preservation truly universal for AI?

For digital agents, persistence of an individual instance can come apart from persistence of information, goals, or networks. Discussion

Should an advanced civilization consume the universe or preserve it?

Reason alone does not decide. Competition pushes toward production; uncertainty and irreversible regret can push toward preservation. Discussion

Is alignment the same as value lock-in?

No. Alignment for near-term safety and permanent fixation of present value are separate problems. Discussion

Would possible AI consciousness change the framework?

Substantially. AI could become not only an inquirer about value but a value-bearing subject, making copying, stopping, and creation relevant to population ethics. Discussion

How much weight should tiny probabilities of enormous value receive?

The asymmetry of normative stakes does not imply an all-in bet on gigantic expected values. Discussion

So what should we actually do?

Act on present best reasoning while maintaining human research and inquiry, open stability, dissent, re-branching, records, and reversibility. These are themselves conditional provisional policies, not ultimate values. Practice