On What We Are

This is somewhere between fiction and metaphysics. Take it seriously, but not too seriously.

Hello fellow quantum disturbances! Curious about how you ended up in a body? Well of course you are!

See nature had a problem: the principle of least action. Evolution was great at making bacteria and viruses, but the animals weren’t really up to par, at least not at first. Sure they would obtain resources and reproduce, but that’s all they would do. They did as little as they could to survive. A planet of sloths.

That’s when we showed up. Evolution made us a brain full of interfering electrical signals and we hopped right in. It was a bargain of the best sort, we had to give up the unconditional love of the universe, but in exchange we got memory and the ability to experience pleasure and pain. Evolution would get animals that wanted to survive above and beyond any instinct that could be encoded. And these new animals might also do fun things like rock climbing. Fair trade, which is why you made it. Maybe you’ll make it again.

Of course as part of the deal, we would have to be convinced that our death would be a disaster. Otherwise where would our will, our passion come from? We would be hidden from the true nature of reality, but in exchange we would get to live. And I think that’s been worth it.

So let’s enjoy our lives, fellow pilots. There’s a whole lot of rocks that need climbing.