X-Message-Number: 22323 From: "Harvey Newstrom" <> Subject: Greek boat etc. Date: Mon, 11 Aug 2003 10:43:36 -0400 Robert Ettinger wrote, > One of the ancient Greeks talked about a boat being repaired > so much that after a while all its parts were replacements. > It is clear that no profound principle is involved--whether > it is the "same" boat, or at what point it became a > different boat, is just a matter of language and agreement. > We can be safe by being objective and sticking to the facts > --the quantitative approach. This is my conclusion as well, after discussing this issue for many years on other lists. If I wanted to own the "same" boat that Washington used to cross the Delaware river, I would be dismayed to discover that it had not one single original piece yet. But, if I wanted to own the "same" boat I saw advertised on TV, I would prefer all new parts and not the demo model I actually saw running. The concept of "same" or "similar" should be thought of as being "similar enough" or "good enough" for some specific purpose. Since individuals have different goals in mind for uploading, they have different ideas about what is "similar enough" or "good enough" for their purposes. The conclusion would have to be individually decided. We can agree on every concept, every action, down to every atom, and still disagree on identity, labeling, and success on a particular upload procedure. These are individual choices resulting in label preferences, and not objective facts. -- Harvey Newstrom, CISM, CISSP, IAM, IBMCP, GSEC Certified InfoSec Manager, Certified IS Security Pro, NSA-certified InfoSec Assessor, IBM-certified Security Consultant, SANS-cert GSEC <HarveyNewstrom.com> <Newstaff.com> Rate This Message: http://www.cryonet.org/cgi-bin/rate.cgi?msg=22323