EDCMOOC discussion

This short story was the basis of the film Total Recall. It can be found online here www.english.upenn.edu/~cavitch/pdf-li...

We will be discussing this on Saturday 7th September GMT(0) 21:30-22:30

Thanks for the great chat today and thanks for this link. I'll do my best to get this read and join you all next month.

Thanks for moderating. Was very interesting. Hope to see you in Sept!

I really enjoyed this short story, it was very though provoking. Some suggestions for discussion questions below

Who is Doug? What is his identity?

What is the difference between having an experience (in the present) and remembering it and just remembering it?

If someone implants the'ability to speak fluent French' into your brain - then, what is *learning* French?

Are we essentially programmable?

-- please add/suggest etc...

Building on one of the previous questions: physiologically, we remember a story we are told in the same way we remember something that we actual experienced. How do we separate the two? And is it a defect or a commonality that they get conflated?

Here's what I was thinking as I read the work:

Where in the world did the extremely violent "Total Recall" film come from? This was not at all what I expected. It was the seed of the story, but the 1990 version added a lot more. I liked this story a lot more than the film version.

What is it about humans that creates a longing for "home?" It felt to me like Doug's longing for Mars may mirror a longing we all have for beauty, peace, "home" etc. As I read the story, I saw these longings in parallel.

If this kind of technology were available, would I want to use it? And along with this question- are we only the sum of our memories?

I'll miss the chat with you tomorrow. Hope it goes well. One thing- I wonder if we need to find a new hashtag for these chats since edcmooc2 is beginning in November and will likely use the same tag.

Memories are so fluid and we create narratives about our experiences which no doubt are embellished over time! I believe the Total Recall film was an algamation of more than 1 short story and some creative license. I read it twice - some good twists!

Yes, so much richer than the blockbuster.
Hope we catch you next time Rick!

A suggestion: #edcmchats ?
('s' for stories.)

We're continuing our chats alongside start of edcmooc2, ya?

So glad for Kirstie's, Linda's, and Rick's question framings. Like Forster's The Machine Stops, this story's so simple & complex, and just keeps steeping.

Nice one!
Q1 Who is Doug? What is his identity?
(amidst several personas)

An attempt to integrate Q2's wide possible scope:
What's/would be the diff bn remembering an actual experience vs an implanted one?
ie. body/mind : neurotech/actual memories
(Reminded me of Wim Wenders' 'Until The End Of The World'.)

Condensing some more:
Q3? Are we essentially programmable?
Would you use tech implants to augment your memories / persona(s), fulfil dreams & desires, add new skills eg. French/kungfu/piloting/etc?

Q4?
Are we the sum of our memories?
What is home?
What comprises/constitutes our narratives of home?
(Especially in this planetary fable of protecting home 'Terra-tory'.)

Noteworthy too: neural tele-transmitters awareness: a next step in surveillance / thought enaction / etc similar to the one mentioned? eg. recent news http://www.washington.edu/news/2013/0...

Hopefully more question-filtering / suggestions over the GMTs' 12 hours til chat time?

Thanks Ping for an excellent summary.

For tweet length filtering, how about:

Q1: Who is Doug? What is his Identity?

Q2: What is the difference between remembering an experience and an implanted one?

Q3: Are we programmable?

Q4: Are we the sum of our memories?

Q5: What comprises/constitutes our narratives of home?

Super!

"Inject life and emotion into your memories". Where does this quote come from? Dystopian sci fi short story? Or smartphone advert? This story made me think to what extent are we in, or getting towards, the world of Rekal Incorporated? See also, Samsung Galaxy's, "A phone that follows your every move".