Ask A Genius 1385: Simulated Minds, Synthetic Suffering, and Corporate Superpowers
Author(s): Rick Rosner and Scott Douglas Jacobsen
Publication (Outlet/Website): Ask A Genius
Publication Date (yyyy/mm/dd): 2025/05/15
Rick Rosner is an accomplished television writer with credits on shows like Jimmy Kimmel Live!, Crank Yankers, and The Man Show. Over his career, he has earned multiple Writers Guild Award nominations—winning one—and an Emmy nomination. Rosner holds a broad academic background, graduating with the equivalent of eight majors. Based in Los Angeles, he continues to write and develop ideas while spending time with his wife, daughter, and two dogs.
Scott Douglas Jacobsen is the publisher of In-Sight Publishing (ISBN: 978-1-0692343) and Editor-in-Chief of In-Sight: Interviews (ISSN: 2369-6885). He writes for The Good Men Project, International Policy Digest (ISSN: 2332–9416), The Humanist (Print: ISSN 0018-7399; Online: ISSN 2163-3576), Basic Income Earth Network (UK Registered Charity 1177066), A Further Inquiry, and other media. He is a member in good standing of numerous media organizations.
Scott Douglas Jacobsen and Rick Rosner explore the future of cognitive simulation, proposing virtual experimentation on high-level brain models. He questions the ethical implications of synthetic consciousness in entertainment and notes the staggering power of tech giants—like Google—whose computational capacity rivals nation-states, raising alarms about corporate dominance over national sovereignty and human dignity.
Scott Douglas Jacobsen: Our minds will someday be so small relative to what’s possible, but what’s understood in terms of structure and process, that we could take the equivalent of a snapshot—a cognitive capture.
That’ll probably function a century from now. But simulating a mind would mean guessing the states of a trillion connections between neurons, systems, and processes.
But I want to stand by the principle of simulatability. That is, even now, in principle, we can approximate cognition. So, I am saying to simulate a brain at a high level and then experiment on it virtually.
Advertisement
Privacy Settings
You run naturalistic experiments in simulation. For instance, “What happens if we strike this region of the brain with a hammer?” You could observe outcomes, test hypotheses, and refine models.
Of course, you’d need massive computation and approximation—maybe making it a thousand times less detailed than the real thing. But yes, in essence, it’s coming. It comes up in some science fiction—the rights of synthetic consciousnesses within video games.
Are we going to allow conscious beings to be created in the context of disposable entertainment, let them go through hell, and then just delete them, without compensation or recognition?
One more—this just came up. Google is using computational power equivalent to that of the fifth-largest country in the world. So these multinational corporations—I don’t even know what to do with them anymore—are the real players, not the countries.
Rick Rosner: This is increasingly true. But the countries still have nukes, land, and people. So, in the end, it’ll be a battle for their lives and resources.
Last updated May 3, 2025. These terms govern all In Sight Publishing content—past, present, and future—and supersede any prior notices. In Sight Publishing by Scott Douglas Jacobsen is licensed under a Creative Commons BY‑NC‑ND 4.0; © In Sight Publishing by Scott Douglas Jacobsen 2012–Present. All trademarks, performances, databases & branding are owned by their rights holders; no use without permission. Unauthorized copying, modification, framing or public communication is prohibited. External links are not endorsed. Cookies & tracking require consent, and data processing complies with PIPEDA & GDPR; no data from children < 13 (COPPA). Content meets WCAG 2.1 AA under the Accessible Canada Act & is preserved in open archival formats with backups. Excerpts & links require full credit & hyperlink; limited quoting under fair-dealing & fair-use. All content is informational; no liability for errors or omissions: Feedback welcome, and verified errors corrected promptly. For permissions or DMCA notices, email: scott.jacobsen2025@gmail.com. Site use is governed by BC laws; content is “as‑is,” liability limited, users indemnify us; moral, performers’ & database sui generis rights reserved.
In-Sight Publishing 