Is your tulpa alive?

[Michen_S]

Those are interesting criteria. I want to break them down just a little bit. Now, even without the ability of posession and switching, I meet a bunch of the criteria.

 

1. The ability to reproduce

Not this one, obviously.

 

2. The ability to respond to stimuli

3. The ability to communicate

These are easy. Both points count. Just like Michen, I can react to thinks happening around him. I know what's going on. And of course, I can clearly communicate. Even though it might be only by relay to others, with Michen saying what I want to say, but I can communicate with Michen directly.

 

4. The ability to evolve (and adapt)

5. The ability to grow

Point 4 kinda ties in with the "respond to stimuli" part. If I know what's happening around me, I can adapt to the situation. And of course, Michen's experiences shaped me as well. It developed me, so to say. Not to mention I did a lot of growing already to get to this point, even when my form hasn't actually gotten bigger. But I've grown stronger mentally, or something similar. Either way, we're counting both.

 

6. The ability to metabolise

Metabolise what? I'm not physical, there is nothing to metabolise.

 

7. The ability to move

Yes, I can move. I can dance, walk, jump, climb, do whatever. Though, I'm somewhat limited to this as I can't seem to stray too far from Michen, whether imposed or in mindscape.

 

8. The ability to regulate internal (chemical) processes

A little bit. Though what I can do without a physical body is a little limited, I can regulate Michen's emotions somewhat. And since Michen is the main of the body I am part of, that should count half?

 

9. Being physically separated from the environment

Um, no.

 

This would give a score of five-and-a-half. So, according to this criteria, I'd be somewhat alive. I didn't need to go through all of that to know I was actually alive though. You see, I can affect things as a living being. I can (indirectly) talk to people and give Michen advise about a course of action so he's more likely to do something. But I affect Michen most of all. It may not be much, and I might be limited in things, but to him I'm definitely alive no matter whether I'm actually "a living thing" or not. To Michen I'm definitely alive.

[solarchariot]

Ember, thanks for the thoughts on thermodynamics- I hadn't considered it quite that way, precisely.

 

Werhter, finding articles on this stuff is difficult. You would think that would be all there is, articles on this weird stuff. Some of it has been used to create materials with negative indexes, literally material that can become invisible because they do 'unnatural' stuff with light. Then again, maybe that's why it's difficult to find stuff on this. (In hind sight, I see a joke there, but I meant, this stuff would be highly coveted and classified, cause the guys with this tech, own the world. (The James Bond car that could cloak was based on real tech, in the movie it suggested cameras, but scientist have materials that redirect light so well you can't see the thing.) The first time I saw this 'stuff' was on an episode of "Through the Wormhole" by Morgan Freeman. I don't remember the episode.

 

This following website discusses only one of them. This is cool stuff, but just one of the 'weird' things that was shown as a real thing... not nannites, but seriously so scary at abilities to reproduce itself, you can imagine a horror story where this stuff gets lose in the environment and, well, game over.

 

https://bigthink.com/surprising-science/scientists-create-a-lifelike-material-that-has-metabolism-and-can-self-reproduce

 

 

Edited January 11, 2020 by solarchariot

[Jamie]

Wull... my kneejerk response is that, I'm not alive, my body is. "I" am a process being run by my body. 

Those qualities of life, to me, are for considering entire populations. I'm infertile, so are young children, but clearly babies are alive- they just can't reproduce yet. 

 

In response to Michen, what about an intrusive thought? I know some people consider intrusives to be non-thinking, non-processing, but I do not. I can engage intrusives in conversations, or they may repeatedly engage with my own conversation/monolouge without my consent. Even the most fleeting summoning up of a character, in my head, is instantly 4th-wall breaking and I'll even say sentient. They can think, act, adapt, move. 

 

Life isn't in the personality, imo, it's in the physical body, and we give it to entire populations. Humans are living things, even if some individual specimens can't reproduce, even if some cannot communicate or adapt from birth. And tulpas are human. Even intrusives are human- anything produced out of the human brain is a human thing. 

 

If it stops when you kill the brain, it was part of the living thing, would be my kinda makeshift test. If you kill the body, the tulpa is also gone and dead- so the tulpa was alive. 

 

1) Humans are lifeforms

2) Anything produced from the human brain is human
3) Tulpas are produced from the human brain (may be false with metaphysical/spiritual/occult beliefs) 

so

4) Tulpas are human

5) Tulpas are alive

 

-J

 

[RachelTheFictionkin]

As someone who believes that their headmates are soulbonds and not tulpas, I believe they are alive and off doing their own things in their own worlds. They are able to think, feel, and experience things separate from my body. They are just another living, breathing person that happen to use my mind as a way to communicate with me.