Self replicating servitors

[LittleTulpa]

Imagine this: Scientists create self replicating nano bots to clean up an oil spill. They use the matter they consume to create copies of themselves. But something is wrong with its programming: it was programmed to consume everything containing carbon. The bots are activated and effectivly consume all life on earth.

 

That is called the 'Grey goo scenario', and would probably not happen, but what if this could happen with a servitor? The host creates a servitor to self replicate itself, maybe NPC's with the ability to reporduce. These NPC's are 'programmed' wrong and instead of reporducing themselves slowly through sexual means, instead rapidly split like bacteria. First it's one that splits into two, those two split into four, they split into eight and so on.

 

It might seem highly improbable because of the fact that hosts have complete control, but I find that I cant dissapate intrusive thoughts that easily, maybe the creator of the self replicating servitors wouldent be able to get rid of the servitors.

 

Any ideas?

[FallFamily]

I say yes, with some major caveats. The process would be very slow, meaning someone else in the system could probably stop it before it could get out of hand. Basically, each time one of the servitors made another, that another would take some time before it was fully functional. In essence, the servitor that made it would have to go through the servitor making process to make a replicate, which would take some time. And then there is another issue, parallel processing limits might really begin to limit them at some point as well. Making that first servitor would be very difficult because you would have to puppet it to make another servitor. There are a lot of things that could go wrong in that process such as accidentally doing the puppeting of the new servitor instead of puppeting the first servitor to puppet the second. So, basically, someone would have to be really good at making servitors to have a chance, and would hopefully have the better sense to not do it (then again, I am kind of an example of someone who should have had the better sense to not make some of my servitors but made them anyways). If they succeeded, the process would be very slow, and would slow further once parallel processing limitations get hit.

 

- Hail

[LittleTulpa]

I say yes, with some major caveats. The process would be very slow, meaning someone else in the system could probably stop it before it could get out of hand. Basically, each time one of the servitors made another, that another would take some time before it was fully functional. In essence, the servitor that made it would have to go through the servitor making process to make a replicate, which would take some time. And then there is another issue, parallel processing limits might really begin to limit them at some point as well. Making that first servitor would be very difficult because you would have to puppet it to make another servitor. There are a lot of things that could go wrong in that process such as accidentally doing the puppeting of the new servitor instead of puppeting the first servitor to puppet the second. So, basically, someone would have to be really good at making servitors to have a chance, and would hopefully have the better sense to not do it (then again, I am kind of an example of someone who should have had the better sense to not make some of my servitors but made them anyways). If they succeeded, the process would be very slow, and would slow further once parallel processing limitations get hit.

 

- Hail

 

Thats a really good point, and I didnt think of that. What if all of the servitors were part of one single entity though? Honestly this is starting to get far fetched but atleast we are looking at the limits of a servitor.

[FallFamily]

Just thought of another issue, actually, that makes it impossible. So, you make the first servitor and have to puppet it making a replicate. But for it to do that, it must puppet that servitor to make another replicate, so then the maker is puppetting a servitor puppetting a servitor puppetting a servitor ... and so on. Basically, it means you have an infinite chain of puppetting, which cannot be done.

 

So, I must revise my vote. No, it is not possible.

 

-- Hail