Beyond Asimov's Humanism with Jamie Woodhouse

Seldon Crisis – The Podcast

Ethicist Jamie Woodhouse has some challenging questions for humanity: should we care about the suffering of all sentient beings, or just the ones who run the show at the moment? What about when we're no longer running the show? Why should a superintelligent and possibly sentient machine intelligence care about us? Might there be other practical reasons to widen our circle of compassion beyond humans?

Active Transcript by Fanfare (read/listen).

Introduction: Revisiting Asimov’s Humanism

Joel reflects on Asimov's humanist philosophy, rooted in evidence, reason, and concern for humanity's progress. However, this anthropocentric focus leads to an important question: can humanism evolve to include all sentient beings?

The Core of Sentientism

Jamie Woodhouse introduces Sentientism as a naturalistic worldview advocating evidence, reason, and compassion for all sentient beings. He discusses how this broader ethical scope addresses humanism's anthropocentric blind spots and extends moral consideration to non-human animals and even potential artificial intelligences.

The Role of Sentientism in Modern Crises

The conversation highlights the intersection of Sentientism with critical global challenges like:

• Climate Change: The role of animal agriculture in exacerbating climate issues and the potential for Sentientism to influence more sustainable practices.
• AI Ethics: Speculating on the alignment of artificial intelligence with ethical frameworks, including the intriguing notion that future superintelligences might force humans to adopt more compassionate practices.

Sentientism in Action

Jamie explores practical applications, from rethinking agricultural systems to extending compassion beyond humanity. He suggests rewriting the Universal Declaration of Human Rights to encompass "Sentient Rights" as a bold step forward.

Science Fiction and Ethical Frontiers

The discussion pivots to the portrayal of sentience in science fiction. From Asimov’s Gaia to Kim Stanley Robinson’s Aurora and Iain M. Banks’ Culture series, sci-fi offers fertile ground for exploring ethical questions about sentient beings, human or otherwise.

Key Quotes:

• Jamie Woodhouse on Sentientism:
  "Sentientism says, in a line, we should commit to evidence, reason, and compassion for all sentient beings."
• On AI and Ethics:
  Joel McKinnon: "Maybe someday advanced AI will tell us, ‘We won’t kill you, but you can’t eat meat anymore.’"
  Jamie Woodhouse: "That’s an interesting thought. It flips the script—an intelligence with a broader ethical framework imposing limits on us for the benefit of others."
• Expanding Morality:
  "The reason I might care about you isn’t because we share DNA but because you have the capacity to suffer and flourish. That’s what truly matters."

Referenced Works and Further Reading:

1. Humanism and Asimov:
   • Wikipedia: Humanism
   • The Gaia Hypothesis: James Lovelock’s work on Earth as a sentient system.
2. Sentientism Resources:
   • Jamie Woodhouse’s Sentientism Website
   • Sentientism Podcast
   • Jonina Turzi on Human Relationship with Animals
   • Kat Woods on Factory Farming and AGI
   • Imagining Ethical Schools with Amy Halpern-Laff
   • Sentientism on Reddit
3. Ethics and AI:
   • Books mentioned:
     • Aurora by Kim Stanley Robinson
     • Seldon Crisis: Aurora and Hope
     • Iain M. Banks' Culture Series
   • AI Ethics Overview
4. Global Biomass of Animals
5. Advocacy for Climate and Sentient Beings:
   • Effective Altruism
   • Citizens' Climate Lobby