Interesting discussion here, but I just want to highlight one point: consciousness happens not because of the brain, but actually of his interaction with the external world.
So Designing a brain won't make consciousness. If constructing a brain model needs $1.61Bn, then constructing the virtual world might need a dozen and may be more. After that, uploading a brain copy to the brain computer and a world copy to the world computer will create a real person like you.
No one actually can prove his existence. We are a bunch of mixed senses. And since this can be a stimulation, we can't prove that we are real and we do exist. Certainly, you can know who is behind you (and probably there is someone); but only by committing suicide.
But an interesting question that pops in my mind: Does our world allow more than one self-awareness existence? That is, if I upload my mind to a computer which is stimulating my same world, wouldn't it be me?
So Designing a brain won't make consciousness. If constructing a brain model needs $1.61Bn, then constructing the virtual world might need a dozen and may be more. After that, uploading a brain copy to the brain computer and a world copy to the world computer will create a real person like you.
No one actually can prove his existence. We are a bunch of mixed senses. And since this can be a stimulation, we can't prove that we are real and we do exist. Certainly, you can know who is behind you (and probably there is someone); but only by committing suicide.
But an interesting question that pops in my mind: Does our world allow more than one self-awareness existence? That is, if I upload my mind to a computer which is stimulating my same world, wouldn't it be me?