• iglou@programming.dev
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      1 day ago

      No. Hard to define, sure, but definitely not arbitrary. Plenty of research on the topic of sentience.

      • goedel
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        24 hours ago

        what I mean is it’s an arbitrary line to draw. you might choose to draw the line at living things, or terrestrial life, or terrestrial and ocean life. but, arbitrarily, some people choose to draw the line at sentience. the vegan society definition arbitrarily draws the line at animal life.

        • iglou@programming.dev
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          24 hours ago

          Again, it is not arbitrary, it is based on what we understand of sentience. Nothing arbitrary about it.

          • goedel
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            22 hours ago

            it is arbitrary, since you can choose to draw the line in many places.

            • iglou@programming.dev
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              22 hours ago

              That is not what arbitrary means.

              It is a rational decision grounded in scientific research. That is by definition not arbitrary.

              • goedel
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                21 hours ago

                many people choose other lines, and their decisions are equally as arbitrary as someone who draws the line at sentience.