Ghosts in the Shell…

Author: Simon Louvaki

Original post: https://forums.eveonline.com/t/ghost-in-the-shell-genetic-memory-and-its-effects-on-immortality/403449

Entry for YC125 New Eden Capsuleer’s Writing Contest in the Academic/News/Gossip category.

=========================== ///////// UPLOADING \\\\ =========================== Ghost in the Shell: Genetic Memory and it’s effects on Immortality By: Simon Malcov Louvaki Published by Scientific State, a subsidiary of the Hyasyoda Okusaika 04.24 YC 124

::REVISED AND RESUBMITTED on 04.25. YC 124::

============ [Section I] ============

RE: Synapse Burnout and relation to genetic memory in Capsuleers

The advent of capsule technology has broken the chain of life and death and ultimately the continuation of genetic memory in that particular strand of human DNA. To quote statistics from CONCORD:

“Only 14 percent of all those who apply are able to make it past prescreening into basic training, and only around 5 percent of those manage to make it through the entire program and go on to become capsuleers. Prospective candidates must satisfy a broad range of criteria, including but not limited to: 20/20 vision, perfect hearing, blood pressure within a highly limited range, peak physical conditioning (able to run at least 60 kilometers without pause), a complete genome profile that excludes any possibility of genetic defects or hereditary disease, ninety-eighth percentile intelligence, a degree in a sufficiently advanced technical field, and, provided no grants or scholarships are in the picture, an enormous amount of money. Above all, the candidate must possess an ability to keep his mind working along several different tracks at once, giving full attention to all of them simultaneously.”

To become an immortal, one must be at the peak of natural human evolution, so much so that on a galactic scale it is akin to a bead of sweat dropped into the largest planetary ocean. Why is it then that so many of that small number seem to go mad or otherwise suffer from psychosis?

To examine this one must first have a layman’s understanding of just how the technology implanted in our brains works. To put it simply, the trans-neural echo burn scanner [TEBS] implanted within our skulls fires a pulse which captures and creates a downloadable engram or ‘snapshot’ of the users’ brain at the moment the capsules hull integrity has been breached and downloaded into a clone grown from our own genetic material. This is what we call Synapse Burnout, as it isn’t the destruction of the capsule that kills us, it’s the implant in our brain that effectively scorches our organic matter in the process of creating the engram. In other words, we kill ourselves, regardless of mitigating outside factors.

Official data from CONCORD puts the transaction between death and renewed life in a clone vat to be nanoseconds, creating what is in practice a single continuance of consciousness. For many capsuleers, particularly those in war zones, experiences what would otherwise be generations of life in perpetual continuation having never ‘truly’ experienced a grizzly death unlike their baseline crews. This publication however will show that despite the artificial immortality granted to humanity by Capsule technology we are not wholly free from the effects of a death we never experience.

To do this, I will first establish the foundations of my argument using the scientific and psychological theory of genetic memory and follow with supporting evidence through observations of capsuleer behavior that I posit is directly linked experiences the brain experiences and is thus captured by the TEBS prior to capsuleer rebirth.

============ [Section II] ============

RE: What is Genetic Memory

The concept of genetic memory is an utterly fascinating topic.

On a broad scale we are introduced to a theory in which sets of memories are inherited at birth but are absent of any associated sensory data which has been incorporated into the genome over vast expanses of time. [1] In ancient societies and even some modern-day religious institutions this is explained with mysticism, such as guidance from God in Ammarian Theology or the Winds in Caldari Wayism. Such notions of having understandings and instincts without firsthand knowledge has always been an enticement to humanity and as we have advanced in apprehension as a universal race, we have pushed the bounds of human understating beyond the superstitious veil.

Examples of genetic memory can be found across both human and animal species. For example, a study conducted by scientists of the Science and Trade Institute found that the gene known for producing perfect pitch was found in higher concentration among the native population of Caldari Prime where pitch is critical to the spoken word of Nappanii than anywhere else in the Caldari State. Psychologists explain this by noting that while Nappanii is spoken by billions across the entirety of the State, it is found in significantly higher concentrations on the Caldari home world where the language is not just primary but near exclusive among its denizens. This contrasts with the greater cosmopolitan State where the nature of Caldari business practices require the knowledge of sometimes dozens of different languages and dialects. [2]

Furthermore in the study “Absolute Pitch, Speech, and Tonal Language: Some Experiments and a Proposed Framework” by Dr. Dianna Deutch, Trevor Henthorn and Mark Dolson provides additional sampling which “[…] describe two experiments in which native speakers of tone languages— Nappanii and similiar Caldari derivatives—were found to display a remarkably precise and stable form of absolute pitch in enunciating words. We further describe a third experiment in which native Amaarian speakers displayed less stability on an analogous task. Based on these findings, and considering the related literatures on critical periods in speech development, and the neurological underpinnings of lexical tone, we propose a framework for the genesis of absolute pitch […]” which highlights how the Caldari people as a whole exhibit a penchant for perfect pitch compared to the other races of New Eden. [A1]

Another example, this time in animals, was found in the adaptability of the Amarrian Fedo. Discovered by Amarrian colonists in the caves of Palpis their ability to serve as organic disposal units as well as exist for extended times in a vacuum made them popular on Amarrian starships as a cheap means of sanitation maintenance. With a lifespan of only a few weeks, this encouraged the mass capture and breeding of these creatures almost exclusively on ships and stations far away from their natural habitat. [3]

Khanid researchers from Hedion University completed a study comparing the adaptability of Fedos born in their natural environment to those born exclusively on stations and ships. What that study ultimately found was that when planet side Fedos were incubated in the unfamiliar environment of space stations and ships their survivability was significantly lower than in their home world environment. In contrast when the spaceborne Fedos incubated back on Palpis there was no significant difference in the survivability despite having never been exposed to that environment prior. [3][A2]

In that study researchers found that “[.…] that while many mutation-induced phenotypic changes were necessary when the animals first adapted to the environment of space ships and stations, plastic changes largely transformed the transcriptomes to the preferred state when space faring Fedos were brought back to their ancestral environment.” [A2]

These are just two instances of genetic memory; however, they serve as distinct examples of how the concept is applied in nature. One could even go as far as using this as an explanation for mankind’s inherent uneasiness surrounding the ‘uncanny valley’ which is further supported by observations of Saamelaiski Basin Rabbits who’s young seem to associate the musk of the predatory Kenko with danger without having ever been exposed to such a theat. [4]

============ [Section III] ============

Re: Death within life

With an understanding of what genetic memory is, we now pivot to how it affects the Immortal capsuleer and their tendency to develop psychopathy. How could genetic memory play a part in such a development when the requirements for being a capsuleer is physical and psychological perfection? The answer is astoundingly simple; It is caused by the fragments of death that compound upon each other as genetic memory carried over from each synapse burnout that ultimately simulates the death and birth of generations and the trauma that ultimately is carried forward with each burn and subsequent death.

Despite never ‘experiencing’ mental or psychological death, our bodies do in fact die and each burn is captured in even minuscule scraps of data. The TEBS implant does exactly as marketed, but in the end can not shield the overall mental state of the capsuleer forever. Consciousness is never ‘broken’ as far as the capsuleer is aware, but there is no way of eliminating the experience from the brain. With the rate of death and rebirth among capsuleers we begin to witness just how quickly this genetic memory begins to affect the overall psyche of the subject.

The manifestations of this genetic memory, now turned genetic trauma, vary widely depending on the capsuleer, the circumstances of death, and how many times the capsuleer has died. My research team and I have observed combat veterans in particular suffering from post-traumatic stress disorders despite their lives never being truly endangered, which we believe is the result of the brain recognizing that it has died innumerable times without the capsuleer themselves ever having the experienced a break in consciousness. Others, such as I, have developed a number of physical ticks such as hand tremors without any physical disabilities having existed prior.

In an interview with Scope News, Professor Marcus Pembrey of the Center for Advanced Studies had this to say - "It is high time public health researchers took human transgenerational responses seriously.” with regard to topic of genetic memory and the effects it has on future generations. Proffessor Pembrey was speaking on the results gathered from the previous referenced rabbit and Kenko experiment, stating further that the research was “highly relevant to phobias, anxiety and post-traumatic stress disorders.” [A3}

Where others simply believe that capsuleers lose touch with reality by virtue of their immortality alone, I believe we are still human and deserving of answers rather than simplistic platitudes. The answer I’ve found can be explained in how our brains collect experiences that are then transferred and relived through each subsequent cloning regardless of our overall awareness.

============ [Conclusion] ============

The danger should be evident now. The compounding experience of death after death and psychological scarring carried forward through innumerable clones ultimately changes the very baseline DNA of the person being cloned until it ultimately becomes an irremovable part of the capsuleers very being. Much as how the rabbit inherently knows to fear the smell of the Kenko the capsuleer will become genetically predisposed to psychopathy.

In conclusion I believe that by understanding the role genetic memory plays in both animals and baseline humans we can better understand the inevitable decline, we capsuleers seem doomed to experience by preemptively addressing the underlying psychological issues that are carried over from each death that don’t manifest until it is often too late and becomes genetically embedded in our very DNA.

============ ============

= = = = = = = = = = = About the author:

Born in the Khanid Kingdom, Dr. Simon Malcov Louvaki is a graduate of the School of Applied Knowledge, Research Associate with Itsukame-Zainou Hyperspatial Inquires LTD., Executor of Louvaki Family Holdings LLC and C.E.O. of the Sengokuvaa Kaltiovon. As a capsuleer he was awarded the Muruyia’s Wings for his service to the Caldari State during the Battle of Caldari Prime and has since devoted his wealth and efforts into furthering scientific research for the betterment of humanity.

Dr. Louvaki is also author of The Cost of Freedom which examines the complex social and political ramifications of the Matari Emancipation by Empress Jamyl Sarrum. = = = = = = = = = = =

[1] Rodolfo R. Llinas (YC103). I of the vortex: from neurons to self. MIT Press. pp. 190–191

[2] Reference: E. Glenn Schellenberg, Sandra E. Trehub (YC110). Is There an Caldari advantage for Pitch Memory? Music Perception, 25 (3), 241-252 DOI: 10.1525/mp.2008.25.3.241 2

[3] Reference: Ho, Li, Zhu and Zhang. (YC122). Phenotypic plasticity as a long-term memory easing readaptations to ancestral environments. Science Advances. DOI: 10.1126/sciadv.aba3388.

[4] Reference: Callaway, E. Fearful memories haunt rabbit descendants. Nature (YC115). h ttps://doi.org/10.1038/nature.2013.14272

REFERENCES IN ADDENDUM: Post original additions to the publication resulting from peer scrutiny.

[A1] Deutsch, Diana; Henthorn, Trevor (YC106). “Absolute Pitch, Speech, and Tone Language: Some Experiments and a Proposed Framework” 1. Music Perception . 21 (3): 339–356. doi:10.1525/mp.2004.21.3.339

[A2] Herdon University. “Past is prologue: Genetic ‘memory’ of ancestral environments helps organisms readapt.” ScienceDaily. ScienceDaily, 22 May YC 122.

[A3] Interview with Proffessor Marcus Pembrey with The Scope in (‘Memories’ pass between generations - Scope News)