(Go read: it's short, good fiction, and the rest of this essay will still be here when you get back.) It's a short story, structured as a Wikipedia monograph, and absolutely horrifying by implication, for various reasons. Here's qntm's take on the early years of mind uploading-the process of digitizing the connectome of a human brain in order to treat it as software: I strongly suggest you read Lena (if you haven't previously done so) before continuing. SF authors are paid to think our way around the outside of ideas, so it's always worth raiding the used fiction bin for side-effects and consequences. Which leads me to ask: in a transhumanist society-go read Accelerando, or Glasshouse, or The Rapture of the Nerds-what currently recognized crimes need to be re-evaluated because their social impact has changed? And what strange new crimes might universally be recognized by a society with, for example, mind uploading, strong AI, or near-immortality? Society implies a social contract, that is: we grant one another rights and in return make the concession of respecting each others' rights, in order that our own rights be observed and respected.Īnd violations of rights tend to be at the root of our concept of crime and injustice-at least, any modern concept of crime once we discard religious justifications and start trying to figure things out from first principles. Humans are social animals, and it seems reasonable to assume that any transhuman condition we can wrap our minds around will also be a social one for most of its participants. You may also anoint with an appropriate oil and use as an offering to a deity or saint in order to petition them and receive their blessings.(Disclaimer: I am a transhumanist skeptic these days, not to mention a singularity curmudgeon and a critic of Mars colonization, but I still find these ideas nice to chew on sometimes.) Keep the ashes and add them to your mojo bag. You can anoint one of these bills with your favorite wealth or luck oil from Conjured Cardea and then burn it to bring good luck and money to your home or business. Joss Paper is used in some Asian rituals and holiday observances, and sometimes for Feng Shui. People believe that even in the earthy court, spirits need to use money.Ī story says that the word hell was introduced to China by Christian missionaries, who preached that all non-Christian Chinese people would “go to hell” when they died, and through a case of misinterpretation, it was believed that the word “Hell” was the proper English term for the afterlife, and hence the word was adopted. After being judged they are either escorted to heaven or sent into the maze of underground levels and chambers to atone for their sins. On the back of each bill, it features a portrait of the bank of Hell.“ The word hell on hell bank notes refers to Diyu meaning "Underworld Court.” In traditional Chinese beliefs, it is thought to be where the souls of the dead are first judged by the Lord of the Earthly Court. On every bill, it features an image of the Jade Emperor, the presiding monarch of heaven in Taoism and his Western signature (Yu Wong, or Yuk Wong) countersigned by Yanluo, King of Hell (Yen Loo).
In Singapore, it is extremely common to find 10 billion dollar banknotes in shops. Regardless of the presentation, Hell Bank Notes are also known for their large denominations, ranging from $10,000, $100,000, $1,000,000 or even $500,000,000. In Chinese cultures, the hell bank note has no special name or status, and is simply regarded and referred to as yet another form of joss paper (冥幣, 紙錢, 金紙). Hell bank notes are a more modern form of joss paper, an afterlife monetary paper offering used in traditional Chinese ancestor veneration, that can be printed in the style of western or Chinese paper bank notes.
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