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Introduction
There are many versions in the telling of the myth of Pandora's box. Was it a box or a jar? Was it full of blessings or curses? Who opened the box, Pandora or someone else? As a myth, I'm not sure it matters. The contents were unknown and curiosity opened it. A decade ago, I noticed an odd reaction in my own body. I got curious. I opened the box. From it came body communication. From it came awareness that I'm not alone in my own body. The population is vast, and we're all just trying to live collectively, as all multicellular life does. Sentience and consciousness are lines that societies have drawn in the sand for all of human history. Racists enslaved others through the justification of a lack of sentience, claiming those that did not look like them were more like animals. They draw the line between their own cultures and other races. Others draw the line between humans and non-humans, or primates and non-primates. Those that bond with their pets and other creatures, that spend time with them and get to know them, frequently draw the line further back than that. Humans have many advantages by just happening to grow in a configuration that allows us to think in ways that let us dominate the planet. No species can affect as much environmental change as quickly as a human can. We are not, however, the only creatures that do that. None of what we are is special. A question has been asked for centuries: How does a pile of head meat produce the experience of consciousness. As I have found, that's what piles of meat do. Consciousness solves problems, so when the body has a problem, it puts a consciousness on top of it. I'm the one that moves the meat around, but I'm not the only one that lives here. My awareness is primarily external. They do other things. Their memories are different from mine. Their world is different. But we all live together, and there's no where else to go. At least now I'm aware of my roommates. My job, now, is to be a better one. I got curious and opened Pandora's box. I never know what to expect. Everything is different now, and it just keeps changing. I'm evolving. Into what, I do not know, but I'm in it for the long haul and enjoying the ride. |
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