[Guest]

If you make a clone of yourself with your own memeries how can you prove that you are the orignal and not the clone??

[Guest]

If you cloned yourself and had the same genetic makeup and memories one could still tell who was who. Your body would bear the marks of its environment, scars, tattoos and other injuries. Your clone would be a perfect genetic replicate of your body.

[Guest]

I expect the clone would be younger too. And more evil, or is that just in films?

If it was such a perfect clone that you couldn't tell the difference, would it even matter? Both you and the clone would be convinced you are the real one. Imagine if something like that happened and it turned out the clone was you? Bummer.

[Guest]

If you didn’t have enough money for a full size clone you could make one 1/10 your size for 1/10 the cost.

[bonanova]

You and the clone would know who you [and s/he] are.

Once the clone becomes a separate entity - that is, after

your memory was copied to the clone - your individual

memories follow separate paths.

The clone would have the memory of your decision to create it,

and of making the preparations, right up until the memory

was copied. You would have the memory of the events that

followed - from your perspective - and the same for the clone.

You would remember observing the clone coming into existence

and beginning to function. The clone would remember being

the object of that observation. And so forth, going forward.

I also agree with the scars argument.

[Guest]

You would remember observing the clone coming into existence

and beginning to function.

i like that, it makes sense. Except the clone may be covinced they are the real you... it would be a hard job trying to convince them otherwise...

[Guest]

Your clone wouldn't have the memory of waiting for your clone to grow.

[Guest]

Not to spoil a fun game.

A human clone (theoretically possible if not quite feasible just yet) would of necessity simply be an exact copy of your genetic make up (your 46 Chromosomes and 30,000 odd genes). It would have to go through the whole birth and growing up process. It would thus have a different physical brain make up/structure - different neural pathways - UNLESS you could engineer things so that it also had EXACTLY the same experiences as you. If not, then imprinting your memories (not remotely feasible at present) onto him/her would be impossible - Different brain pathways would move the impulses in different directions; thus different thoughts - who knows what garbage you would end up with.

As suggested, yes also differences such as scars etc.

So we can drop the memories idea, as well as the same age clone concept (Unless you are cloned at conception - Hmm), and leave that to science-fiction. Perhaps the realm of science-fantasy even.

The clone would be nothing more (although through rather special circumstances) than an identical twin, nothing more, nothing less. Pretty cool though.

But back to the thought experiment

If all that were possible: An exact clone with perfect implanted memories up to the moment of cloning. Thus two perfect copies of the same person.

Would the BE the same person?

And if not how could you tell which was the original?

Would it matter?

Technically if not practically testable (unless thought of before hand perhaps?) one could immediately examine the matter which makes up the two individuals. One (the clone) would have to be made up of new matter (whatever elements etc. were brought in to the cloned-you soup ). You would (mostly) be comprised of the same elements, particles as before.

And yes, again, the clone would not have the defects (or improvements, or simply alterations - such as tattoos, piercings or results of diet and exercise...) as the original you would have.

So no you would not be the same person, not exactly. And over time you would both be, what I once read and liked in a book on philosophy on this matter, a "Surviver" of your past self. Eventually every single atom of your being will be replaced (numerous times) by new ones. So too for your clone. So eventually neither of you would be "the same" or the original.

Of course, from that moment on you would become more and more individual, each having your own experiences - as minor at first of one standing to the left and one to the right of a duplicate of oneself.

In the end I don't think it would matter much. Initially perhaps it would; who gets the house, the car, the Wife?!

Now to the previous posts:

Your clone wouldn't have the memory of waiting for your clone to grow.

An easy fix. Render both completely unconscious once cloning is complete. Copy the brain patterns/memories. Implant them in the clone. Wake both copies up. Thus both copies will have PRECISELY the same memories up to exactly the same point (moment of unconsciousness) on waking!

This leads me to think of Lastthursdayism; the pseudo belief/religion that the universe was created last Thursday with all the past evidence as well as our own past memories created at that point in time as well. How would we know? How would our clone know that his memories were implants and not genuine experiences?!

I think the best bet would be to determine which one gets to keep the "spoils" of the jointly recalled life, and which one forges a new life from therein out (presumably the clone, but I am including determining which one this is in whatever way). And decide this, that is have the person to be cloned decide this, before his memories are copied. Thus both copies will be in on the deal.

EDIT: Oh and it's "Paradox"

Edited March 24, 2008 by ADParker

[Guest]

Yeah. You would know who. The clone may remember all the past you've been and everything. What if you're inlove right now. The clone wont be then. And you're clone would just be physically the same, but would manifest different reactions to each situations. I mean, including emotions. If you're a happy person, your clone might be not. And the people who know you could tell but not strangers. We have certain mannerisms right. I believe God made us unique. So, there would always be manifestations for that