Loading...Transporters, made popular by the television show Star Trek in 1966 and onward, are a staple of modern science fiction and have appeared in books, movies, television shows, and more. The reason they’re so ubiquitous in science fiction is because teleporting technology would be pretty groundbreaking if it would be invented. Imagine not having to drive anywhere, fly anywhere, being able to get rid of roads and airports and train stations. Teleporters would drastically change our society, but as CGP Grey talks about in the video above, they may pose a significant philosophical problem if invented.
I’ll leave it to CGP Grey to explain the specifics, as he does so well in the video above, but the basics of the problem is in how you are physically transported. Most hypothetical transporters rely on scanning your atoms, disassembling them, sending them to another location, and reassembling them there, but how exactly do you know you are the same person as the one that comes out on the other side? With great animation, interesting content and occasional witty humor, CGP Grey hits it out of the park with this great video on the theoretical complications of transporting technology.