Conversation

Imagine an Atom Scattering Machine completely disassembles your body’s atoms into a cloud of floating atoms. Then it perfectly reassembles the atoms, and you walk out feeling totally normal. Is the new you still you? (detailed scientific visual depiction below)

Yes
66.2%
No
33.8%

98,209 votesFinal results

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899

7,153

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Full discussion:

What Makes You You? — Wait But Why

What is it that makes you you? Your body? Your brain? The info in your brain? Your soul? It turns out this is not an easy question.

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Tim Urban

@waitbutwhy

Mar 11, 2022

For those who answered “yes”: What if instead of disassembling you, we just did step 2 and 3, gathering those same atoms somewhere else and assembling them into the same exact “you” configuration? Are there two you’s now? If you’re not controlling the body of new you, who is?

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Aella

@Aella_Girl

Replying to

@waitbutwhy

I wrote a short story with this premise!

knowingless.com

Opia

I didn’t believe in teleportation. I didn’t believe in it so much I had to press my hands up next to the teleporter door and vomit loudly into a nearby bin. I watched the last bit of spit yoyo from…

2:33 AM · Mar 11, 2022

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