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Arthur C Clarke:

BRAIN BACKUP

Sir Arthur often explored the idea of backing up or transferring the human brain on to a computer.

In his book 3001: The Final Odyssey he wrote of future beings: "As soon as their machines were better than their bodies, it was time to move.

"First their brains, and then their thoughts alone, they transferred into shining new homes of metal and of gemstone."

"In these they roamed the galaxy. They no longer built spaceships - they were spaceships"


Sir Arthur C Clarke

Radio Four: Sir Arthur C Clarke - Science and Fiction
It was an idea he thought would be useful for people wanting to pass their memories and personalities on at the end of their lives.

"When their bodies begin to deteriorate you transfer their thoughts so their personalities would be immortal," he told the BBC in 2005. "Just save it on a CD-Rom and plug it in - simple!"

Although scientists have not quite reached this stage yet, projects are starting to lay the foundations.

For example Gordon Bell, a researcher at Microsoft, is working on a project called MyLifeBits which aims to digitally store "a lifetime's worth of articles, books, cards, CDs, letters, memos, papers, photos, pictures, presentations, home movies, videotaped lectures, and voice recordings"

The latest version of the project also allows him to capture phone calls, instant messenger transcripts, television, and radio to build up a virtual surrogate memory of his life.