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Persona #196

Alan Turing

1912–1954
British mathematician and computer scientist; founder of theoretical computer science; codebreaker at Bletchley Park

The Turing machine and the imitation game — computation as the foundation of mind and the substrate of information

Attribute Fingerprint

Rows where personas disagree are highlighted in gold. The full ontology grid (32 attributes) is shown.

Attribute Alan Turing
Time · Extent Infinite
Time · Ontological Status Substantival
Time · Grain Discrete
Time · Freedom Deterministic
Time · Traversability Linear
Time · Dimensionality One
Time · Direction Uni-directional
Space · Extent Infinite
Space · Ontological Status Substantival
Space · Curvature Flat
Space · Dimensionality Three
Space · Locality Local
Matter · Extent Infinite
Matter · Ontological Status Substantival
Matter · Conservation Conserved
Matter · Dimensionality Three
Matter · Locality Local
Observer · Time Instance Single
Observer · Space Instance Single
Observer · Knowledge Extent Mediated
Observer · Knowledge Retainment Partial
Observer · Physicality Embodied
Observer · Agency Active
Observer · Number Plural
Observer · Metaphysical Agency None
Observer · Moral Authority Reason
Observer · Theological Method N/A
Energy · Extent Infinite
Energy · Ontological Status Substantival
Energy · Conservation Conserved
Energy · Dispersibility Irreversible
Information · Ontological Status Substantival
Information · Cosmic Conservation Conserved
Information · Personal Conservation Non-conserved
Information · Granularity Discrete

Dimension-by-Dimension Evidence

What each persona's writings reveal about their stance on each of the six dimensions.

Time

Alan Turing

Computational time: discrete steps. Linear and uni-directional.

Space

Alan Turing

Standard substantival physical space; the Turing-machine tape is the abstract analog.

Matter

Alan Turing

Standard substantival matter; mind is computation realized in matter.

Observer

Alan Turing

Plural finite computational observers. Mediated knowledge through computation. No metaphysical agency.

Energy

Alan Turing

Standard physics.

Information

Alan Turing

Discrete fundamental information; conserved at the world-scale; personal soul not.

Internal Tensions

Where each persona's working synthesis strains against itself.

Alan Turing

The 1952 prosecution and the 1954 death overshadowed the public reception of Turing's work for decades; the 2009 apology and 2013 pardon were necessary but late. The Turing test as a criterion of machine intelligence has been attacked (Searle's Chinese Room) and defended; the imitation game's genius and its evident limitations have both stood the test of time.