Last week, a report was released on the potential risks of mirror biology - that is, biological systems with reversed chirality. I had previously looked into the topic, and was skeptical of the viability of this as a global catastrophic or existential risk. This report was tremendously helpful in filling in details of a scenario where, if mirror bacteria are developed, they could cause a global catastrophe. I will assume that readers here have or will read at least a summary, if not the original Science article or perhaps the summaries in the (300 page) report itself. And before I get into details, I will say that I’m not a biologist; I have a significant familiarity with relevant topics, but there is some chance I get technical details incorrect. I have asked a few people to look at this, but if any such mistakes exist and are substantive, they [...]
Outline:
(00:59) Defining the Scenario
(04:04) Priors and General Skepticism
(07:08) Can we just solve the problem?
(08:48) Environmental Risks
(10:39) What do we do now?
(15:14) Conclusion
The original text contained 7 footnotes which were omitted from this narration.
First published:
December 20th, 2024
Source:
https://www.lesswrong.com/posts/cTioLtLJy2trw998A/moderately-skeptical-of-risks-of-mirror-biology)
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Narrated by TYPE III AUDIO).
