[PLUG-TALK] Identity checks

[Keith Lofstrom]

On Sat, Aug 08, 2020 at 09:35:12PM -0700, John Jason Jordan wrote:
> How much RAM and related computer power might it take to get to a world
> where everyone's DNA is their password?
> 
> Considering how often I am locked out because I can't remember my
> [expletive deleted] password, is this a good idea?

No.

DNA "reading" takes time and is imperfect.  First, the
DNA is copied many times to make enough to measure, which
introduces errors.  The copying process takes days.  More
errors occur because the copy process itself is imperfect.  
You and I are /very/ bad copies of ancient single-celled
organisms.

A 23-and-Me ancestry test costs $99.  You need not spend
$199 for "Health and Ancestry", which is the same test and
data with more interpretation, because you can send the
data to promethease.org and get a $5 interpretation.
Two separate 23andMe tests, each producing about 2 megabits
of "single nucleotide polymorphisms", differed by 7 bits.
the "SNP"s are the important /differences/ between human
genomes, 95% of the rest of the genome isn't actually used,
or is the same for everyone, so the SNP sequence is more
than good enough for identification.

----

In an age where the bad guys have more digital tools to
attack us than isolated individuals have to defend, it seems
absurd that we should rely on our own resources to protect
our identities against millions of criminals worldwide.
A large part of what makes us unique is our social context,
the many friends and collaborators that we accumulate over
time, along with the assets that we create together.

That community is our most reliable protection against 
miscreants.  Perhaps we can create digital tools to enhance
and "filter" our collaborations, so that this web of trust
becomes at least as trustworthy as any digital password or
security dongle.  Borderline-Aspergers folks like me can
collaborate with ultra-social individuals at the opposite
extreme, perhaps helping them deal with technical
complexity while they help us prosper in a social world.  

Wait ... that's what I actually do.  If I was farther into
Aspergers, I might not understand the need to exchange
talents that way.

Anyway - there are many people who are trustworthy and 
more social than most of us.  We can train and PAY the best
of them to help us maintain and protect our identities,
reputations, and assets in an increasingly commodified
and regimented digital world.  That is a talent worth
rewarding, far more valuable than the algorithmic
suppression of human variability that most software
interfaces seem to be designed for.  

Can we design "anti-software" that liberates humanity
from Procrustean templates?  Replace fill-out forms with 
conversations and new friendships?  This isn't typical
behavior for nerds, but even nerds might be happier 
with many more helpful and trustworthy friends.

It can also provide happy, meaningful employment for
the people our robots and algorithms put out of work.
That seems like a blessing, compared to sitting next
to a conveyor belt 2000 hours a year wrapping candy.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HnbNcQlzV-4

Keith

-- 
Keith Lofstrom          keithl at keithl.com