As a precision to the parent's correct post, Warehouse isolation studies are referred to as simulations while these underwater tests are analogs. Analogs include unreproducible stresses found in real conditions (underwater and polar stations mainly) unlike simulations. The distinction is crucial when studying isolation psychology and psychiatry.

Actually the GP was merely stating some facts, or should we call them inconvenient truths. You did nothing but criticize his point of view. Here is something to think about: ask an average joe what NASA should work on for the next gen, safer rockets or bigger rockets? This answer to this is fairly obvious and is why NASA is "campaigning" about safety.

If ants have mastered abstract thinking we're all in deep trouble.

IANAE but, transmitting power from cables has several drawbacks 1) Anything that adds weight to the cable is a very bad thing. 2) the power loss due to extreme length. 3) Redudancy directly affects 1 and 2. 4) 1 and 2 are mutually exclusive.

And as far as wireless power transmission goes, if its focused i think the powerloss is quite acceptable over those distance relatively to other means. The redudancy is exceptionnal too, you can have multiple beaming stations on the ground and/or in the air, ready to send their own beam in case the primary goes down.

Parent better be at +5 insightful/uncomfortable truth when i check it tomorrow!!

You feel absolutely no fear at the prospect of having realistic artificial brains on which to experiement with no legal or moral restraints?

And as for the evolution, you start with very small organism, very much like insects. Starting with a fraction of a rat brain alone is well.. a non-starter. I think you underestimate how fast an intelligently controlled evolution could take place.

The power of chaos (call it randomness or QM) and really, really long spans of time. Plus a lot of evolutionary stresses. Reusing simpler/earlier organisms as basis for interaction and possibly sustenance for more complex ones is only natural. Throw in a few well chosen mass population genetic bottlenecks and there ya go :)

Training is crucial. At the moment we have the tools to create a virtual environments in which we can breed populations of incremental complexity (genetic/coding-wise) through evolutionary pressure. As we learn to create these training and bottleneck methods for simpler "life" forms, the computing capacity needed for complex organisms will probably be there by the time we perfect such methods.

My guess is yes, about 10 years for an intelligent ANN. Also, when we do reproduce the brain it will have seemingly limitless potential for medicinal uses. It will also bring a terrifying potential for abuse. Such mastery of human intelligence could lead to disaster...

Give them a break. They already have a hard time getting their fair share of attention from the public.

Perhaps, but we're a long shot from banning people from the country for such claims. Certain forms of hate speech need to be controlled and minority groups need a voice which will be listened to.
Anyhow, personally i'd rather think about prison-to population-ratios than free speech "challenges"...

For a while now i've been trying to decide whether you're joking or not. I still can't

We trust software to route trillions upon trillions of dollars. We trust software to take humans into space. I dont see the problem.