Time, Mass, Energy, Perception vs. Reality, etc.

[MrTwosheds]

Its just a "DIY Heaven" via a different path as far as story telling is concerned except that transcendation doesn't bother with the messy fleshy bit at the start at all.
In some of his later books Terry Pratchet, goes deeply into the subject of narrative and how central it is to the human experience. Telling story's is what we do. They are what makes us different from every other species. "Science" is the telling of the story of the Universe around us, within certain rules. Religion is the same but with a different set of rules.

[Psychedelic Rhino]

"Science" is the telling of the story of the Universe around us, within certain rules. Religion is the same but with a different set of rules.

The only issue with that are the rules of classical religion(s) is all built on men that understood less of their general surroundings, other than human nature, than that of a modern generically educated twelve year old in a western culture.

When the earth is at the center of the universe and not a heck of a lot older than a Bristlecone pine, or every surface of the planet was covered in water to purge the planet of wickedness . . .the rules are far-and-away more of a hindrance than a help.

The unique juxtaposition of 'God of the Gaps' with religion and science, clearly shows one gets weaker with discovery, while the other strengthens.

[MrTwosheds]

I just think its funny that both "stories" reveal the same aspiration to overcome death. Clearly this is not really a viable course of action, nature is wise in selecting the biological form of immortality it uses, corruption of the "control software" is inevitable and preservation of it is ultimately pointless. A nice clean install for every new biological iteration is the only way to protect the viability and advancement of a species.