Gradual Neurocircuit Replacement

One way of addressing the problem of loss of one's identity during the mind upload, is to do it gradually, replacing one's neural circuits one by one, and ensuring the global consistency. Think of it like replacing components of the same car, that originally was just a golf cart, and eventually became a spaceship: not through designing the spaceship from scratch, but through gradual part replacement.

I think, this approach is definitely a more realistic shot at retaining our identity while doing mind uploading: the artificial cerebellum has been successfully produced for rats [1], and human brain area responsible for consciousness has also been discovered [2]. I guess, this area called pontine tegmentum works like a "trimtab" - like a global utility function evaluator and attention-shifter, that, involving some of its own randomness, directs the other parts of the brain to orchestrate behaviors.

Given that we incrementally successfully replace many regions of brain that are responsible for auxiliary functions, we could use the interaction patterns observed between the pontine tegmentum and the rest of the brain provide great datasets for eventual decomposition of the pontine tegmentum into its parts, and gradual cyborg-ification of it. We may actually find at this point, that there is some general principle of how this "integrator, utility function evaluator and attention-shifter" actually works (perhaps it works simply, and almost the same as it works in most of other people, and its output is more a reflection of what the memories and outside regions provide, rather than some intrinsic complexity), and replace it with equivalent model, completing the mind upload through gradual neurocircuit replacement.

To me, this approach seems to be the most promising in its ability to safely retain identity in the process of a mind upload.

[1] Rat cyborg gets digital cerebellum (2011-09-21)

[2] Harvard Scientists Think They've Pinpointed The Physical Source of Consciousness (2018-06-23) - "one small area of the brainstem - known as the rostral dorsolateral pontine tegmentum"