Mind Matters Natural and Artificial Intelligence News and Analysis

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old-vintage-monochrome-photographs-in-sepia-color-are-scattered-on-a-wooden-table-the-concept-of-genealogy-the-memory-of-ancestors-family-ties-memories-of-childhood-stockpack-adobe-stock
old vintage monochrome photographs in sepia color are scattered on a wooden table, the concept of genealogy, the memory of ancestors, family ties, memories of childhood
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post
Author
Denyse O'Leary
Date
July 30, 2023
Categorized
Medicine and Health, Neuroscience, Philosophy of Mind
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Is Dementia Research Missing the Forest for the Trees?

Sudden bouts of lucidity in people with dementia are understudied, researchers admit
Denyse O'Leary
July 30, 2023
4
Medicine and Health, Neuroscience, Philosophy of Mind

Researchers have begun to ask about the curious fact that persons with obvious dementia sometimes have lucid episodes: “In the last week, Sarah has occasionally said things that were recognizable, startling her family. Most notably, on two occasions, she clearly and unexpectedly told her spouse, “I’m scared. I want you to come with me.” These episodes unsettled him. He reported them to Sarah’s physician, asking for advice. (This case is adapted from one of the author’s [JK] clinical experiences.)” – Peterson A, Clapp J, Largent EA, Harkins K, Stites SD, Karlawish J. What is paradoxical lucidity? The answer begins with its definition. Alzheimers Dement. 2022 Mar;18(3):513-521. doi: 10.1002/alz.12424. Epub 2021 Aug 2. PMID: 34338400; PMCID: PMC8807788. The paper is open Read More ›

lazy-office-worker-with-feet-and-socks-on-table-useless-and-relaxing-man-doing-nothing-or-taking-break-from-work-in-workstation-businessman-resting-during-workday-laziness-and-relax-concept-stockpack-adobe-stock
Lazy office worker with feet and socks on table. Useless and relaxing man doing nothing or taking break from work in workstation. Businessman resting during workday. Laziness and relax concept.
Type
post
Author
Peter Biles
Date
July 30, 2023
Categorized
Artificial Intelligence
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ChatGPT: The Perfect Gadget for a Culture in Decline?

ChatGPT is an impersonal machine and can't generate meaning
Peter Biles
July 30, 2023
3
Artificial Intelligence

Dr. Jeffrey Bilbro, professor of English at Grove City College and an editor at The Front Porch Republic, wrote an article for Plough on what he regards as the primary weakness of Large Language Models (LLMs) like ChatGPT. Bilbro comes to the issue from a literary background, which means he values the human element in language as a mode of communication. Literature is a “conversation,” requiring sentient minds. He sees ChatGPT as a soulless mechanism that will atrophy our ability to write and diminish our appreciation for good writing. Bilbro writes, LLMs are a technology suited to a decadent culture, one that chases easy profits rather than tackles the real challenges we face. It’s easier to make money rearranging words Read More ›

a-green-sprout-sprouts-from-the-microprocessor-a-symbol-of-a-new-startup-or-business-in-the-it-field-of-green-technologies-or-biotechnologies-a-living-beginning-in-computers-and-artificial-ai-stockpack-adobe-stock
A green sprout sprouts from the microprocessor. A symbol of a new startup or business in the IT field of green technologies or biotechnologies. A living beginning in computers and artificial ai
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post
Author
Denyse O'Leary
Date
July 29, 2023
Categorized
Biology, Evolution, Language, Philosophy, Religion, Theism
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“Emergence”: The College Level Version of “We Don’t Know How”

The word often permits the improbable to be considered probable for the purposes of sounding like science without providing any
Denyse O'Leary
July 29, 2023
6
Biology, Evolution, Language, Philosophy, Religion, Theism

For some purposes, emergence is just another word in the dictionary. For example, “caterpillar emergence” (emphasis added) means just that: Caterpillars exiting their eggs. But there is a sneakier way the word is sometimes used in science contexts: It’s a way of pretending we know something we don’t or that something can happen in a certain way — but we have no evidence for that. Consider these examples: “Abiotic emergence of ordered information stored in the form of RNA is an important unresolved problem concerning the origin of life.” – Totani, T. Emergence of life in an inflationary universe. Sci Rep 10, 1671 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-020-58060-0 When used with respect to origin of life, emergence is intended to convey the idea Read More ›

atomic-weapon-after-the-us-bomber-enola-gay-dropped-the-atomic-bomb-on-hiroshima-japan-in-1945-generative-ai-stockpack-adobe-stock
Atomic weapon. After the US bomber Enola Gay dropped the atomic bomb on Hiroshima, Japan, in 1945. Generative AI
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post
Author
Peter Biles
Date
July 29, 2023
Categorized
Arts & Culture
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American Prometheus: Destroyer of Worlds

Christopher Nolan's "Oppenheimer" meets the hype and illustrates just how world-changing the atomic bomb was
Peter Biles
July 29, 2023
4
Arts & Culture

“Now I am become Death, the destroyer of worlds.” So goes a line from the Hindu sacred text Bhagavad Gita, quoted by none other than J. Robert Oppenheimer, the quantum physicist who headed up the development of the first atomic bomb during World War II. Christopher Nolan’s new film Oppenheimer hit theaters on July 21 and has given audiences a taste of why the “father of the atomic bomb” entertained that haunting, little phrase. Nolan hit this movie out of the park. With a star-studded cast, a juxtaposed and non-linear storytelling mode, and a beautiful soundtrack to boot, some critics are calling it the most important movie of the century. That might be because the production of the atom bomb Read More ›

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Female robot face, Artificial intelligence concept. Generative AI
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post
Author
Gary Varner
Date
July 29, 2023
Categorized
Arts & Culture
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Westworld: Episode 7 Review

In which Theresa makes a terrible discovery
Gary Varner
July 29, 2023
6
Arts & Culture

This episode begins with Bernard having a flashback of his son. It’s a very sad scene that turns out to be a dream sequence. After that, we follow Theresa to Hale’s apartment. In the previous episode, we learned that it was Theresa who was attempting to smuggle data out of the park. In this episode, we figure out why. Hale and the rest of the board plan on firing Ford, and they are concerned that Ford will wipe all the data stored in the park just for spite. He’s refused to allow anyone to back up the data, so Hale has decided to take matters into her own hands, and she enlists Theresa’s help. However, Theresa’s plan to smuggle the Read More ›

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Pipette adding fluid to one of several test tubes
Type
post
Author
News
Date
July 28, 2023
Categorized
Biology, Technology
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Killing Disease and Living Longer

There are some exciting things happening in biotech that could lead to life extension
News
July 28, 2023
1
Biology, Technology

In this featured COSM conference video, Matt McIlwain, Managing Director of Madrona Venture Group, moderates a panel on exciting innovations in biotech that are offering new ways to both eliminate diseases and extend life. Panelists include Dr. Steve Meyer, Director of Discovery Institute’s Center for Science and Culture, and Dr. Jim Tour, Professor of Chemistry at Rice University. We’ve been sharing a number of lectures from past COSM conferences and other videos related to artificial intelligence and technology. This video is just one of many you can find at the Bradley Center’s YouTube page. There you’ll find several lectures, interviews, and panels dealing with issues that range from economics, Big Tech, and artificial intelligence. Notable speakers include 2022 Kyoto Prize winner Carver Read More ›

scoring-the-winning-points-at-a-basketball-game-stockpack-adobe-stock
Scoring the winning points at a basketball game
Type
post
Author
Gary Smith
Date
July 28, 2023
Categorized
Probability
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Sabrina Ionescu’s Hot Hand

When basketball players hit a "streak," does that elevate the probability of success?
Gary Smith
July 28, 2023
12
Probability

Most people believe that athletes sometimes get “hot” or “cold” with their performance elevated or depressed temporarily. For example, Purvis Short, who scored 59 points in an NBA game, said, “You’re in a world all your own. It’s hard to describe. But the basket seems to be so wide. No matter what you do, you know the ball is going to go in.” Similarly, during a timeout in a 2015 game, LeBron James told his teammates to pass the ball to Kevin Love, explaining after the game that, “He had the hot hand, I wanted to keep going to him.” On the other hand, statisticians tell us that streaks are likely even in random coin flips that have a rock-steady Read More ›

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銀河
Type
post
Author
Peter Biles
Date
July 28, 2023
Categorized
Artificial Intelligence, Virtual Reality
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Of AI and Aliens: Two Philosophers Give Their Thoughts

These sound minds are great resources to draw from in the chaos of our times
Peter Biles
July 28, 2023
3
Artificial Intelligence, Virtual Reality

Just when you thought our cultural moment couldn’t get any more outlandish, here comes a congressional hearing in which several high-profile individuals claim U.S. intelligence is in possession of “non-human biologics,” a euphemism for “alien stuff.” In a recent YouTube interview, Sean McDowell of Biola University asked philosophers William Lane Craig and J.P. Moreland what they thought of extraterrestrial life and its implications. Craig, a philosopher and theologian, said it would have no bearing on his belief in God’s existence, but emotionally, that it would be remarkably unsettling, and would amount to the greatest discovery in the human history. McDowell pivoted from aliens and addressed the question of artificial intelligence, which Moreland, who specializes in the philosophy of mind, was Read More ›

An abstract computer generated fractal design. A fractal is a never-ending pattern. Fractals are infinitely complex patterns that are self-similar across different scales.
Type
post
Author
Denyse O'Leary
Date
July 27, 2023
Categorized
Education, Mathematics, Politics
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The War on Math Becomes a Fight Over Textbooks

Florida, for example, rejected 54 math textbooks of 132 submitted by publishers on account of political content
Denyse O'Leary
July 27, 2023
7
Education, Mathematics, Politics

About a year and a half ago, I wrote a piece about the war on math, basically an effort to entrench the idea that there is no such thing as reality apart from politics. A slogan for various wars on math has been 2 + 2 = 5. That proposition originated in the totalitarian Soviet Union. It found its way into 1984, in which George Orwell (1903–1950) repudiated totalitarianism, and resurfaced in recent years in the current American education elite. One tactic used that is more subtle than outright messing with the number system is the inclusion of political issues in math problems. Current affairs writer Steven Tucker explains how it works: If you were an author of school textbooks Read More ›

bright-iridescent-thread-floss-for-embroidery-and-needlework-stockpack-adobe-stock
bright iridescent thread floss for embroidery and needlework
Type
post
Author
News
Date
July 27, 2023
Categorized
Social Media
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Is the “Threads” App a Bust?

The app originally attracted around 100 million users but has tapered off dramatically.
News
July 27, 2023
2
Social Media

Within the first week of its existence, “Threads,” the new Twitter-like app from the tech company Meta, saw a colossal decline in usage. The app originally attracted around 100 million users but has tapered off dramatically. Jody Cerrano reports, Zuckerberg’s statements about returning users coincide with estimates from third-party traffic analysts that reported the big dip in Threads users last week. At that time, Sensor Tower, a market intelligence firm, said that Threads’ daily active users on iOS and Android were down by 20%. The company added that traffic was not the only thing affected. Time spent on the app per user also fell, according to Sensor Tower, by 50% — from 20 minutes to 10 minutes. On Monday, the analyst Similarweb reported an Read More ›

night-city-panorama-with-network-hologram-stockpack-adobe-stock
Night city panorama with network hologram
Type
post
Author
News
Date
July 27, 2023
Categorized
Artificial Intelligence

AI’s Role in Unlocking Human Potential

Can AI replicate or exceed human knowledge and creativity?
News
July 27, 2023
2
Artificial Intelligence

In today’s featured video from a past COSM conference, we ask the question: can artificial intelligence replicate or exceed human knowledge and creativity? What are AI’s implications for the workforce? Oren Etzioni, CEO of Allen Institute for Artificial Intelligence, George Montañez, Iris and Howard Critchell Professor of Computer Science at Harvey Mudd College, Robert J. Marks, Distinguished Professor of Electrical & Computer Engineering at Baylor University, and Matt McIlwain, managing director Madrona Venture Group discuss the new business and career opportunities created by artificial intelligence, and whether AI and humanity will merge at some point in the future. We’ve been sharing a number of lectures from past COSM conferences. This video is just one of many you can find at Read More ›

planet-earth-from-space-peoples-republic-of-china-highlighted-elements-of-this-image-courtesy-of-nasa-stockpack-adobe-stock
Planet Earth from Space People's Republic of China highlighted, elements of this image courtesy of NASA
Type
post
Author
Heather Zeiger
Date
July 26, 2023
Categorized
Artificial Intelligence, China

China’s Chatbot Toes the Party Line

How will China control what AI does and doesn't say?
Heather Zeiger
July 26, 2023
6
Artificial Intelligence, China

News outlets and media in China must follow the Party’s guidelines on what to write. Whenever a major event happens, such as a Party Congress, or protests at Foxconn factories, media outlets are given a list of what they can and cannot say in the news. How will China’s government control what generative AI, particularly large language models (LLMs) like OpenAI’s ChatGPT, Google’s Bard, or Baidu’s Ernie, say? It turns out that the very unpredictability of LLMs makes censorship tricky. In China, LLMs like Baidu’s Ernie (“Wenxin Yiyan”) compile the information from an already sanitized Chinese internet which would essentially perpetuate the Party’s view. “Services like ChatGPT and Ernie draw their answers from vast quantities of text culled from the Read More ›

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AI Writer Chat GPT Computer
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post
Author
News
Date
July 26, 2023
Categorized
Artificial Intelligence
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Do AI Developers Really Not Know What They’re Making?

A speech-and-language AI researcher counterclaims the doomsdayers
News
July 26, 2023
2
Artificial Intelligence

A new article by AI researcher Arlie Coles at American Mind aims to “demystify” artificial intelligence, particularly the claim that AI creators have no idea what they’re creating. Coles says that we understand AI much better than the doomsdayers let on. Part of the reason for AI’s cloudy nature is due to its mathematical complexity, which Coles finds understandable. But that’s no reason not to try and understand what AI is and gauge its benefits and capacities in an accurate light. She writes, We do know what we’re building and how it works, and it’s not too late for us to speak forthrightly about AI so that the general public, not just those with math or computer science Ph.D.s, can Read More ›

conceptual-image-to-be-used-as-background-facade-of-buildings-representing-architecture-or-offices-of-the-business-world-stockpack-adobe-stock
Conceptual image to be used as background. Facade of buildings, representing architecture or offices of the business world.
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post
Author
Denyse O'Leary
Date
July 25, 2023
Categorized
Neuroscience, Philosophy of Mind
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Neuroscientist vows post-wager: We’ll nail consciousness yet!

Anil Seth, proponent of the “hallucination” theory of consciousness, vows that researchers will find that consciousness spot or circuit in the brain
Denyse O'Leary
July 25, 2023
5
Neuroscience, Philosophy of Mind

Prominent University of Sussex neuroscientist Anil Seth shared some thoughts at Nautilus on neuroscientist Christof Koch losing the 1998 wager with philosopher David Chalmers this year. He had bet that a consciousness spot or circuit would be found in the human brain within the next 25 years. It wasn’t. Seth offers, Back in the late 1990s, consciousness science was full of renewed promise. Koch—a natural optimist—believed that 25 years was more than enough time for scientists to uncover the neural correlates of consciousness: those patterns of brain activity that underlie each and every one of our conscious experiences. – Anil Seth, “Finding the Neural Correlates to Consciousness Is Still a Good Bet,” Nautilus, July 5, 2023 As author of Being Read More ›

smart-cars-with-automatic-sensor-driving-on-metropolis-with-wireless-connection-stockpack-adobe-stock
.Smart cars with automatic sensor driving on metropolis with wireless connection
Type
post
Author
News
Date
July 25, 2023
Categorized
Self-Driving Cars
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Is Automated & Shared Vehicle Tech a Benefit to Humanity?

Mistele thinks these kinds of vehicles will be cost-effective and safer all around.
News
July 25, 2023
2
Self-Driving Cars

In today’s featured video, Dr. Jay Richards interviews Bryan Mistele, Co-founder, President and CEO of INRIX, about the future of autonomous, connected, electric, shared (ACES) vehicle transportation systems at the 2019 COSM conference. Mistele sees the implementation of ACES vehicles as being a huge benefit to humanity as they will be much more convenient and cost-effective, safer, and will lead to more effective land use by being able to do away with parking garages, street parking, etc. Bryan Mistele is the co-founder, President & Chief Executive Officer of INRIX, a leading provider of connected car services and transportation analytics. INRIX is at the forefront of connecting cars to smarter cities in more than 88 countries worldwide. Bryan started INRIX in Read More ›

bitcoin-golden-coin-on-computer-circuit-board-stockpack-adobe-stock
Bitcoin golden coin on computer circuit board
Type
post
Author
News
Date
July 25, 2023
Categorized
Cryptocurrency
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Is an Information-Based Currency Possible?

Two philosophers talk about the potential of digital, decentralized forms of money and exchange
News
July 25, 2023
1
Cryptocurrency

In today’s featured video, enjoy an older but essential interview on the topic of alternative forms of money like cryptocurrency. Philosopher Jay Richards interviews mathematician, entrepreneur, and philosopher Dr. Bill Dembski about his unique thought experiment regarding how one could create a decentralized, DIY, information-based currency. Richards also explores with Dembski the concepts of natural and artificial intelligence. We’ve been sharing a number of lectures from past COSM conferences. This video is just one of many you can find at the Bradley Center’s YouTube page. There you’ll find several lectures, interviews, and panels dealing with issues that range from economics, Big Tech, and artificial intelligence. Notable speakers include 2022 Kyoto Prize winner Carver Mead, venture capitalist Peter Thiel, and George Gilder, co-founder of Discovery Institute Read More ›

cloud-data-computing-and-neural-network-cross-media-marketing-mesh-representing-connections-monitor-screen-in-perspective-stockpack-adobe-stock
Cloud data computing and neural network, cross-media marketing mesh representing connections, monitor screen in perspective
Type
post
Author
News
Date
July 24, 2023
Categorized
Technology
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You Control the Algorithm

Watch Dr. Phil Parker discuss how he and his team have developed revolutionary new search engine technology
News
July 24, 2023
1
Technology

For today’s featured video from a past COSM conference, watch Dr. Phil Parker, INSEAD Chair Professor of Management Science and Founder of Botipedia, discuss how his team has unlocked the power of algorithm-based content creation to create the revolutionary new search engine technology of Botipedia/Totosearch, which promises to be a dramatic improvement over Wikipedia and Google. We’ve been sharing a number of lectures from past COSM conferences. This video is just one of many you can find at the Bradley Center’s YouTube page. There you’ll find several lectures, interviews, and panels dealing with issues that range from economics, Big Tech, and artificial intelligence. Notable speakers include 2022 Kyoto Prize winner Carver Mead, venture capitalist Peter Thiel, and George Gilder, co-founder of Discovery Institute and author Read More ›

modern-creative-artwork-design-contemporary-art-collage-of-young-man-playing-drums-isolated-over-colorful-background-concept-of-music-lifestyle-jazz-rock-rock-n-roll-creativity-imagination-stockpack-adobe-stock
Modern creative artwork, design. Contemporary art collage of young man playing drums isolated over colorful background. Concept of music lifestyle, jazz, rock, rock n roll, creativity, imagination
Type
post
Author
Richard W. Stevens
Date
July 24, 2023
Categorized
Arts & Culture
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Inside the Mind of a Rock ‘n’ Roll Drummer

Delving into the thrilling, demanding world of professional drumming and the mind-body communication it requires
Richard W. Stevens
July 24, 2023
9
Arts & Culture

After talking all about artificial intelligence (AI), ChatGPT, and the legal rights of robots, let’s Take Five. Time to follow Rod Serling’s Twilight Zone path and travel to another dimension, of sight, of sound, and of mind. Cue up the vinyl or the mp3s, it’s time to explore rock ‘n’ roll music from the inside. What practically defines rock ‘n’ roll?  Chuck Berry said it was the “back beat” – the prominent rhythm on beats 2 and 4. It’s the beat you can’t lose, as The Beatles agreed.  Huey Lewis and the News nailed it: “The heart of rock and roll is the beat.” Where does the beat come from, the rhythm that defines rock n roll? Not often the Read More ›

armageddon-nuclear-bomb-or-asteroid-impact-creates-a-nuke-mushroom-stockpack-adobe-stock
Armageddon. Nuclear bomb or asteroid impact creates a nuke mushroom
Type
post
Author
Peter Biles
Date
July 23, 2023
Categorized
Science
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Science as Insight vs. Science as Power

What are the core purposes of science and math? Evaluating the idea of "knowledge as power" in the computer age
Peter Biles
July 23, 2023
2
Science

Should machines replace mathematicians? This phrase is the headline of a new post by science writer John Horgan, who comments on the current state of mathematics and the growing potential of AI and computers to do all the “heavy lifting” of the mathematical enterprise. Horgan notes that mathematicians were the ones to develop computers in the first place, but now, with the advent of advanced computing and artificial intelligence, the role of human-driven mathematics is getting vague. However, maybe math is more about input and output but a “way of being human.” For Horgan, data and computation don’t get to the heart of scientific and mathematical endeavors. It needs to mean something more than an impersonal process geared towards calculable Read More ›

titanic-at-belfast-date-1912-stockpack-adobe-stock
Titanic at Belfast. Date: 1912
Type
post
Author
News
Date
July 23, 2023
Categorized
Science, Technology
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The Titanic: A Sobering Tale About the Fragility of Technological “Progress”

The hopes of the Enlightenment were tragically short lived
News
July 23, 2023
2
Science, Technology

By David Klinghoffer The week that the submersible Titan was revealed to have been instantaneously flattened on its way down to the wreck of the Titanic, David Berlinski spoke with James Lileks and Peter Robinson on Ricochet about the wreck of the Enlightenment. Much like the Titanic, and a bit like the Titan, so much was expected at the glorious launch of the experiment in human reasoning — yet down it went to disaster, not least in the 20th century with its horrors. Writing yesterday in the Wall Street Journal, Peggy Noonan suggested that the story of the Titanic haunts us in part because its demise came two years before the start of the century’s great catastrophe, World War I: “the reason the Titanic endures is that there was an immediate connection Read More ›