^ArchiveArticles

Tower of Babel, Abstract Painting. Cubism

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post

Author
News
Date
October 3, 2023

Categorized
Science

Tagged
Acton Institute, Babel, Darwinism, David Berlinksi, Jay Richards, science, Science After Babel (book), Scientism}

A New Review for Berlinksi’s Latest Book

_{Despite the wonders of the scientific enterprise, it is run by humans, and is thus fallible.} _{News

October 3, 2023

5

Science}

By David Klinghoffer By now the authority of science has been thoroughly abused. For that, you can thank scientists themselves, their promoters in government bodies and in university PR departments, and the legions of loyal pilot fish in popular and social media. Something really came undone in the Covid era. Today, the phrase “science says” or “doctors say” prompts a smirk from about half the population, and rightly so. To capture this reality, mathematician David Berlinski in his latest book, Science After Babel, evokes the image of Bruegel’s Tower of Babel — a bloated, vain enterprise, in denial of its own failings. The ancients saw science, and the other arts, as embodied by muses — beautiful young women. We may picture something more Read More ›

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post

Author
News
Date
October 3, 2023

Categorized
Philosophy of Mind

Tagged
Angus Menuge, Atheism, brain, Brian R. Krouse, Consciousness, Materialism, Mental, Minding the Brain, Physicalism, Robert J. Marks}

The Big Problem for Physicalism

_{One physicalist theory after another has either ignored or falsified the central characteristics of consciousness} _{News

October 3, 2023

3

Philosophy of Mind}

Editor’s note: We are delighted to welcome the new book from Discovery Institute Press, Minding the Brain: Models of the Mind, Information, and Empirical Science, edited by Angus J. L. Menuge, Brian R. Krouse, and Robert J. Marks. Below is an excerpt from Chapter 2. Look for more information at MindingtheBrain.org. By Angus Menuge The history of physicalism is one of extraordinary diversity: a wide variety of theories, with multiple versions, have jockeyed for dominance. Yet it is also a tale of persistent failure. One physicalist theory after another has either ignored or falsified the central characteristics of consciousness, intentionality, and rationality that define our mental life. We will begin by tracing the history of physicalism from the early varieties of behaviorism Read More ›

Young Asian man sitting on stairs outside reading a book

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post

Author
Peter Biles
Date
October 2, 2023

Categorized
Arts & Culture

Tagged
addiction, Books, Digital Addiction, fiction, instant gratification, men in america, mental health, Psychology Today, Reading, Story}

Why You Should Read More Fiction

_{The mental benefits for reading good stories are many.} _{Peter Biles

October 2, 2023

3

Arts & Culture}

When looking for “solutions” to today’s mental health crisis in the United States, particularly among the millions of men who are checking out of society, reading fiction may not immediately come to mind. However, a new article from Psychology Today argues that reading fiction is “essential” for today’s men. The author of the article, psychologist Jett Stone, focuses on men in part because today’s literary market is largely geared towards women, and fiction and femininity are often closely associated. Nonetheless, he believes that reading fiction can benefit both women and men. He writes, Recent research indicates that reading fiction fosters critical thinking by presenting ideas subtly and in more roundabout ways than nonfiction. One study of adolescents found that frequent fiction readers possessed more Read More ›

Full length of man touches with digital pencil simulation space wearing headset to create virtual reality dimension. Male using tablet computer for control augmented VR environment standing outdoors

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post

Author
Doug Smith
Date
October 1, 2023

Tagged
apple, Apple headset, Apple Pro, Big Tech, Doug Smith, Virtual Reality}

See Through the False Promises of Apple Vision Pro

_{The illusion of connection so shapes our desires that we may lose our taste for the real thing} _{Doug Smith

October 1, 2023

15}

“The era of spatial computing is here.” With that ominous declaration, on that fateful Monday morning in June, Apple revealed its latest plan to consume the time and minds of everyone: the Vision Pro. Apple’s vision for Vision Pro is to define a new era, like the iPhone defined the current one. As we consider the wake of iPhone’s consequences (e.g., distraction, addiction, mental illness, narcissism, etc.), we must decide whether to trust Apple’s era-defining powers. Because those powers are insanely profitable for Apple, but not so great for the rest of us. And even if you think it looks like you’re strapping a sleek version of WALL-E’s eyes to your face, many people will see Vision Pro’s $3,499 price Read More ›

demostrator with megaphone and notebook protesting

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post

Author
News
Date
October 1, 2023

Categorized
Artificial Intelligence, Arts & Culture

Tagged
AI, Artificial Intelligence, ChatGPT, Movies and TV, Writers Guild of America}

The Strike is Over

_{After almost five months, the Writers Guild of America's (WGA) strike against Hollywood has ended.} _{News

October 1, 2023

2

Artificial Intelligence, Arts & Culture}

After almost five months, the Writers Guild of America’s (WGA) strike against Hollywood has ended. WGA and Hollywood came to an agreement that includes higher employee wages and limitations in the ways artificial intelligence (AI) can be employed. AI has been at the forefront of the moviemaking conversation for the past few months, and for good reason. TV and movie writers are concerned with how the technology might take away their jobs or otherwise cheapen the quality of TV scripts. Ryan Faughnder writes for the Los Angeles Times, The new WGA contract includes language that regulates the studio’s use of AI but also provides flexibility to the guild’s members. Companies must disclose to writers if any material given to a Read More ›

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post

Author
Gary Varner
Date
September 30, 2023

Categorized
Arts & Culture

Tagged
Arts and Culture, bene Gesserit, dune, Movies and TV, religion, Religious Order, Science fiction}

Dune Review, Part One

_{Despite the cynical ways of the Bene Gesserit sect, a deeper providence guides the story in Dune.} _{Gary Varner

September 30, 2023

6

Arts & Culture}

The sequel to Dune was originally scheduled to come out on November 3rd. However, it has since been rescheduled to come out on March 15th of 2024. Still, since I was preparing to do this article anyway, I thought now would be as good a time as any to do a review of the first movie in this most recent remake, and perhaps, later compare it to the original 1984 film in anticipation of the sequel. These movies are based on the novel, written by Frank Herbert in 1965. It is widely regarded as a sci-fi classic. The book opens with Paul Atreides taking the Gom Jabbar test, but we’ll have to circle back to that because the remake’s opening Read More ›

Spider birded in terrarium live end sleep

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post

Author
Denyse O'Leary
Date
September 30, 2023

Categorized
Animal mind, Human exceptionalism

Tagged
Animals (dreaming), Birds (dreaming), Carolyn Wilke, Cuttlefish intelligence, David M. Peña-Guzmán, Dreams in animals, Spiders and dreaming, Teresa Iglesias}

What Does It Mean to Say That Spiders “Dream”?

_{It means much less than we might be led to think} _{Denyse O'Leary

September 30, 2023

4

Animal mind, Human exceptionalism}

Do spiders dream? Researchers have detected something like REM (rapid eye movement) sleep — which is associated with dreaming in humans — in jumping spiders. But what does it mean? Training cameras on 34 spiders, they found that the creatures had brief REM-like spells about every 17 minutes. The eye-darting behavior was specific to these bouts: It didn’t happen at times in the night when the jumping spiders stirred, stretched, readjusted their silk lines or cleaned themselves with a brush of a leg. Carolyn Wilke, Knowable Magazine, “Do Other Animals Dream?,” Smithsonian Magazine, September 13, 2023. The paper is open access. But then we learn: Though the spiders are motionless in the run-up to these REM-like bouts, the team hasn’t Read More ›

An octopus holding a plastic bottle , generative ai

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post

Author
Denyse O'Leary
Date
September 29, 2023

Categorized
Animal mind, Evolution

Tagged
Dominic Sivitilli, Kenna Hughes-Castleberry, Mihai Andrei, Octopus (intelligence), Octopus brain}

Octopus Intelligence Is Unlike Anything We Know

_{Could such a different neurology really evolve purely by natural selection acting on random mutations?} _{Denyse O'Leary

September 29, 2023

4

Animal mind, Evolution}

The octopus, considered to be separated from us by about 700 million years of evolution, is believed to be the most intelligent invertebrate. It challenges many common assumptions about animal intelligence because it is also a short-lived loner. And we are discovering that its nervous system apparatus for intelligence is also completely different from typical mammal or bird models. Rather than having a centralized nervous system, the octopus’ nervous system is spread throughout its body. Two-thirds of its neurons are not inside its brain. Researchers aren’t even sure how this system can work, but it does … But it gets even more interesting. Many of these neurons can communicate with each other without going through the brain. Essentially, the nervous Read More ›

Trees in forest from below, green tops of trees, blue sky background

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post

Author
Denyse O'Leary
Date
September 28, 2023

Categorized
Evolution, Panpsychism, Plant Mind

Tagged
Consciousness, David G. Robinson, Frantisek Baluška, Plant emotions claims, Plant intelligence claims}

Are Plants Cognitive, Intelligent Organisms? A Controversy Brews

_{Some plant biologists want to see them that way; others continue to insist on a Darwinian view} _{Denyse O'Leary

September 28, 2023

5

Evolution, Panpsychism, Plant Mind}

As panpsychism (the idea that all life forms are conscious to some extent) takes hold in science, it ruffles some fields more than others. Think of what it is doing to botany… Well, we don’t have to imagine. The University of Heidelberg put out a media release this week warning that the belief that plants do things we commonly associate with animals is straying beyond the science: Plants are often attributed with abilities similar to those known in the animal or human world. Trees are said to have feelings and can purportedly care for their offspring, like mothers. In an article in the review journal Trends in Plant Science, 32 international plant and forest researchers followed up on such assertions. Read More ›

illustration of future education classroom with robotic tech teacher . AI

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post

Author
Robert J. Marks and Jonathan Swindell
Date
September 28, 2023

Categorized
Artificial Intelligence

Tagged
AI, Artificial Intelligence, ChatGPT, LLMs, Robert J. Marks}

If ChatGPT Had Children, Would They Be Geniuses or Blubbering Idiots?

_{It would seem that when AI begets more AI, the result is nonsense.} _{Robert J. Marks and Jonathan Swindell

September 28, 2023

4

Artificial Intelligence}

Can today’s artificial intelligence systems be used to train superior artificial intelligence systems of tomorrow? Can AI write better AI that writes better AI leading to a potentially god-like general artificial intelligence? In a recent insightful paper written by collaborators from Oxford, Cambridge and other prestigious institutions, the verdict is in for large language models (LLMs) like ChatGPT. Repeatedly using the output of one LLM to train another results in what the authors call model collapse. If only the words from the original LLM #0 are used to train LLM #1 and only the output of LLM #1 is used to train LLM #2, and so on, the AI eventually suffers model collapse and becomes a blubbering idiot. The emergence of superintelligence by Read More ›

^{Type
post

Author
Denyse O'Leary
Date
September 28, 2023

Categorized
Addiction, Neuroscience, Panpsychism, Peer Review, Philosophy of Mind

Tagged
Anil Seth on physicalism, Dan Falk, Dan Falk on panpsychism, eliminative materialism, Panpsychism vs eliminative materialism}

In Neuroscience Flap, Science Media Tackle “Pseudoscience” Claim

_{As the leading theory of consciousness is tarred by neuroscientists as “pseudoscience,” science media struggle to outline just WHAT science is} _{Denyse O'Leary

September 28, 2023

6

Addiction, Neuroscience, Panpsychism, Peer Review, Philosophy of Mind}

As a child, I remember hearing a proverb, “When thieves fall out, honest men come by their own.” It means roughly: If you are overhearing loud, angry accusations, you may suddenly realize for the first time what really happened during many puzzling events — and hear honest statements of some Top People’s agendas. For example, it took a huge uproar around the top neuroscience theory, Integrated Information Theory (IIT), for some of us to realize how the “Keep abortion legal!” agenda dominates many neuroscientists’ concerns. That turn of events is hardly something that would have jumped out at most of us.* As noted here earlier, IIT is now under attack as “pseudoscience,” with top journal Nature covering the fight. And Read More ›

Financial Updates, Close-Up of Newspapers, Daylight, High-Definition Picture Generative AI

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post

Author
Denyse O'Leary
Date
September 27, 2023

Categorized
Media, Social Media

Tagged
Anita Varma, Bothsidesism, Bothsidesism rejected by journalists, Censorship and mainstream media, Internet effect on traditional media, Joel Kotkin, Journalists and social class, Mainstream media decline, Media (trust in media)}

Five Key Ways Media Have Changed in the Last 35 Years

_{Major media no longer really represent a vast number of average audience members} _{Denyse O'Leary

September 27, 2023

6

Media, Social Media}

The internet hit mainstream news media very hard and changed them irrevocably. That was partly because, in addition to being unprepared for the changes, they were often highly resistant to them. Decades ago, freelance writers like myself frequently had to deal with staff editors and writers who knew much less than we did about the internet facts of life. One outcome of the shift is that average readers need to consider even more thoughtfully what qualifies as news. Here are five big changes to note: 1.Traditional media (TV, radio, newspapers, and magazines) have vastly shrunken readerships. For example, the Washington Post is set to lose $100 million in 2023. That’s probably related to its losing half a million subscribers since Read More ›

illustration of blue water surface with rough wave with glitter glow light, theme of

^{Type
post

Author
William A. Dembski
Date
September 27, 2023

Categorized
Artificial Intelligence

Tagged
AI, Artificial Intelligence, ChatGPT, Evolution, Intelligent Design, science, William A. Dembski}

When ChatGPT Talks Science

_{Can AI ever transcend its trained biases?} _{William A. Dembski

September 27, 2023

29

Artificial Intelligence}

The other day I received an email keying off my blog post about “ChatGPT and inference to the best explanation” (or IBE). The author mused about the future of ChatGPT4’s knowledge base as it continually grows subject to human-assisted corrections. He speculated on the possibility of future versions, like ChatGPT4 or 5, inferring intelligent design (ID) as the most plausible explanation for the origin of life. For this to happen, the email writer believes that the AI’s knowledge base would need to incorporate impartial references to ID concepts and their supporting arguments, unless the AI can independently arrive at such a conclusion. He then asks the implications if an AI, designed by humans, determines that a higher intelligence created its human creators. Read More ›

^{Type
post

Author
News
Date
September 27, 2023

Categorized
Technology}

Is Neuralink Safe?

_{Musk says it is, but the evidence suggests otherwise.} _{News

September 27, 2023

2

Technology}

Over the years, the company “Neuralink” has conducted a number of brain implant tests on monkeys, and according to a report from Futurism, a majority of those went south. The implants are supposed to aid cognitive abilities and perhaps even alleviate or offset certain mental disabilities. Now, an ethics group called Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine is calling for an investigation. Elon Musk, who founded the biotechnology company in 2016, claimed that the affected animals had terminal illnesses that were unrelated to the implant tests, but others cry foul. Frank Landymore writes, Documents viewed as part of a new investigation by Wired, however, as well as testimony from a former employee, contradict Musk’s claims entirely — and the details are as upsetting Read More ›

AGV (Automated guided vehicle) in warehouse logistic and transport.

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post

Author
News
Date
September 27, 2023

Categorized
Technology

Tagged
Amazon, Big business, Big Tech, Consumerism, Facebook, Jeff Bezos, Lawsuit, Monopoly, Technology}

U.S. Federal Trade Commission Sues Amazon

_{The lawsuit convicts Amazon of suppressing competition and stifling innovation from potential rivals} _{News

September 27, 2023

2

Technology}

In a long-awaited lawsuit, the U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC) is suing Amazon for seeking to monopolize the online market, according to Reuters. The lawsuit convicts Amazon of suppressing competition and stifling innovation from potential rivals, arriving after years of complaints. From the Reuters article: he lawsuit, which was joined by 17 state attorneys general, follows a four-year investigation and federal lawsuits filed against Alphabet’s Google and Meta Platforms’ Facebook. “The FTC and its state partners say Amazon’s actions allow it to stop rivals and sellers from lowering prices, degrade quality for shoppers, overcharge sellers, stifle innovation, and prevent rivals from fairly competing against Amazon,” the agency said in a statement. The FTC said that it was asking the court Read More ›

3d rendered medically accurate illustration of a fetus at week 17

^{Type
post

Author
Denyse O'Leary
Date
September 26, 2023

Categorized
Panpsychism, Philosophy, Science

Tagged
Abortion and consciousness issues, Christof Koch, Erik Hoel, Integrated Information Theory (IIT), John Horgan (on Integrated Information Theory), Panpsychism and abortion, Pseudoscience claims and consciousness theories}

Attack on Top Consciousness Theory Springs From Abortion Politics

_{If that sounds surprising and unscientific, read on. Pro and con, they make it clear} _{Denyse O'Leary

September 26, 2023

6

Panpsychism, Philosophy, Science}

Perhaps publications like Nature were taken by surprise when well over 100 leading neuroscientists signed a letter denouncing Allen Institute neuroscientist Christof Koch’s leading Integrated Information Theory (IIT) as “pseudoscience.” The most interesting part of the story is that, while the signatories’ main complaint was the panpsychist origins and implications of the theory — consciousness is widespread through the universe — Nature’s writeup did not mention that… Among those who weighed in shortly afterwards was well-known science writer John Horgan. He begins by defining IIT theory in a comprehensible way: Integrated information theory, or IIT, which I’ve tracked for years, holds that consciousness arises in any system whose components exchange information in a certain mathematically defined way. Neuroscientist Giulio Tononi Read More ›

modern full wall full-length bookshelf filled with colorful paper books, smart book background, generative ai

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post

Author
News
Date
September 26, 2023

Categorized
Artificial Intelligence, Arts & Culture

Tagged
AI, Artificial Intelligence, Arts and Culture, ChatGPT, novels}

Novelists Against AI

_{17 authors are suing OpenAI for copyright infringement} _{News

September 26, 2023

2

Artificial Intelligence, Arts & Culture}

17 prominent authors including George R.R. Martin and John Grisham are suing OpenAI, the company responsible for ChatGPT, for copyright infringement and “theft,” according to the Associated Press (AP). The authors are among many in the creative field who are expressing concern over the ethics of AI use. A spokesperson for the Authors Guild said that it’s imperative to stop AI’s theft to preserve America’s “incredible literary culture,” according to the AP. Hillel Italie reports, The lawsuit cites specific ChatGPT searches for each author, such as one for Martin that alleges the program generated “an infringing, unauthorized, and detailed outline for a prequel” to “A Game of Thrones” that was titled “A Dawn of Direwolves” and used “the same characters Read More ›

Security camera on modern building. Professional surveillance cameras. CCTV on the wall in the city. Security system, technology. Video equipment for safety system area control outdoor. AI generated.

^{Type
post

Author
News
Date
September 26, 2023

Categorized
Surveillance

Tagged
AI, Argentina, Authoritarianism, Facial Recognition, Freedom, Technocracy, Wired}

When Video Surveillance Gets It Wrong

_{An incident in Argentina calls the country's facial recognition tech into serious question} _{News

September 26, 2023

3

Surveillance}

A new in-depth report from Wired recounts the story of an Argentinian man, Guillermo Ibarrola, who was falsely accused of a crime and pinpointed via video surveillance. According to Wired, Ibarrola spent nearly a week in custody before the “mixup” was spotted and authorities realized they had nabbed the wrong Guillermo Ibarrola. It was a data entry mistake. The case is only one of many others in Argentina’s mishaps with video surveillance, and how data mistakes can end up impacting innocent lives significantly. Karen Naundorf writes, When speaking of South America, mass surveillance technology is likely not the first thing that comes to mind. But a study by the data protection organization Access Now shows Argentina is one of the most surveilled Read More ›

Cropped photo of businessman analyzing business diagram, marketing statistics and finance market graphs on laptop monitor in the office.

^{Type
post

Author
Gary Smith
Date
September 25, 2023

Categorized
Artificial Intelligence

Tagged
AI, Algorithms, causation, Correlation, data, Graphs}

Confusing Correlation with Causation

_{Computers are amazing. But they can't distinguish between correlation and causation.} _{Gary Smith

September 25, 2023

7

Artificial Intelligence}

Artificial intelligence (AI) algorithms are terrific at discovering statistical correlations but terrible at distinguishing between correlation and causation. A computer algorithm might find a correlation between how often a person has been in an automobile accident and the words they post on Facebook, being a good software engineer and visiting certain websites, and making loan payments on time and keeping one’s phone fully charged. However, computer algorithms do not know what any of these things are and consequently have no way of determining whether these are causal relationships (and therefore useful predictors) or fleeting coincidences (that are useless predictors). If the program is black box, then humans cannot intervene and declare that these are almost certainly irrelevant coincidences. Even if Read More ›

Stump of tree felled - section of the trunk with annual rings. Slice wood.

^{Type
post

Author
Robert J. Marks
Date
September 25, 2023

Categorized
Philosophy of Mind

Tagged
Consciousness, Materialism, Matter, mind, Minding the Brain (book), Robert J. Marks}

An Introduction to Minding the Brain

_{Is your mind the same thing as your brain? Or are there aspects of mind that are external to the biology of the brain?} _{Robert J. Marks

September 25, 2023

6

Philosophy of Mind}

Editor’s note: We are delighted to welcome the new book from Discovery Institute Press, Minding the Brain: Models of the Mind, Information, and Empirical Science, edited by Angus J. Menuge, Brian R. Krouse, and Robert J. Marks. Below is an excerpt from the Introduction. Look for more information at MindingtheBrain.org. Is your mind the same thing as your brain? Or are there aspects of mind that are external to the biology of the brain? This question, referred to as the mind-body problem or the mind-brain problem, has been debated for centuries and has captivated curious minds since the dawn of human contemplation. What is the relationship between our mental life and physical body? Intuition suggests our subjective experience of the world is tightly Read More ›