Mind Matters Natural and Artificial Intelligence News and Analysis

Gary Varner

black-egg-on-a-black-background-the-concept-of-coloring-eggs-for-easter-standing-alone-egg-stockpack-adobe-stock
Black egg on a black background. The concept of coloring eggs for Easter. Standing alone egg
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Author
Gary Varner
Date
December 6, 2023
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Arts & Culture
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Alien Review, Part 2

Herding aliens in space is a bad idea
Gary Varner
December 6, 2023
6
Arts & Culture

Read Part 1 of this review first if you missed it: Alien Review, Part 1 | Mind Matters In the previous review, we began discussing the sci-fi classic, Alien, and we left off with one of the Nostromo’s crewmembers, Kane, waking up after being attacked by a strange creature which had essentially glued itself to his face. Now, the creature is dead, and all seems well. Since Kane appears to be alright, and the crew begins eating another meal, preparing to renter cryosleep for their return journey to Earth. But as they are eating, Kane begins to scream in pain. The other’s try to help him, but they have no idea what’s going on. Finally, another alien explodes from Kane’s Read More ›

3d-rendered-medically-accurate-illustration-of-a-grey-alien-stockpack-adobe-stock
3d rendered medically accurate illustration of a grey alien
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post
Author
Gary Varner
Date
November 11, 2023
Categorized
Arts & Culture

Alien Review, Part 1

Is the original movie as impressive as everyone says?
Gary Varner
November 11, 2023
7
Arts & Culture

Alien is considered a sci-fi classic. It started a franchise that has lasted for many years, but while the first couple of movies are highly respected, the later films are thought to be underwhelming to say the least. But is the original as impressive as everyone says? The movie starts out with a large multi-storied ship moving through space. This spacecraft looks like an entire city, and as neat as it is to see, this raises a few questions right away. Why is the vessel so large, and how can only a seven people run this craft? We do get some answers. The ship is called the Nostromo. It is a mining ship, and a computer named Mother runs most Read More ›

young-robot-looking-at-baby-in-a-stroller-against-starry-sky-digital-art-style-illustration-painting-stockpack-adobe-stock
young robot looking at baby in a stroller against starry sky, digital art style, illustration painting
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Author
Gary Varner
Date
November 4, 2023
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Arts & Culture
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Megan Review, Part 3

If you’re looking for a mind-numbing popcorn flick to pass the time, Megan is worth watching. 
Gary Varner
November 4, 2023
7
Arts & Culture

In the previous review, Megan began her killing spree, but Gemma quickly figured out there was a problem with the robot and took her back to her lab. Cady was distraught about the loss of her favorite toy, but Gemma still brought the girl to the lab and made Cady talk with a social worker. Afterward, she and Cady had a heartfelt discussion about the loss of the child’s parents. Gemma takes Cady home. Meanwhile, the assistants bring Megan down to the lab, but the robot escapes. Megan makes a B-line for Gemma’s house, but along the way, she encounters Gemma’s employer, David. She quickly kills the boss and his assistant before stealing a car. David was a rather unlikable Read More ›

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AI risk and artificial intelligence technology as a human and machine concept with advanced tech or robots taking over humanity and people merging with a cyborg as an existential risk
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Author
Gary Varner
Date
October 28, 2023
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Arts & Culture
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Megan Review, Part 2

Happy Halloween! A killer doll breaks protocol.
Gary Varner
October 28, 2023
6
Arts & Culture

Last time, we talked about how Gemma gave Cady, her niece, a robotic doll, Megan, to help her raise the child after Cady’s parents were killed. At first, things go smoothly enough, but then Megan is attacked by a dog. The writers seem to have given us two potential theories about what’s happening. The first is that the robot is going through some sort of awakening right at the beginning. Megan has overridden the various safety protocols put in place to keep the robot from hurting people, and it’s only pretending to be protective of Cady. The second option is that during this dog attack, the fail safes malfunction, and this enables the robot to go on its murderous rampage. Read More ›

illustration-of-a-technological-eye-close-up-future-concept-generative-ai-stockpack-adobe-stock
illustration of a technological eye, close up, future concept, generative ai
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Author
Gary Varner
Date
October 21, 2023
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Arts & Culture
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Megan Review, Part 1

An AI doll that does more than just play.
Gary Varner
October 21, 2023
6
Arts & Culture

Since it’s nearing Halloween, I figured now would be a good time to review some Sci-Fi movies that dabble in the horror genre. Megan came out in 2022 and has been referred to as Chucky for Zoomers. The premise is the same as the horror movie, Child’s Play, from 1988: a child gets a doll. Doll turns psychotic and kills people. It’s pretty straightforward. However, Megan differs by adding a technological twist, calling back to the creepy Furbies, which came out in 1998. Really, those awful toys should’ve had a horror movie of their own. There are many a tale of the mechanical monsters waking up under the bed in the dead of night six months after the poor child Read More ›

dunes-in-the-mountains-stockpack-adobe-stock
dunes in the mountains
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Author
Gary Varner
Date
September 30, 2023
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Arts & Culture
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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
Despite the cynical ways of the Bene Gesserit sect, a deeper providence guides the story in Dune. Read More ›
back-view-of-man-looking-at-alien-invasion-ufo-flying-in-the-sky-concept-of-evidence-and-sighting-retro-illustration-generative-ai-stockpack-adobe-stock
Back view of man looking at alien invasion, UFO flying in the sky, concept of evidence and sighting, retro illustration. Generative AI
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Author
Gary Varner
Date
September 9, 2023
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Arts & Culture
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Arrival Review, Part 1

Nobody behaves like they should for the first ten minutes. They act, dare I say, alien.
Gary Varner
September 9, 2023
6
Arts & Culture

Arrival is an interesting movie. It’s well-shot, well-acted, and well-written. The trouble is the script makes some strange choices in the beginning and I just wasn’t persuaded by the movie’s twist at the end. The story starts out with a montage where Louise is raising her daughter, but the child tragically dies of some unknown illness, presumably cancer. The viewer is led to conclude that this is a flashback, but if one listens to the monologue Louise delivers, she says plainly that she’s explaining when the child’s story begins, if there are beginning at all, which is something she no longer believes. This basically means that the entire movie is a flashback, but the viewer is not supposed to notice Read More ›

a-robot-or-a-woman-half-a-robot-with-mechanical-technological-body-parts-and-upgrades-transhumanism-cyborg-and-artificial-intelligence-stockpack-adobe-stock
a robot or a woman half a robot with mechanical technological body parts and upgrades, transhumanism cyborg and artificial intelligence,
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Author
Gary Varner
Date
September 2, 2023
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Arts & Culture, Transhumanism
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Wrapping Up the Westworld Series

Ultimately, the moral of the story is transhumanism
Gary Varner
September 2, 2023
7
Arts & Culture, Transhumanism

The first time I watched Westworld, I remember enjoying it, but upon revisiting the series, my opinion of it has dropped a great deal. There are a variety of problems. First, it’s a bait and switch. It teases the idea of showing how robots can come to life, and it plays with your expectations for most of the series. It even goes as far as to discuss theories like The Bicameral Mind, and The Turing Test. Then, in the last episode, it confirms what the viewer has been slowly growing to suspect. The robots had been coming to life the entire time, and Ford had been wiping their memories. The show says that Ford programmed the robots to experience everything Read More ›

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Feuer und Eis Adam und Gott
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Author
Gary Varner
Date
August 26, 2023
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Arts & Culture, Science Fiction
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Westworld Episode 10 Review (Part Two)

Welcome to the dark end of the journey
Gary Varner
August 26, 2023
7
Arts & Culture, Science Fiction

Last time, Teddy had just finished saving Dolores from the Man in Black, who turned out to be William all along. He takes her to the coast because that was where he promised to take her when they were performing their pre-programmed loop. However, the coast is apparently not very far because as Dolores dies in his arms, Teddy starts reciting a campy monologue, and then shuts down while the board applauds the speech. Even when they’re trying to escape their loop, the robots still, somehow, find themselves trapped in yet another one of Dr. Ford’s narratives. Dr. Ford appears, addresses the crowd, then orders for Teddy to be cleaned up, and for Dolores to be taken to a nearby Read More ›

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Black labyrinth background with dof focus
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Author
Gary Varner
Date
August 19, 2023
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Arts & Culture, Science Fiction
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Westworld Episode 10 Review (Part One)

The maze isn't the only thing that's hard to navigate in this episode.
Gary Varner
August 19, 2023
8
Arts & Culture, Science Fiction

I’ll start out with the most irrelevant plot first because almost no screen time is devoted to it, and it amounts to nothing in the end anyway. Hale successfully convinces the Board to fire Ford, not that he really cares. But Hale has been convinced this entire time that Ford is going to delete the park’s data out of spite. So, after Theresa is killed, she enlists Sizemore, a jaded writer who works for the park, to smuggle the data out through one of the decommissioned robots. This plan doesn’t work; however, because all the robots wake up by the end of the episode, and the data is lost in the vengeful horde. So, it’s a plot point that goes Read More ›

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The Flow of Time: A Close-Up Portrait of an Incomplete Humanoid Android Covered in White Porcelain Skin, Blue Eyes, and Glowing Internal Parts.
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Author
Gary Varner
Date
August 12, 2023
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Arts & Culture
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Westworld Episode 9 Review

Bernard learns the truth
Gary Varner
August 12, 2023
6
Arts & Culture
Episode nine is fast paced, but if you’re paying attention, the grand twist is obvious, and I found it a little irritating. In the next review, we’ll discuss the conclusion of Westworld.  Read More ›
female-robot-face-artificial-intelligence-concept-generative-ai-stockpack-adobe-stock
Female robot face, Artificial intelligence concept. Generative AI
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Author
Gary Varner
Date
July 29, 2023
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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. Read More ›
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Milky way in Utah over the Green River from Swasey's Beach.
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Author
Gary Varner
Date
July 22, 2023
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Arts & Culture
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Westworld: Episode 6 Review

Maeve and the audience get some answers
Gary Varner
July 22, 2023
7
Arts & Culture
In short, because the writers aren’t exactly sure how to explain the evolution of robot sentience, the viewers get mixed messages. Read More ›