Mind Matters Natural and Artificial Intelligence News and Analysis

CategoryArtificial Intelligence

brush-with-paper-paint-photo-collage-in-colorful-pop-art-style-stockpack-adobe-stock
Brush with paper paint, photo collage in colorful pop art style
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post
Author
Richard W. Stevens
Date
June 16, 2023
Categorized
Artificial Intelligence
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Making Sense of the Warhol v. Goldsmith Supreme Court Case

Lawyer Richard W. Stevens sheds light on a recent groundbreaking court case that has implications for generative AI and copyright issues
Richard W. Stevens
June 16, 2023
6
Artificial Intelligence

Here is an excerpt of the transcript from a recent Mind Matters podcast episode, which you can listen to in full here. Lawyer and Walter Bradley Center Fellow Richard W. Stevens sat down with Robert J. Marks to discuss a Supreme Court Case regarding AI and copyright issues. Stevens helps us understand more of what the case is about and what’s at stake. For more on this, read about the court case’s conclusion here, as well as Marks’s commentary from Newsmax. Richard Stevens: So to boil this down, the situation was this. A woman by the name of Lynn Goldsmith, a professional photographer, took a photo of the musician named Prince. Later, Andy Warhol was paid to produce an orange Read More ›

smart-device-virtual-control-interface-artificial-intelligence-new-application-ai-futuristic-concept-stockpack-adobe-stock
Smart device virtual control interface. Artificial intelligence new application AI futuristic concept
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post
Author
News
Date
June 15, 2023
Categorized
Artificial Intelligence

Robert Marks on ChatGPT and Digital Plagiarism

We will have to adapt, Marks said
News
June 15, 2023
1
Artificial Intelligence

Dr. Robert J. Marks, director of the Walter Bradley Center and author of the terrific book Non-Computable You: What You Do That Artificial Intelligence Never Will, was a spokesman on a recent panel of journalists at NTD. Host Cindy Drukier posed the question of ChatGPT‘s significance and how it will affect our society, particularly the sphere of education. Marks said that ChatGPT will have to be “folded into our society,” and that we will have to learn to adapt to it like we did with other technologies such as television and electricity. He went on to talk about how some AI-generated images are now “watermarked,” and that the legal issue of copyright is formidable. You can watch the brief clip Read More ›

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stained glass window
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post
Author
Peter Biles
Date
June 14, 2023
Categorized
Artificial Intelligence
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AI Plays the Reverend

An AI chatbot gave a sermon at a church in Germany, allegedly telling congregants "not to fear death."
Peter Biles
June 14, 2023
2
Artificial Intelligence

An AI chatbot gave a sermon at a church in Germany, allegedly telling congregants “not to fear death.” University of Vienna theologian and philosopher Jonas Simmerlein was responsible for the service and for giving the ChatGPT bot its prompts. Talk about eerie. Even churches are starting to incorporate AI into their homilies. Simmerlein noted that overall the chatbot gave “a pretty solid service,” and included psalms, prayers, and also mentions of climate change and Ukraine. Not all the congregants got the same impression. Per the report from Fox News, in conjunction with the Associated Press, some church attendants felt put off by the chatbot’s mechanical and impersonal delivery. One woman expressed, “There was no heart and no soul,” Heiderose Schmidt, Read More ›

robot-paints-picture-at-home-humanoid-robot-creating-as-artist-generative-ai-stockpack-adobe-stock
Robot paints picture at home, humanoid robot creating as artist, generative AI.
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post
Author
Denyse O'Leary
Date
June 13, 2023
Categorized
Artificial Intelligence, Philosophy of Mind, Programming, Robotics
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All We Need To Do To Give a Robot a Soul Is… (Error 404)

The author of Robot Souls argues that programmers have failed to put the “junk,” that is, the soul, into machines — but that they could do so
Denyse O'Leary
June 13, 2023
4
Artificial Intelligence, Philosophy of Mind, Programming, Robotics

Academic publisher Taylor & Francis asks in TechXplore, “Should robots be given a conscience?” (June 11, 2023). I spoil no surprise by revealing that we are meant to think that that is both doable and desirable. T & F is publishing Eve Poole’s Robot Souls later this year. Poole is a British writer and academic, and author of Capitalism’s Toxic Assumptions, Buying God, and Leadersmithing. Her thesis is that, in our quest for the most functional software, we left out the “junk,” which includes our “emotions, free will and a sense of purpose”: Our junk code consists of human emotions, our propensity for mistakes, our inclination to tell stories, our uncanny sixth sense, our capacity to cope with uncertainty, an Read More ›

legal-law-and-justice-concept-open-law-book-with-a-wooden-judges-gavel-on-table-in-a-courtroom-or-law-enforcement-office-copy-space-for-text-stockpack-adobe-stock
Legal Law and Justice concept - Open law book with a wooden judges gavel on table in a courtroom or law enforcement office. Copy space for text.
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post
Author
Richard W. Stevens
Date
June 13, 2023
Categorized
Artificial Intelligence
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Lawyer Hammered for Using ChatGPT

Court record system proceeded to block access to sloppy lawyering and AI catastrophe
Richard W. Stevens
June 13, 2023
9
Artificial Intelligence

New York Times reporters watched the hearing in federal district court in New York on June 8, 2023, which they then described: In a cringe-inducing court hearing, a lawyer who relied on A.I. to craft a motion full of made-up case law said he “did not comprehend” that [ChatGPT] could lead him astray. Lawyer Who Used ChatGPT Faces Penalty for Made Up Citations – The New York Times (nytimes.com) The reporters got most of it right but even they erred. The lawyer involved did not write a “motion,” he filed a sworn declaration opposing a motion to dismiss. The difference matters: Declarations are under oath, so the lawyer swore to the truth of ChatGPT lies. Looking at the actual court Read More ›

smartphone-screen-with-smart-home-technologies-on-a-blue-backdrop-internet-of-things-isometric-conceptual-image-digital-residence-utilizing-a-mobile-phones-fingerprint-to-get-access-to-iot-systems-stockpack-adobe-stock
Smartphone screen with smart home technologies on a blue backdrop. Internet of things isometric conceptual image. Digital Residence utilizing a mobile phone's fingerprint to get access to IOT systems
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post
Author
Gary Smith
Date
June 12, 2023
Categorized
Artificial Intelligence
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The LLM Deep Fake—Follow the Money

Hype sells. Just look at what's happening with AI
Gary Smith
June 12, 2023
7
Artificial Intelligence

Large language models (LLMs) are far more impressive now than they were just a few months or a year ago. Compare these exchanges I had with GPT-3 in June 2022 and with ChatGPT two days ago: Gary:          Can I improve my test scores if I study after taking the test? GPT-3:        That’s a good question. I’m not sure if you can improve your test scores by studying after taking the test, but it couldn’t hurt to try! ChatGPT:   Studying after taking a test is unlikely to directly improve your scores on that particular test since the test has already been completed. Once a test is finished, the opportunity to answer questions and provide responses has passed. However, studying after taking Read More ›

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No AI Artificial Intelligence Forbidden Sign Lawsuit Copyright
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News
Date
June 9, 2023
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Supreme Court Ruling Strikes a Blow to “Generative AI”

Ouch. That's a big loss for AI. Here's why:
News
June 9, 2023
2

Can generative AI “think outside the box” even as it draws from preexisting material on the internet? Are the images it produces protected under “fair use”? The Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) has decided “no.” AI fails to be “transformative,” meaning it can’t create new meaning apart from its source material. Robert J. Marks reported on the recent lawsuit Warhol v. Goldsmith, writing, Assume AI is trained with all of the musical compositions of Bach. If the AI generates music that sounds like Bach, it is not transformative. The “meaning or message” can be construed as being the same. It’s still like Bach. On the other hand, if the AI is trained only on Bach but generates music Read More ›

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post
Author
Eric Holloway
Date
June 7, 2023
Categorized
Artificial Intelligence
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Say What? AI Doesn’t Understand Anything 

Is that supposed to be a cat, Mr. AI?
Eric Holloway
June 7, 2023
9
Artificial Intelligence

Whenever I look at AI generated content, whether it be pictures or text, they all have the same flaw. The AI cannot comprehend what it is making.  Let me explain.  When we humans draw a picture, we are drawing a concept. We are drawing something like “cat climbs a tree” or “cowboy riding into the sunset”. It seems like this is what is happening with a picture drawing AI. We give it a prompt, and it draws an associated picture.  On second thought, maybe not…  When AI draws the picture, what is really going on is it is finding individual-colored pixels that correlate with the letters we typed in its massive database stored in the neural network. Very different than how we draw. We Read More ›

ai-robot-tutor-reading-with-a-teenage-boy-stockpack-adobe-stock
AI robot tutor reading with a teenage boy
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post
Author
News
Date
June 6, 2023
Categorized
Artificial Intelligence
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The End of the Search Engine?

Bill Gates thinks AI will someday replace traditional search engines
News
June 6, 2023
2
Artificial Intelligence

Bill Gates thinks AI will destroy search engines. In the wake of artificial assistants, searching the “traditional” way will get thrown out as the internet totally transforms; nonetheless, it might take a while for AI to fully replace search engines like Google or Microsoft’s Bing. Until then, tech companies will keep trying to implement GPT-like systems into their search systems. Microsoft is already aggressively pushing for this. When you search for something through Microsoft Edge, the chatbot’s response is the first thing to pop up. Victor Tangermann reports at Futurism, Gates has been bullish on the topic of AI for a while now. Just last month, he told an audience during a keynote speech that AI could eventually teach kids how Read More ›

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Panel on AI at COSM 2022
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post
Author
News
Date
June 6, 2023
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Artificial Intelligence
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AI’s Lack of Understanding

How are we to view AI in an era where it increasingly seems to mimic human intelligence so well?
News
June 6, 2023
1
Artificial Intelligence

We’ve been highlighting a number of interviews from last year’s COSM conference, which attracted many of the most celebrated and respected engineers, scholars, and scientists from around the country. In today’s featured clip, George Montañez, Assistant Professor of Computer Science at Harvey Mudd College, shares his perspective on COSM 2022’s panel on artificial intelligence—areas of agreement and disagreement about the nature and future of artificial intelligence. Montañez, like Robert J. Marks, with whom he shared the panel, thinks AI is impressive and that we’ve made incredible strides in the field of computation, but maintains that these systems lack understanding and sentience. Blake Lemoine, the other panelist in the conversation, thinks AI is capable of a bit more than mere algorithmic Read More ›

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robot take over solarized image
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post
Author
Robert J. Marks
Date
June 5, 2023
Categorized
Artificial Intelligence
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Not to Worry–AI Isn’t Going to Take Over

AI hype isn't new. Here's Robert J. Marks writing on the topic in 2017
Robert J. Marks
June 5, 2023
11
Artificial Intelligence

[The AI hype isn’t new. The history of exaggerating its potential goes back decades. In this article, Robert J. Marks echoes many of the views covered in more detail in his 2022 book Non-Computable You: What You Do That Artificial Intelligence Never Will. Today we share it with you, originally written on October 3rd, 2017, and published at The Stream.] A.I. is transforming our world. Should we worry about that? Entrepreneur billionaire Elon Musk is worried. Woody Allen once said, “What if everything is an illusion and nothing exists? In that case, I definitely overpaid for my carpet.” Musk thinks he overpaid for his carpet. He believes there’s a good chance the world as we know it is a sophisticated Read More ›

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An analyst uses a computer and dashboard for data business analysis and Data Management System with KPI and metrics connected to the database for technology finance, operations, sales, marketing
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post
Author
News
Date
June 5, 2023
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Artificial Intelligence
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What Even Is Artificial Intelligence?

When we talk about AI, we're basically talking about computers
News
June 5, 2023
2
Artificial Intelligence

In a recent Mind Matters podcast, computer engineer Robert J. Marks puts the AI hype into perspective by investigating what it can and cannot do. Marks is of the mind that AI can offer a myriad of benefits to the modern world, and notes that the technology has already made inroads into various spheres of life including banking, accounting, and facial recognition technology. The danger lies in believing that AI can replicate human creativity and understanding. While AI can do a lot, it can never understand itself the way human beings can. Marks thinks this is essential to keep in mind. We are not machines. Here is a quote from the episode in which Marks sets some terms and definitions: Read More ›

thinking with gears
Thinking mechanisms
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post
Author
News
Date
June 1, 2023
Categorized
Artificial Intelligence
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New Conversation Article: ChatGPT Can’t Think

Will AI ever reach a point where it can independently analyze, think, and transcend itself?
News
June 1, 2023
2
Artificial Intelligence

Will AI ever reach a point where it can independently analyze, think, and transcend itself? Furthermore, will it ever become sentient? Some experts in the field, like Blake Lemoine, think AI has already breached the boundaries of sentience. Others, though, remain skeptical. A new article from The Conversation discusses ChatGPT, the Turing test, and the question of consciousness. For Turing, “thinking” meant simply passing the test, but his assumptions were misguided. Philip Goff writes, Turing was wrong, however, when he said the only clear notion of “understanding” is the purely behavioural one of passing his test. Although this way of thinking now dominates cognitive science, there is also a clear, everyday notion of “understanding” that’s tied to consciousness. To understand Read More ›

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Natural luxury abstract fluid art painting in alcohol ink technique. Tender and dreamy wallpaper. Mixture of colors creating transparent waves and golden swirls. For posters, other printed materials
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post
Author
News
Date
May 31, 2023
Categorized
Artificial Intelligence, Arts & Culture

So Long, Art History–AI is the Only Picasso We Need Now

How about we keep art human generated, eh?
News
May 31, 2023
2
Artificial Intelligence, Arts & Culture

In the near future, will the high school senior struggling to turn in that art report Google search a famous artist only to be bombarded with AI remakes? And without proper education, will people start failing to discern the difference? Unfortunately, that future is already upon us. If you type in “Johannes Vermeer” at Google, the Dutch artist famous for his piece “Girl with a Pearl Earring,” an AI copy of the artwork appears in his bio preview. Visual artists have been resisting AI image generators like Midjourney and DALL-E for a few months now, with even some lawsuits in the mix. Many artists feel that AI art violates copyright. But we’re to another level with this whole debacle when Read More ›

thinker-man-3d-illustration-the-thinker-statue-by-the-french-sculptor-rodin-stockpack-adobe-stock
Thinker man 3D illustration. The Thinker Statue by the French Sculptor Rodin.
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post
Author
William A. Dembski
Date
May 30, 2023
Categorized
Artificial Intelligence
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Moving On to Breaking Google’s Bard

These AI systems lack the uniquely human capacity of self-transcendence
William A. Dembski
May 30, 2023
4
Artificial Intelligence

I’ve finally started playing around with Google Bard. With self-referential sentences, it seems even more at sea than ChatGPT. Here is an exchange from May 18: Me: Consider the following six sentences: This is the first sentence. Ignore this sentence. Why are these sentences being written down? The second sentence has exactly three words. The fifth sentence has at least twenty words. This, along with the preceding five sentences, have fewer than twenty times twenty words. Which of these last six sentences has a truth value and which are true? Bard: The last six sentences have the following truth values: The second sentence is false because it has 5 words, not 3. The fifth sentence is true because it has Read More ›

empty-vintage-congress-hall-with-seats-and-microphones-stockpack-adobe-stock
Empty vintage congress hall with seats and microphones
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post
Author
News
Date
May 29, 2023
Categorized
Artificial Intelligence
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“A Printing Press Moment” in History

AI should be regulated lest it do real harm in the world, said OpenAI CEO
News
May 29, 2023
2
Artificial Intelligence

Sam Altman, CEO of OpenAI, the company at the forefront of artificial intelligence development in recent months, testified before lawmakers last week on the state of AI, its potential, and the dangers of its misuse. Despite Altman’s overall optimism regarding AI, calling it a “printing press moment,” he called for lawmakers to regulate it to keep it from causing legitimate harm in the world. Julia Zorthian, writer at Times and owner of the coolest last name in the world, reports, Joining Altman in testifying before the committee were two other AI experts, professor of Psychology and Neural Science at New York University Gary Marcus and IBM Chief Privacy & Trust Officer Christina Montgomery. The three witnesses supported governance of AI Read More ›

light-bulb-global-internet-connection-business-global-internet-connection-application-technology-and-digital-marketing-financial-and-banking-digital-link-tech-big-data-bulb-light-energy-lamp-stockpack-adobe-stock
Light bulb Global Internet connection. Business global internet connection application technology and digital marketing, Financial and banking, Digital link tech, big data, bulb, light, energy, lamp,
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post
Author
Jeffrey Funk
Date
May 29, 2023
Categorized
Artificial Intelligence, Technology
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Review of “Power and Progress: Our Thousand-Year Struggle Over Technology and Prosperity”

This new book on tech, AI, and economic prosperity by Daron Acemoglu and Simon Johnson is incredibly timely
Jeffrey Funk
May 29, 2023
7
Artificial Intelligence, Technology

This book by two MIT economists is very timely because the world is now dealing with the latest in the “Thousand Year Struggle,” in the form of artificial intelligence, the claims that many white-collar jobs will be automated, OpenAI’s call for regulation, and the possibility that AI will bring a further concentration of power among the big tech companies. Much of the book sets the stage for this discussion by summarizing the history of technology. This review focuses on the economic and social impact of automation and information technology over the last 50 years. For instance, “the distribution of income between capital and labor began to change significantly in the late 20th century. While throughout most of the century, about Read More ›

adult-student-reading-a-book-in-the-college-library-young-standing-male-wearing-glasses-with-bookshelves-on-background-stockpack-adobe-stock
Adult student reading a book in the college library. Young standing male wearing glasses with bookshelves on background.
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post
Author
News
Date
May 28, 2023
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Artificial Intelligence, Arts & Culture
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In the Wake of AI Books, What Does Authorship Mean?

While of course it's easy to use AI to generate text, the quality and storytelling are lacking.
News
May 28, 2023
2
Artificial Intelligence, Arts & Culture

We all know there are a lot of books out there. Perusing your local used bookstore and you may find hundreds of old romance paperbacks, and somehow most of them managed (at least at one point) to make the New York Times bestsellers’ list. It’s estimated that 500,000 to 1 million books are published each year, and that’s excluding self-published material. The publishing market has become saturated, with the average book selling less than 200 copies. From the advent of the printing press centuries ago to e-books and online publishing, humans alone have managed to generate a mountain of words. But suppose one person could “generate” not just a few books in a lifetime, but hundreds every year? According to Read More ›

man-walking-in-the-night-toward-the-light-stockpack-adobe-stock
man walking in the night toward the light
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post
Author
Peter Biles
Date
May 27, 2023
Categorized
Artificial Intelligence, Arts & Culture
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Here Come the AI Companions

The Internet ushered in a wave of virtual living and connectivity. Is this the next inevitable step?
Peter Biles
May 27, 2023
3
Artificial Intelligence, Arts & Culture

The popular social media influencer Caryn Marjorie recently launched “CarynAI,” an artificially intelligent companion that her millions of followers can interact with every day. Marjorie told the Washington Post that she doesn’t have the bandwidth to respond to all the requests she gets from her predominantly male fanbase, however much she wishes to. She furthermore wants to cure them all of their loneliness. She’s on track to make 5 million dollars a month from CarynAI. The bot makes it possible for fans to have a “relationship” with a simulated version of Caryn. Conversations are designed to “wind down” after an hour, but there’s no time limit. One of Caryn’s reps said users are spending hours interacting with CarynAI. The project Read More ›

video-wall-with-multimedia-images-on-different-television-screens-generative-ai-stockpack-adobe-stock
video wall with multimedia images on different television screens, generative ai
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post
Author
News
Date
May 27, 2023
Categorized
Artificial Intelligence
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AI Still Struggles to Take Out the Trash

How good is AI at content moderation?
News
May 27, 2023
1
Artificial Intelligence

How good is AI at content moderation? Also, why haven’t tech companies improved at filtering bad content? A new article at MIT Technology Review goes into some of the details of AI, content moderation, and the struggle tech companies have with “bad actors.” In particular, Large Language Models (LLMs) like ChatGPT still struggle with capturing the nuance and context of language; therefore it seems unlikely that AI will totally replace human content moderators. Tate Ryan-Mosley writes, Large language models still struggle with context, which means they probably won’t be able to interpret the nuance of posts and images as well as human moderators. Scalability and specificity across different cultures also raise questions.  -Tate Ryan-Mosley, Catching bad content in the age Read More ›