_{Natural and Artificial Intelligence News and Analysis}

^CategoryArts & Culture

Blue glowing multiverse in space

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post

Author
Robert J. Marks
Date
June 4, 2020

Categorized
Arts & Culture, Mathematics

Tagged
Big Bang Theory (sitcom), Cantor’s theory of the infinite, Featured, Max Tegmark, Multiverse}

Is Big Bang Theory’s Sheldon Right re the Multiverse?

_{Sheldon Cooper insists that in no universe would he dance with Penny} _{Robert J. Marks

June 4, 2020

6

Arts & Culture, Mathematics}

A collection of universes is called a multiverse. If there are enough universes in a multiverse, can almost anything happen? No. Common models of the universe aren’t big enough. The argument that anything can happen in a multiverse is nicely presented in a 2011 scene in the sitcom The Big Bang Theory (2007–2019) involving consummate nerd Sheldon Cooper and Penny, the girl next door (here). Penny: Morning, Sheldon! Come dance with me! Sheldon: No. Penny: Why not? Sheldon: While I subscribe to the Many Worlds theory, which posits the existence of an infinite number of Sheldons in an infinite number of universes, I assure you that in none of them I am dancing. Penny: Are you fun in any of Read More ›

Free-range red angus cattle on pasture, Argentina.

^{Type
post

Author
Michael Egnor
Date
May 31, 2020

Categorized
Arts & Culture, Ethics, Philosophy of Mind

Tagged
Agatha Christie, criminal justice, Determinism, Featured, free will, Jerry Coyne, Murder at the Vicarage (novel)}

No Free Will Means No Justice

_{Materialist biologist Jerry Coyne doesn’t seem to understand what denying free will would mean for the criminal justice system} _{Michael Egnor

May 31, 2020

7

Arts & Culture, Ethics, Philosophy of Mind}

Without free will, no one is innocent. Who asks cattle on the way to the abattoir if they are guilty or innocent?

abstract circle fractal background

^{Type
post

Author
Robert J. Marks
Date
May 30, 2020

Categorized
Artificial Intelligence, Arts & Culture

Tagged
Alan Turing, Computers, Determinism, DEVS, Featured, H. G. Rice, Pierre-Simon Laplace, Science fiction}

Hulu’s Devs Series: Where They Get Determinism Wrong

_{Devs disposes of a key limitation of computers that can supposedly predict the future with psychobabble} _{Robert J. Marks

May 30, 2020

5

Artificial Intelligence, Arts & Culture}

Call me a nitpicker: As a computer engineer, I must say, computers cannot predict the future.

ufo flying over the desert

^{Type
post

Author
Adam Nieri
Date
May 30, 2020

Categorized
Arts & Culture, Philosophy of Mind

Tagged
Close Encounters of the Fifth Kind Contact, Consciousness, Mike Keas, Science fiction, Stephen Greer, UFOs}

Close Encounters, Fifth Kind, Just Missed Contact

_{Worth a watch but Stephen Greer and I part company when he makes clear that he believes everything is conscious} _{Adam Nieri

May 30, 2020

4

Arts & Culture, Philosophy of Mind}

In his documentary on UFOs, Stephen Greer certainly gets one thing right: Consciousness doesn’t fit into conventional science inquiry.

couple of two seniors or mature people walking in the airport going to their gate and take their flight wearing medical mask to prevent virus like coronavirus or covid-19 - carrying luggage or trolley

^{Type
post

Author
Denyse O'Leary
Date
May 28, 2020

Categorized
Arts & Culture, Business and Finance, Medicine and Health

Tagged
___longform, Air travel, COVID-19, Travel tourism}

Ten Ways COVID-19 Will Change Your Next Air Trip

_{You’ll still get there but it definitely won’t be half the fun} _{Denyse O'Leary

May 28, 2020

10

Arts & Culture, Business and Finance, Medicine and Health}

On board, the plane will be cleaner but also leaner. Expect to wear a mask and snack before you go.

Circuit board with CPU. Motherboard system chip with glowing processor. Computer´s technology and internet concept.

^{Type
post

Author
Adam Nieri
Date
May 23, 2020

Categorized
Arts & Culture

Tagged
Determinism, DEVS, Hulu, Many Worlds interpretation, Quantum Computing, Reductionism, Science fiction}

Devs Both Grips and Challenges Hulu Viewers

_{I had fully expected Devs to be yet another series about sentient AI but it is something fresher} _{Adam Nieri

May 23, 2020

6

Arts & Culture}

Alex Garland departs from conventional sci-fi themes to create a thought-provoking film, packed with action and based on a challenging underlying philosophy.

sunset photograph during nighttime

^{Type
post

Author
Adam Nieri
Date
May 16, 2020

Categorized
Arts & Culture

Tagged
Sci-fi, Twilight Zone (1983), Twilight Zone (movie), Twilight Zone (TV series 1959-1964), Twilight Zone (TV series 2019-)}

Will Twilight Zone 2020 Soar or Sink?

_{Season 1 featured too much message, only some good stories, and ratings seem to have suffered} _{Adam Nieri

May 16, 2020

4

Arts & Culture}

If Season 2 follows Season 1's pattern, we can definitely expect more politically and socially driven narratives— but will the stories sparkle?

Curved video wall

^{Type
post

Author
Adam Nieri
Date
May 2, 2020

Categorized
Arts & Culture

Tagged
DUST, Science fiction, Short sci-fi films}

My Five Top Picks in Short Sci-Fi from DUST at YouTube

_{I'm glad I decided to revisit DUST, a wonderful community of short, free sci-fi films} _{Adam Nieri

May 2, 2020

4

Arts & Culture}

They’ll sure take your mind off lockdown. Both “Hum” and “Alientology” feature a simple storyline that works in a short film. “EI: Emotional Intelligence,” an animated short, compares well with live action shorts. “Exit Strategy” is one of the few really successful sci-fi films on the topic of time. And I would love to see “The Secret Number” made into a feature film.

Retro Robot plays with wooden ABC cubes on floore. 3D rendering. Education scientist robot student

^{Type
post

Author
News
Date
May 1, 2020

Categorized
Artificial Intelligence, Arts & Culture, Business and Finance, Creativity

Tagged
Creativity, Invention, Inventor, US Patent Office}

Ruling: AIs Can’t Hold Patents

_{The US Patent Office has ruled that only "natural persons" can own patents, not machines} _{News

May 1, 2020

3

Artificial Intelligence, Arts & Culture, Business and Finance, Creativity}

An issue left untouched is whether AI can, in principle, be creative in any event. There is no real evidence for that. The big worry, perhaps, is not being replaced by one’s tools but being ruled by them.

The Creative Brain

^{Type
post

Author
News
Date
April 28, 2020

Categorized
Arts & Culture, Creativity, Philosophy of Mind

Tagged
brain, brain hemispheres, Creativity, John Horgan, William Shakespeare}

Is There a Creativity Module in the Brain?

_{Both hemispheres are important for creativity, according to recent research, but the adventure lies beyond} _{News

April 28, 2020

4

Arts & Culture, Creativity, Philosophy of Mind}

What we are really learning is that minute mapping of the brain is not likely to give us a complete explanation of creativity. Let alone a means of control. Answers, when they appear, lie in the immaterial world of the mind.

Digital mind

^{Type
post

Author
News
Date
April 22, 2020

Categorized
Artificial Intelligence, Arts & Culture, Philosophy of Mind

Tagged
___longform, Computers, Consciousness, Featured, Kurt Gödel, Mind Uploading, Robert J. Marks, Selmer Bringsjord, uploading consciousness}

Why Our Minds Can’t Really Be Uploaded to Computers

_{The basic problem is that human minds aren’t “computable.” Peter and Jane are not bits and bytes} _{News

April 22, 2020

10

Artificial Intelligence, Arts & Culture, Philosophy of Mind}

The underlying problem with creating immortality by uploading our minds to computers is that people are conscious and even the most sophisticated foreseeable computers are not. And we are not at all sure what consciousness even IS.

Portrait of bored sleepless young man sitting on the couch watching TV at night

^{Type
post

Author
Adam Nieri
Date
April 18, 2020

Categorized
Arts & Culture

Tagged
COVID-19, Dune (2000), Dune (2020), Mandalorian, Science fiction, Star Trek, Star Wars}

Sci-fi Culture: There’s Life Here on Planet Covid!

_{But you have to look hard. Here’s some help} _{Adam Nieri

April 18, 2020

11

Arts & Culture}

With major releases postponed, we sci-fi fans tirelessly check our email and bookmarked sci-fi news sites for any good news. If you’re one of those, have no fear! I’ve compiled a short list of what’s been going on in the community over the past few weeks. Expect to see more updates like these as long as needed. Read More ›

Robot and human cooperating in jigsaw puzzle

^{Type
post

Author
News
Date
April 17, 2020

Categorized
Artificial Intelligence, Arts & Culture, Philosophy of Mind

Tagged
___longform, AlphaGo, David Cope, Featured, Lovelace test, Robert J. Marks, Selmer Bringsjord}

Thinking Machines? Has the Lovelace Test Been Passed?

_{Surprising results do not equate to creativity. Is there such a thing as machine creativity?} _{News

April 17, 2020

9

Artificial Intelligence, Arts & Culture, Philosophy of Mind}

The feats of machines like AlphaGo are due to superior computational power, not to creativity at originating new ideas. Computer scientist Selmer Bringsjord sees the ability to write, say, a novel of ideas as a more realistic test of human vs. computer achievement.

The poetry of Love

^{Type
post

Author
News
Date
April 16, 2020

Categorized
Artificial Intelligence, Arts & Culture, Philosophy of Mind

Tagged
___longform, Ada Lovelace, Alan Turing, Featured, Lovelace test, Robert J. Marks, Selmer Bringsjord, Turing Test}

Thinking Machines? The Lovelace Test Raises the Stakes

_{The Turing test has had a free ride in science media for far too long, says an AI expert} _{News

April 16, 2020

9

Artificial Intelligence, Arts & Culture, Philosophy of Mind}

In the view of Rensselaer philosopher and computer scientist Selmer Bringsjord, the iconic Turing test for human-like intelligence in computers is inadequate and easily gamed. Merely sounding enough like a human to fool people does not establish human-like intelligence. He proposes the much more challenging Lovelace test, based on an observation from computer pioneer Ada Lovelace (1815–1852) that true creativity is what distinguishes humans from machines.

^{Type
post

Author
Adam Nieri
Date
April 4, 2020

Categorized
Arts & Culture

Tagged
Science fiction, Simon Stålenhag, Tales from the Loop}

Amazon Prime’s Tales from the Loop: A Bold Attempt To Capture Stålenhag’s Work

_{… now if only it reached the right demographic} _{Adam Nieri

April 4, 2020

11

Arts & Culture}

Deep underneath a small town in Ohio there exists the Loop, a facility created to explore the mysteries of the universe. No one really knows for sure what is going on at the Loop though we are given glimpses. Strange events occur on Earth’s surface as a result. Each episode explores one of those events.

^{Type
post

Author
Adam Nieri
Date
March 28, 2020

Categorized
Arts & Culture

Tagged
H. G. Wells, Science fiction, War of the Worlds, War of the Worlds (1897), War of the Worlds (EPIX), War of the Worlds (radio 1938)}

Epix’s New War of the Worlds Gets Personal

_{And it works! Wells’s alien invasion (state of emergency, lockdowns) feels familiar in the world of COVID-19} _{Adam Nieri

March 28, 2020

10

Arts & Culture}

Although the new series is set in Europe, the dialogue is mostly in English. We follow the paths of several apocalypse survivors who seek refuge from the alien robots that are killing any remaining humans. I love the tension that the show conveys and the characters it seeks to develop.

^{Type
post

Author
Adam Nieri
Date
March 21, 2020

Categorized
Arts & Culture

Tagged
Apocalyptic scenarios, Featured, post-apocalyptic, Science fiction, Video games}

Shelter in Place? Your Sci-Fi Video Game Binge List

_{You’ll never know where the long hours went, courtesy Sci-Fi Saturday at Mind Matters News} _{Adam Nieri

March 21, 2020

11

Arts & Culture}

Has your ISP lifted bandwidth limits in your area due to thousands more Americans working from home? Great news for gamers too! Here’s my list of top-notch sci-fi apocalypse games.

^{Type
post

Author
Adam Nieri
Date
March 14, 2020

Categorized
Arts & Culture

Tagged
Pandemics, Science fiction}

How Sci-Fi Treats Pandemics

_{Seven sci-fi apocalypses to help you wait out COVID-19} _{Adam Nieri

March 14, 2020

11

Arts & Culture}

One thing for sure, all those doomsday preppers, at whom we silently rolled our eyes years ago, are now crackin’ a secret smile. Never mind, us sci-fi buffs are going to need more than fizzy water and disinfectant. We need food for the mind! Here's a sci-fi binge list, to keep our minds occupied.

Still Image from short film Dirty Machines

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post

Author
Adam Nieri
Date
March 7, 2020

Categorized
Arts & Culture

Tagged
David Matthew Olson, Dirty Machines (film), Science fiction, Time travel}

Dirty Machines: Short Time Travel Flick Exceeds Expectations

_{A Mind Matters Short Film Review} _{Adam Nieri

March 7, 2020

9

Arts & Culture}

A tense soundtrack, intriguing ending, and thoughtful stylistic choices make Dirty Machines: The End of History a thoughtful exploration of a logically tricky subject. Now, if the director can just resist the temptation to get woke…

^{Type
post

Author
Adam Nieri
Date
February 29, 2020

Categorized
Arts & Culture

Tagged
Science fiction, Simon Stålenhag, Tales from the Loop (TV series)}

Tales of the Loop: Pushing the Boundaries of the Possible

_{Simon Stålenhag’s captivating post-apocalyptic landscapes remind us that the world could, at any time, be different from what we think it is} _{Adam Nieri

February 29, 2020

9

Arts & Culture}

Science fiction, as an art, has always meant to inspire. It’s meant to push the boundaries of the possible. And Stålenhag’s world isn’t just different, it’s unique.