Mind Matters Natural and Artificial Intelligence News and Analysis

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Gee-Whiz Tech and AI Reality – Part I

Robert J. Marks talks with Larry L. Linenschmidt of the Hill Country Institute about the nature and limitations of artificial intelligence from a computer science perspective. This is Part 1 of 2 parts. Other Larry L. Linenschmidt podcasts from the Hill Country Institute are available at HillCountryInstitute.org. We appreciate the permission of the Hill Country Institute to rebroadcast this podcast Read More ›

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Walter Bradley: Biblical Accounts of Near-Death Experiences

Near-death experiences often include a look at a person’s impact on the lives of others and a meeting with an otherworldly figure. Do religious texts like the Bible talk about near-death experiences? Robert J. Marks discusses near-death experiences with Dr. Walter Bradley. Show Notes 00:26 | Introducing Dr. Walter Bradley, Emeritus Distinguished Professor at Baylor University 00:37 | John Burke’s Read More ›

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Bingecast: Hal Philipp on Patents, Litigation, and Entrepreneurship

If you’ve used a touchscreen, an automated door opener or automated faucet today, it is probably based on the technology of inventor and entrepreneur Hal Philipp. Robert J. Marks and Hal Philipp address patents, litigation, and entrepreneurship today on Mind Matters. Show Notes 0:00:52 | Introducing Hal Philipp 0:01:34 | Robot boxer 0:04:08 | Tektronix, Optical Technology 0:07:25 | Automatic Read More ›

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Walter Bradley: Experiences of Heaven?

Those who’ve survived near-death experiences often describe an otherworldly journey. Robert J. Marks discusses near-death experiences and the afterlife with Dr. Walter Bradley. Show Notes 00:38 | Introducing Dr. Walter Bradley, Emeritus Distinguished Professor at Baylor University 00:58 | A preponderance of stories about near-death experiences 03:25 | John Burke, Walter Bradley, and Imagine Heaven 08:51 | Why should we Read More ›

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Walter Bradley: Don’t Go Towards the Light?

Can near-death experiences shed light on the mind/body problem? Robert J. Marks discusses near-death experiences and the mind/body problem with Dr. Walter Bradley. Show Notes 01:25 | Introducing Dr. Walter Bradley, Emeritus Distinguished Professor at Baylor University 01:55 | Definition of a near-death experience 03:36 | Near-death experiences and the mind/body problem 05:20 | A blind woman sees 07:50 | Read More ›

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Walter Bradley: Is Your Body an Instrument of Your Mind?

Are we simply matter and chemical reactions or are our minds separate from our bodies? Robert J. Marks discusses the mind/body problem with Dr. Walter Bradley. Show Notes 00:34 | Introducing Dr. Walter Bradley, Emeritus Distinguished Professor at Baylor University 01:01 | Beliefs and objectivity 04:00 | A priori assumptions 04:36 | What is the mind/body problem? 05:45 | The Read More ›

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Bingecast: John Lennox on the Promise and Threat of AI

Natural and artificial intelligence can be discussed from a number of viewpoints, including philosophically, technically and theologically. Robert J. Marks and Dr. John Lennox address AI from all of these points of view today on Mind Matters. Show Notes 01:10 | Introducing Dr. John Lennox 03:33 | Bacon and Erdős numbers 05:38 | Should we fear artificial intelligence? 06:10 | Read More ›

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Jay Richards: Prepare For AI, But Don’t Panic — Part II

Will machines take over human jobs? Larry L. Linenschmidt discusses Artificial Intelligence, job displacement, and collaboration using technology with Jay Richards. This interview is about Jay’s book, The Human Advantage: The Future of American Work in an Age of Smart Machines. This interview was originally aired by the Hill Country Institute and is included here in its entirety. This rebroadcast Read More ›

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Jay Richards on the Greatly Exaggerated Death of Human Jobs — Part I

Rumor has it, artificial intelligence and robotics will make humans obsolete. Larry L. Linenschmidt discusses artificial intelligence, job displacement, virtue, and machines with Jay Richards. This interview is about Jay’s book, The Human Advantage: The Future of American Work in an Age of Smart Machines. This interview was originally aired by the Hill Country Institute and is included here in Read More ›

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The Turing Test, Artificial Intelligence, and Intelligent Design

Artificial intelligence and intelligent design both refer to the idea of “intelligence.” Is there a deeper understanding of intelligence that can be culled from the Turing test? Robert J. Marks discusses the Turing test, artificial intelligence, and intelligent design with Dr. George Montañez. Show Notes 00:33 | Introducing Dr. George Montañez, Iris and Howard Critchell Assistant Professor of Computer Science Read More ›

Chatbot / Social Bot mit Quellcode im Hintergrund
Chatbot / Social Bot mit Quellcode im Hintergrund

Can Machines Think?

What do computer scientists say about the ability of machines to think? Alan Turing, the father of modern computer science, tackled the question in 1950 and proposed the Turing test as an answer. Is the Turing test important today? Robert J. Marks discusses the Turing test with Dr. George Montañez. Show Notes 00:55 | Introducing Dr. George Montañez, Iris and Read More ›

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Bingecast: Business Intelligence and AI Accounting

Robert J. Marks and Jeremiah Marks talk about business intelligence and AI accounting. Business intelligence affects you daily from advertising and solicitation to how much you pay for tickets to watch the Dallas cowboys. How do companies use business intelligence? Technology has almost entirely replaced the travel agent and many brick and mortar stores. Could high tech tools like robots Read More ›

Abstract extreme close up shot. Beautiful eye colored by a rainbow of colors.
Abstract extreme close up shot. Beautiful eye colored by a rainbow of colors.

Is What We Knew About the Brain All Wrong?

Robert J. Marks and Yuri Danilov discuss what we thought we knew about the brain twenty years ago, and how what we think we know now might change in another twenty years. Bringing their conversation to a close, Bob and Yuri also get into the innumerable details of our phenomenally complex human visual system and consider whether our actions are Read More ›

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Accelerating Neuroplasticity

How Natural Brain Healing Can Be Accelerated Using Stimulation

The brain’s lateral ability to heal itself can be accelerated by external stimulation. Today Robert J. Marks discusses brain stimulation with Yuri Danilov. Show Notes 00:47 | Introducing Yuri Danilov, Senior Scientist, Biomedical Engineering Department at the University of Wisconsin–Madison 01:18 | Phineas Gage (1823 – 1860) and the study of brain trauma 03:23 | Do we actually remember everything? Read More ›

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Neuroplasticity: How Your Brain Never Stops Changing

Your brain is always changing, from death till the moment you die.  Neuroscience calls this change in your brain neuroplasticity. Today Robert J. Marks discusses the brain’s ability to adapt and change throughout our lives with Yuri Danilov. Show Notes 01:00 | Introducing Yuri Danilov, Senior Scientist, Biomedical Engineering Department at the University of Wisconsin–Madison 03:00 | Unmasking and opening Read More ›

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Bingecast: Bursting 2018’s Top Ten Hyped Stories

In a blast from the not too distant past, we revisit Robert J. Marks’ review of 2018’s top ten exaggerations, hyperbole, and failures in artificial intelligence. Marks bursts a lot of bubbles. They serve as object lessons to see through the smoke and mirrors that continue to obscure the actual reach of artificial intelligence in 2019. Show Notes 00:30 | Read More ›

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Should We Be Afraid or Excited about AI

On an episode of The World and Everything In It, J.C. Derrick interviews Robert J. Marks on the brave new world of ethical questions and dilemmas posed by the growing use and possibilities of artificial intelligence. Show Notes 00:50 | Should one be more fearful or excited about AI? 02:00 | China, privacy, and the Fourth Amendment 02:30 | Creating Read More ›

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Edward Feser on Neurobabble and Remembering the Right Questions

Edward Feser dismantles many of the simplistic reads of contemporary neuroscience

Michael Egnor hosts a captivating conversation with Edward Feser, Aristotelian, prolific blogger, and philosopher of mind. Neurobabble and pop science dismissals of the mind, final causes, abstract thought, and free will each face Feser’s piercing critique.

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The Holy Grail of Artificial Intelligence

Gary N. Smith wonders whether AI will ever achieve common sense

Gary N. Smith and Robert J. Marks continue their discussion of IBM’s Watson and its grim future in health and medicine. The problem, they say, is that Watson amounts to a real world instance of John Searle’s “Chinese Room”. Computers don’t understand Chinese, English, or numbers for that matter. With reference to many of the leading thinkers in AI research, Read More ›

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Time Passes, Love Fades, But What Does “It” All Mean?

Gary Smith and Bob Marks on AI's incomprehension, from IBM's Watson to the Clinton campaign's Ada

Gary N. Smith and Robert J. Marks discuss the inability of AI to understand puns, lyrics, context, or anything at all. From trading futures, predicting political outcomes, and parsing lyrics, the fundamental incomprehension of artificial intelligence is a key to understanding its limitations. Show Notes 02:30 | The AI Delusion by Oxford University Press 03:00 | The importance of knowing Read More ›