Mind Matters Natural and Artificial Intelligence News and Analysis

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El santuario de Gaea
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post
Author
News
Date
July 15, 2019
Categorized
Artificial Intelligence, Religion
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Our AI Overlords Will Save Earth, Says Prominent Scientist

AlphaGo, the Go-playing computer program, is the start of telepathic superintelligences that will tackle climate change
News
July 15, 2019
6
Artificial Intelligence, Religion

James Lovelock, both distinguished scientist and founder of the Gaia concept of Earth, need only live to July 26 to be a centenarian. In his new book, co-authored with Bryan Appleyard, he sees the Go-playing computer program AlphaGo as the start of a new type of life that will save the planet, as he told New Scientist recently: Specifically, about the new AI overlords: In his new book Novacene, James Lovelock says the creation of AlphaGo was the start of a new kingdom of life that will create and think for itself. He’s optimistic that this new kingdom of life will want to keep us around like we keep plants in gardens. “James Lovelock says artificial intelligence is the start Read More ›

headless balloon
man without head holding white balloon
Type
post
Author
Jay Richards
Date
July 12, 2019
Categorized
Philosophy of Mind
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If the Mind Is Immaterial, Is Human Cloning Impossible?

I agree with Mike Egnor that the mind is immaterial but I don’t think human cloning is impossible
Jay Richards
July 12, 2019
8
Philosophy of Mind

There are, of course, empirical implications of both the materialist and non-materialist understanding of the human mind. But the success of human cloning won’t weigh on the question one way or the other.

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00-AdobeStock_196076843
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post
Author
News
Date
July 12, 2019
Categorized
Artificial Intelligence, Business and Finance, Events
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COSM: George Gilder Hosts Top Tech Guys, To Ask, Where Is All This Going?

Are machines replacing or helping us and how will we know the difference?
News
July 12, 2019
2
Artificial Intelligence, Business and Finance, Events

The October 23-25 conference is aimed at CEOs, CTOs, and CIOs, investors, researchers, technologists, and anyone for whom the $950 Early Adopter Rate (before July 23) would be a good investment in their future.

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This job is really stressing me out!
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post
Author
News
Date
July 12, 2019
Categorized
Medicine and Health, Philosophy of Mind
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Can fitter brains help us fight depression?

Philosopher J. P. Moreland continues his account of working his way through a devastating anxiety disorder
News
July 12, 2019
3
Medicine and Health, Philosophy of Mind

"Anxiety and depression are largely—not entirely but largely—habit. And those habits are ingrained in the different members of our body," Moreland explains.

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Image of earth with different times against green vignette
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post
Author
News
Date
July 10, 2019
Categorized
Artificial Intelligence, Philosophy of Mind, Religion
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How Do We Know Our Universe Is Not a Sim World?

It’s an interesting idea, say Bradley fellows, but for a number of reasons, it is not credible
News
July 10, 2019
6
Artificial Intelligence, Philosophy of Mind, Religion

The computer sim universe seems to be a way of dealing with the massive evidence of the fine-tuning of our universe without invoking traditional philosophy or religion.

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Robot James Pond Unsplash 1483706571191-85c0c76b1947
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post
Author
Brendan Dixon
Date
July 9, 2019
Categorized
Arts & Culture, Social Media
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Fake News Thrives on Fears of a Robot Takeover

The motion graphics artist tried to explain that he faked the amazing robot video
Brendan Dixon
July 9, 2019
3
Arts & Culture, Social Media

The convincing film was great for Tom’s Twitter feed but less great for what it says about our judgment as viewers. We believe too much AI hype. 

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Jazz Chris Bair on Unsplash A10y2Eq7OHY
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post
Author
Brendan Dixon
Date
July 8, 2019
Categorized
Artificial Intelligence, Arts & Culture, Creativity
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AI Can’t Do Jazz Because Spontaneity Is at Jazz’s Core

AI “artists”—in all the forms presently available — merely replay their programming
Brendan Dixon
July 8, 2019
3
Artificial Intelligence, Arts & Culture, Creativity

As Ted Gioia makes clear in his discussion of jazz, swirling a bit of randomness into the mix will not help.

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Female with Now What Sign
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post
Author
Jay Richards
Date
July 5, 2019
Categorized
Education, Work
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Students, Don’t Let Smart Machines Disrupt Your Future

Three ways you can avoid life in Mom’s basement and the job pouring coffee
Jay Richards
July 5, 2019
5
Education, Work

At first sight, the number of options might seem bewildering. The key question is: Will you ignore the coming job disruption, fear it, or treat it as an opportunity?

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octopus-bimaculoides-3-credit-tom-kleindinst-sized
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post
Author
News
Date
July 4, 2019
Categorized
Natural Intelligence
Tagged
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Scientists Clash Over Why Octopuses Are Smart

New findings show, the brainy seafood breaks all the rules about why some life forms are smart
News
July 4, 2019
6
Natural Intelligence
For many years, we’ve been trying to understand why the octopus is uniquely smart among cephalopods. Research answers some questions only to raise others, as a recent controversy shows. Read More ›
Man silhouette on rural landscape background. Psychiatry and psychology concept.
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post
Author
News
Date
July 2, 2019
Categorized
Medicine and Health, Neuroscience, Philosophy of Mind
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Four Researchers Whose Work Sheds Light on the Reality of the Mind

The brain can be cut in half, but the intellect and will cannot, says Michael Egnor. The intellect and will are metaphysically simple
News
July 2, 2019
6
Medicine and Health, Neuroscience, Philosophy of Mind

Neurosurgeon Michael Egnor was featured in a short film as a supplement to the Science Uprising series. There, he mentions four researchers who have shed light on the non-material mind nature of our minds: Wilder Penfield (1891–1976): Some of the earliest evidence came from neurosurgeon Wilder Penfield, who was the pioneer in epilepsy surgery in the mid 20th century. Penfield operated on over a thousand epilepsy patients while they were awake (under local anesthesia), and he stimulated their brains with electrodes in order to identify epileptic regions for surgical resection. He carefully recorded their responses to stimulation. In his book Mystery of the Mind, (1975) Penfield noted: “When I have caused a conscious patient to move his hand by applying Read More ›

Langzeit EEG
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post
Author
Michael Egnor
Date
July 2, 2019
Categorized
Medicine and Health, Neuroscience, Philosophy of Mind
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Do “forced thinking” seizures show that abstract thought is a material thing?

Epilepsy suppresses abstract thought, it does not evoke it
Michael Egnor
July 2, 2019
7
Medicine and Health, Neuroscience, Philosophy of Mind
It’s worth noting that Wilder Penfield, (with Herbert Jasper, his neurologist colleague), was one of the first doctors to characterize forced thinking seizures and he asserted that there are no intellectual seizures. He understood that forced thinking seizures are not seizures of the intellect. Read More ›
Science Fiction Minimalist Cube Maze Modern Fantasy
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post
Author
Denyse O'Leary
Date
July 2, 2019
Categorized
Arts & Culture, Technocracy
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1984 is 70 years old yet still feels current

Did Orwell prove a better techno-prophet than Huxley did in Brave New World?
Denyse O'Leary
July 2, 2019
9
Arts & Culture, Technocracy

In 1949, Huxley thought he was closer to the mark than his former student Orwell was. Later generations have tussled over the question, with revealing results.

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images from a computerized tomography of the brain.
images from a computerized tomography of the brain.
Type
post
Author
Michael Egnor
Date
June 27, 2019
Categorized
Neuroscience, Philosophy of Mind
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Can Buzzwords About “Neural Networks” Save Materialist Neuroscience?

No. Experiments that support an immaterial consciousness often involve split or massively damaged neural networks
Michael Egnor
June 27, 2019
6
Neuroscience, Philosophy of Mind

The attribution of abstract thought to the material brain is philosophical and logical nonsense and has been repeatedly discredited by the best neuroscience over the past century.

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Introvert concept. The man sitting inside box with glasses of virtual reality. Future technology concept
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post
Author
Russ White
Date
June 26, 2019
Categorized
Artificial Intelligence, Natural Intelligence, Social Factors
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Is Deep Virtual Reality the Next Big Market Disrupter?

When media moves from capturing attention by being different to capturing ever smaller slices of users' time, the market is ripe for disruption
Russ White
June 26, 2019
6
Artificial Intelligence, Natural Intelligence, Social Factors

How can internet-based media consume more user time? First, they will move away from a screen interface to a voice- and face-recognition interface. But the next logical step is probably deeply immersive virtual reality seeping into everyday life.

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2-bro-s-media-uOo14fBzhtE-unsplash
Crystal ball with building from antiquity
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post
Author
Analysis
Date
June 26, 2019
Categorized
Artificial Intelligence
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Futurism Doesn’t Learn from Past Experience

Technological success stories cannot be extrapolated into an indefinite future
Analysis
June 26, 2019
9
Artificial Intelligence

The limits of science can be as instructive as the discoveries. If science someday proved that computer systems could never reproduce some aspect of mind, we'd have learned something important about the nature of mind.

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clem-onojeghuo-78G3emEqA5Y-unsplash
Finger pointing at data behind neon marquee
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post
Author
Michael Egnor
Date
June 25, 2019
Categorized
Neuroscience, Philosophy of Mind
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Science Points To An Immaterial Mind

If one did not start with a materialist bias, materialism would not be invoked as an explanation for a whole range of experiments in neuroscience
Michael Egnor
June 25, 2019
5
Neuroscience, Philosophy of Mind

There may indeed be material explanations (at least from the perspective of neuroscience) but the simplest and most convincing explanation for the results of many experiments is that abstract thought is an immaterial power, not a material power, of the mind.

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clem-onojeghuo-ZT7wtY1DiPU-unsplash
Man walking in tunnel
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post
Author
Denyse O'Leary
Date
June 23, 2019
Categorized
Arts & Culture, Technocracy
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“Brilliant Vision” from a Century Ago Foretells Today’s Internet

In E. M. Forster's dystopia, people interact only through the Machine
Denyse O'Leary
June 23, 2019
6
Arts & Culture, Technocracy

In a wholly materialist environment, science and other disciplines have, by preference, ceased to explore anything but their own ideas.

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chris-barbalis-186421-unsplash
Painted face, split in two
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post
Author
Robert J. Marks
Date
May 28, 2019
Categorized
Artificial Intelligence, Machine Learning
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AI as the Artful Dodger

Watch what happens when I train a neural network on portraits of 56 famous scientists, starting the process with a right eye
Robert J. Marks
May 28, 2019
5
Artificial Intelligence, Machine Learning
New AI is much more sophisticated but the old and new AI share the property that the final result is nothing more than an interpolation of the training images used to train the AI. Read More ›