Mind Matters Natural and Artificial Intelligence News and Analysis

TagAI

demostrator-with-megaphone-and-notebook-protesting-stockpack-adobe-stock
demostrator with megaphone and notebook protesting
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post
Author
News
Date
October 1, 2023
Categorized
Artificial Intelligence, Arts & Culture
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The Strike is Over

After almost five months, the Writers Guild of America's (WGA) strike against Hollywood has ended.
News
October 1, 2023
2
Artificial Intelligence, Arts & Culture

After almost five months, the Writers Guild of America’s (WGA) strike against Hollywood has ended. WGA and Hollywood came to an agreement that includes higher employee wages and limitations in the ways artificial intelligence (AI) can be employed. AI has been at the forefront of the moviemaking conversation for the past few months, and for good reason. TV and movie writers are concerned with how the technology might take away their jobs or otherwise cheapen the quality of TV scripts. Ryan Faughnder writes for the Los Angeles Times, The new WGA contract includes language that regulates the studio’s use of AI but also provides flexibility to the guild’s members. Companies must disclose to writers if any material given to a Read More ›

illustration-of-future-education-classroom-with-robotic-tech-teacher-ai-stockpack-adobe-stock
illustration of future education classroom with robotic tech teacher . AI
Type
post
Author
Robert J. Marks and Jonathan Swindell
Date
September 28, 2023
Categorized
Artificial Intelligence
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If ChatGPT Had Children, Would They Be Geniuses or Blubbering Idiots?

It would seem that when AI begets more AI, the result is nonsense.
Robert J. Marks and Jonathan Swindell
September 28, 2023
4
Artificial Intelligence

Can today’s artificial intelligence systems be used to train superior artificial intelligence systems of tomorrow? Can AI write better AI that writes better AI leading to a potentially god-like general artificial intelligence? In a recent insightful paper written by collaborators from Oxford, Cambridge and other prestigious institutions, the verdict is in for large language models (LLMs) like ChatGPT. Repeatedly using the output of one LLM to train another results in what the authors call model collapse. If only the words from the original LLM #0 are used to train LLM #1 and only the output of LLM #1 is used to train LLM #2, and so on, the AI eventually suffers model collapse and becomes a blubbering idiot. The emergence of superintelligence by Read More ›

illustration-of-blue-water-surface-with-rough-wave-with-glitter-glow-light-theme-of-water-of-life-water-element-generative-ai-stockpack-adobe-stock
illustration of blue water surface with rough wave with glitter glow light, theme of
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post
Author
William A. Dembski
Date
September 27, 2023
Categorized
Artificial Intelligence
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When ChatGPT Talks Science

Can AI ever transcend its trained biases?
William A. Dembski
September 27, 2023
29
Artificial Intelligence

The other day I received an email keying off my blog post about “ChatGPT and inference to the best explanation” (or IBE). The author mused about the future of ChatGPT4’s knowledge base as it continually grows subject to human-assisted corrections. He speculated on the possibility of future versions, like ChatGPT4 or 5, inferring intelligent design (ID) as the most plausible explanation for the origin of life.  For this to happen, the email writer believes that the AI’s knowledge base would need to incorporate impartial references to ID concepts and their supporting arguments, unless the AI can independently arrive at such a conclusion. He then asks the implications if an AI, designed by humans, determines that a higher intelligence created its human creators. Read More ›

modern-full-wall-full-length-bookshelf-filled-with-colorful-paper-books-smart-book-background-generative-ai-stockpack-adobe-stock
modern full wall full-length bookshelf filled with colorful paper books, smart book background, generative ai
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post
Author
News
Date
September 26, 2023
Categorized
Artificial Intelligence, Arts & Culture
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Novelists Against AI

17 authors are suing OpenAI for copyright infringement
News
September 26, 2023
2
Artificial Intelligence, Arts & Culture

17 prominent authors including George R.R. Martin and John Grisham are suing OpenAI, the company responsible for ChatGPT, for copyright infringement and “theft,” according to the Associated Press (AP). The authors are among many in the creative field who are expressing concern over the ethics of AI use. A spokesperson for the Authors Guild said that it’s imperative to stop AI’s theft to preserve America’s “incredible literary culture,” according to the AP. Hillel Italie reports, The lawsuit cites specific ChatGPT searches for each author, such as one for Martin that alleges the program generated “an infringing, unauthorized, and detailed outline for a prequel” to “A Game of Thrones” that was titled “A Dawn of Direwolves” and used “the same characters Read More ›

security-camera-on-modern-building-professional-surveillance-cameras-cctv-on-the-wall-in-the-city-security-system-technology-video-equipment-for-safety-system-area-control-outdoor-ai-generated-stockpack-adobe-stock
Security camera on modern building. Professional surveillance cameras. CCTV on the wall in the city. Security system, technology. Video equipment for safety system area control outdoor. AI generated.
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post
Author
News
Date
September 26, 2023
Categorized
Surveillance
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When Video Surveillance Gets It Wrong

An incident in Argentina calls the country's facial recognition tech into serious question
News
September 26, 2023
3
Surveillance

A new in-depth report from Wired recounts the story of an Argentinian man, Guillermo Ibarrola, who was falsely accused of a crime and pinpointed via video surveillance. According to Wired, Ibarrola spent nearly a week in custody before the “mixup” was spotted and authorities realized they had nabbed the wrong Guillermo Ibarrola. It was a data entry mistake. The case is only one of many others in Argentina’s mishaps with video surveillance, and how data mistakes can end up impacting innocent lives significantly. Karen Naundorf writes, When speaking of South America, mass surveillance technology is likely not the first thing that comes to mind. But a study by the data protection organization Access Now shows Argentina is one of the most surveilled Read More ›

cropped-photo-of-businessman-analyzing-business-diagram-marketing-statistics-and-finance-market-graphs-on-laptop-monitor-in-the-office-stockpack-adobe-stock
Cropped photo of businessman analyzing business diagram, marketing statistics and finance market graphs on laptop monitor in the office.
Type
post
Author
Gary Smith
Date
September 25, 2023
Categorized
Artificial Intelligence
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Confusing Correlation with Causation

Computers are amazing. But they can't distinguish between correlation and causation.
Gary Smith
September 25, 2023
7
Artificial Intelligence

Artificial intelligence (AI) algorithms are terrific at discovering statistical correlations but terrible at distinguishing between correlation and causation. A computer algorithm might find a correlation between how often a person has been in an automobile accident and the words they post on Facebook, being a good software engineer and visiting certain websites, and making loan payments on time and keeping one’s phone fully charged. However, computer algorithms do not know what any of these things are and consequently have no way of determining whether these are causal relationships (and therefore useful predictors) or fleeting coincidences (that are useless predictors). If the program is black box, then humans cannot intervene and declare that these are almost certainly irrelevant coincidences. Even if Read More ›

wooden-chess-pawn-with-king-shadow-stockpack-adobe-stock
Wooden chess pawn with king shadow
Type
post
Author
William A. Dembski
Date
September 24, 2023
Categorized
Artificial Intelligence
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Inferring the Best Explanation Using Artificial Intelligence

With its wealth of information at hand, how well can AI make accurate inferences?
William A. Dembski
September 24, 2023
14
Artificial Intelligence

Even with the rise of large language models such as ChatGPT in the last year, I was still convinced that a mode of reasoning known as inference to the best explanation (abbreviated IBE) was not within the competence of artificial intelligence. In fact, I thought it forever beyond the reach of artificial intelligence. I commended Erik Larson’s book The Myth of Artificial Intelligence (reviewed here) for making what in 2021 seemed like an ironclad case that artificial intelligence research was stymied in trying to model and implement inference to the best explanation, or what has also been called abduction (in contrast to deduction and induction).  This week, however, all that has changed for me. I posed a question to ChatGPT4 (hereafter ChatGPT), Read More ›

noir-movie-night-city-street-under-the-rain-generative-ai-stockpack-adobe-stock
Noir movie, night city street under the rain. Generative AI
Type
post
Author
Russ White
Date
September 23, 2023
Categorized
Artificial Intelligence
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Welcome to Digital Pottersville

From homey Bedford Falls to greedy Pottersville: how "It's a Wonderful Life" reflects the dangers of the Internet age
Russ White
September 23, 2023
4
Artificial Intelligence

Anyone who has watched It’s a Wonderful Life remembers this: George Bailey is an unlikely hero. He does not go to war. He is not wealthy. He runs a little savings and loan that always seems to be just on the brink of disaster — losing a single envelope of money containing a single day’s takings threatens to destroy the entire enterprise. So why is this single life of such importance? We find out when we see the world without George. Bedford Falls, once named for a local landmark, is now Pottersville, named for the man who owns the town. The bartender no longer owns the bar on the outskirts of town, it is owned by some shady character in Read More ›

robot-production-line-at-artificial-intelligence-factory-mass-production-of-machines-with-metal-skeleton-generative-ai-stockpack-adobe-stock
Robot production line at artificial intelligence factory, mass production of machines with metal skeleton. Generative AI.
Type
post
Author
News
Date
September 20, 2023
Categorized
Artificial Intelligence
Tagged

Mythic AI is Dangerous

The evidence is inconclusive (at best) that AI could ever think or interact like a human being.
News
September 20, 2023
2
Artificial Intelligence

Computer scientist and tech entrepreneur Erik Larson recently launched a Substack account where he’ll be covering AI, tech, and human exceptionalism in the digital age. A new post from the channel discusses the dangers of “mythical AI” and how the evidence is inconclusive (at best) that AI could ever think or interact like a human being. Here’s an excerpt: In spite of the almost religious fervor about the mental powers of AI, we have at best inconclusive evidence that AI systems will get smart like humans—the so-called general intelligence attributed to us has so far proven entirely elusive for machines. It’s an open question whether future AI can really achieve general, or human-level, intelligence. To date, we have evidence that AI Read More ›

stained-glass-collage-of-stores-from-the-bible-stockpack-adobe-stock
Stained glass collage of stores from the Bible
Type
post
Author
Peter Biles
Date
September 17, 2023
Categorized
Transhumanism
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AI as Refashioned Religion

How AI fits into the transhumanist utopian dream, and where that dream might have come from
Peter Biles
September 17, 2023
3
Transhumanism

You can see it in the discourse surrounding artificial intelligence (AI) over the last year: AI is going to change everything. Some think it’s going to do this for the better. Others think it’s a technological handmaiden for world destruction if its programming goes awry — or worse: AI becomes self-determining and sentient. An insightful article at Vox by Sigal Samuel considers this doomsday/salvific kind of rhetoric and points out that AI developers sound a whole lot like religious priests, prophesying doom, promising salvation, warning the populace to heed the coming armageddon. He writes, These technologists propose cheating death by uploading our minds to the cloud, where we can live digitally for all eternity. They talk about AI as a Read More ›

COSM2022-Wed-174A9344-Peter-Thiel-George-Gilder
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post
Author
News
Date
September 14, 2023
Categorized
Artificial Intelligence
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AI: Intelligent, Conscious, or Merely Evil? 

Venture capitalist Peter Thiel addresses burning questions surrounding AI at last year's COSM conference
News
September 14, 2023
2
Artificial Intelligence

In today’s featured video, watch Peter Thiel from COSM 2022 speak on how we should think about artificial intelligence. Is it really intelligent and even conscious? And is it likely to be a force for good, or does it have the dangerous potential to control us? Listen in to learn more on this broad and often contentious topic. Peter Thiel is an internationally known venture capitalist and investor. (REGISTER NOW FOR COSM 2023) COSM is an exclusive national summit on the converging technologies remaking the world as we know it. From artificial intelligence to 5G and WiFi6, from tokenized time to blockchain, from cloud computing to the quantum revolution, and from biotech to the nanotech revolution, COSM brings together some Read More ›

COSM2022-Nov10-174A0113-blake-lemoine-panel
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post
Author
News
Date
September 13, 2023
Categorized
Artificial Intelligence
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Revisiting Marks, Lemoine, on AI and Consciousness

What is AI? In what sense can it be said to be "intelligent"? Could it ever be sentient, or conscious?
News
September 13, 2023
2
Artificial Intelligence

What is AI? In what sense can it be said to be “intelligent”? Could it ever be sentient, or conscious? In today’s video, a distinguished panel of artificial intelligence (AI) experts, include Blake Lemoine and Robert J. Marks, debates the meaning of artificial intelligence, what the future holds for its application (both positive and negative), and how far AI can be taken in terms of mimicking and even exceeding human capabilities. (REGISTER NOW FOR COSM 2023) COSM is an exclusive national summit on the converging technologies remaking the world as we know it. From artificial intelligence to 5G and WiFi6, from tokenized time to blockchain, from cloud computing to the quantum revolution, and from biotech to the nanotech revolution, COSM brings Read More ›

hand-of-businessman-using-smartphone-chatting-with-chat-bot-chat-with-ai-or-artificial-intelligence-technology-stockpack-adobe-stock
Hand of businessman using smartphone chatting with chat bot, Chat with AI or Artificial Intelligence technology.
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post
Author
News
Date
September 11, 2023
Categorized
Artificial Intelligence
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ChatGPT is Losing Momentum

Is the "hype curve" starting to flatten out?
News
September 11, 2023
2
Artificial Intelligence

ChatGPT’s traffic has declined for the third month in a row, according to Reuters. The Large Language Model (LLM) AI tool took the world by storm in November of 2022 when it was released by OpenAI, posing questions of academic integrity, and urging a host of tech giants to incorporate LLMs into their own platforms and search engines. Anna Tong writes, Worldwide desktop and mobile website visits to the ChatGPT website decreased by 3.2% to 1.43 billion in August, following approximately 10% drops from each of the previous two months. The amount of time visitors spent on the website has also been declining monthly since March, from an average of 8.7 minutes on site to 7 minutes on site in Read More ›

the-young-guy-playing-an-acoustic-guitar-shooting-backlit-stockpack-adobe-stock
the young guy playing an acoustic guitar. Shooting backlit
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post
Author
Peter Biles
Date
September 8, 2023
Categorized
Arts & Culture
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Oliver Anthony, Music, and Human Exceptionalism

Honest music speaks to the heart and brings us closer together.
Peter Biles
September 8, 2023
2
Arts & Culture

If you’ve been online at all for the last few weeks, chances are you’ve come across headlines about the folk/country singer Oliver Anthony, whose song “Rich Men North of Richmond” went viral in August. The song, a broad critique of elite power in Washington D.C., (Democrat and Republican) has gained both applause and fierce critique, but for the most part, seems to have deeply resonated with the general American public. Psychologist Jordan B. Peterson recently had Anthony on his podcast, discussing music, entrepreneurship, and virality. One thing is clear about Anthony’s songs: they’re honest, and people are attracted to that. Peterson noted in their conversation that authenticity is a sign of brilliance in artists, and how that sort of honesty Read More ›

alone-with-the-universe-stockpack-adobe-stock
Alone with the Universe
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post
Author
David Hsing
Date
September 8, 2023
Categorized
Artificial Intelligence
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Artificial Consciousness Remains Impossible (Part 3)

The claim that all things are conscious (including AI) misunderstands the meaning of the term
David Hsing
September 8, 2023
5
Artificial Intelligence

Read parts one and two of the series to catch up to speed. I don’t subscribe to panpsychism, (a topic that has been popular in SA in recent years[26]), but even if panpsychism is true, the subsequent possible claim that “all things are conscious” is still false because it commits a fallacy of division. There is a difference in kind from everything to every single thing. The purported universal consciousness of panpsychism, if it exists, would not be of the same kind as the ordinary consciousness found in living entities. Some examples of such categorical differences: Johnny sings, but his kidneys don’t. Johnny sees, but his toenails don’t. Saying that a lamp is conscious in one sense of the word simply Read More ›

visualizatipon-of-human-consciousness-in-artificial-intelligence-process-of-thinking-robot-humanoid-android-on-dark-background-with-neurals-connection-created-with-generative-ai-stockpack-adobe-stock
Visualizatipon of human consciousness in artificial intelligence, process of thinking robot. Humanoid android on dark background with neurals connection. Created with Generative AI
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post
Author
David Hsing
Date
September 6, 2023
Categorized
Artificial Intelligence
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Artificial Consciousness Remains Impossible (Part 2)

A machine no more “does things on its own” than a catapult flings by itself.
David Hsing
September 6, 2023
11
Artificial Intelligence

Read part one of this article series here. The following segments are responses to specific categories of counterarguments against my thesis, which you can read in part one of this article HERE. Please note that these responses do not stand on their own and can only be seen as supporting my main arguments from the first part. Each response only applies to those who hold the corresponding objections. “You can’t provide proof of intentionality and qualia because they’re subjective” If your mind doesn’t possess intentionality, “the power of minds to be about, to represent, or to stand for, things, properties, and states of affairs,” then you wouldn’t be able to understand any word on this screen in front of you Read More ›

Robert J. Marks with Michael Medved
Robert J. Marks on Great Minds with Michael Medved
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post
Author
News
Date
September 6, 2023
Categorized
Artificial Intelligence
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Revisiting “Non-Computable You”

New podcast episode reviews the key ideas and insights of the book "Non-Computable You"
News
September 6, 2023
1
Artificial Intelligence

If you’re a regular reader of Mind Matters, you’ve probably heard us applaud and discuss the book by computer scientist and professor Robert J. Marks, Non-Computable You: What You Do That Artificial Intelligence Never Will. The book is well worth reading and sheds much needed insights on our current technological moment where AI is either seen as the “greatest thing ever” or the tool that will enslave and destroy humanity, Terminator style. However, if you’re more of an audiobook kind of person, maybe you’ll just want to listen to a new podcast episode in which Dr. Marks discusses the key themes of his book with various hosts. You can listen to the podcast or download it for free here: Why Read More ›

ai-machine-learning-hands-of-robot-and-human-touching-big-data-of-global-network-connection-internet-and-digital-technology-science-and-artificial-intelligence-digital-technologies-of-futuristic-stockpack-adobe-stock
AI, Machine learning, Hands of robot and human touching big data of Global network connection, Internet and digital technology, Science and artificial intelligence digital technologies of futuristic.
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post
Author
David Hsing
Date
September 4, 2023
Categorized
Artificial Intelligence
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Artificial Consciousness Remains Impossible (Part 1)

The cherished fiction of conscious machines is an impossibility
David Hsing
September 4, 2023
12
Artificial Intelligence

This article is an attempt to explain why the cherished fiction of conscious machines is an impossibility. The very act of hardware and software design is a transmission of impetus as an extension of the designers and not an infusion of conscious will. The latter half of the article is dedicated to addressing counterarguments. Lastly, some implications of the title thesis are listed. Intelligence vs. Consciousness Intelligence is the ability of an entity to perform tasks, while consciousness refers to the presence of a subjective phenomenon. Intelligence[1]: “…the ability to apply knowledge to manipulate one’s environment” Consciousness[2]: “When I am in a conscious mental state, there is something it is like for me to be in that state from the 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,
Type
post
Author
Gary Varner
Date
September 2, 2023
Categorized
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 ›

man-face-detection-generate-ai-stockpack-adobe-stock
Man face detection. Generate Ai
Type
post
Author
News
Date
August 31, 2023
Categorized
Artificial Intelligence
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AI Can’t Bring Back the Dead

The more AI advances, the more tempting it will become to recreate those who have passed.
News
August 31, 2023
2
Artificial Intelligence

New speech AI technology is able to take just a couple seconds’ worth of audio and extrapolate on it to make complete sentences. Theoretically, scam artists could take a short video from TikTok and use it to impersonate an unsuspecting child. In fact, this has actually happened, and more than once. It’s easy to see how one could use speech AI to “resurrect” those who have passed away. And in fact, this too has already happened. In an essay titled “The Speech of the Dead: Against AI Necromancy,” David Walden writes how in 2020, the nonprofit Change the Ref made a video featuring Joaquin Oliver, who encouraged viewers in the clip to vote for gun control in the presidential election. The Read More ›