Mind Matters Natural and Artificial Intelligence News and Analysis

TagArtificial Intelligence

Marks on Fox
Type
post
Author
Peter Biles
Date
March 20, 2023
Categorized
Artificial Intelligence
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Robert J. Marks on Fox News

Dr. Marks talked about the hype over AI and where the danger really lies
Peter Biles
March 20, 2023
2
Artificial Intelligence

Robert J. Marks, director of the Walter Bradley Center, was the subject of a new op-ed at Fox News, which featured his unique insights on artificial intelligence and how it can best be used by human beings. Contrary to much of the present alarmism over AI systems like ChatGPT, Marks remains level-headed about AI’s place in today’s world, pushing back against “sci-fi” apocalypticism while at the same time addressing real issues and concerns. Marks said, “No, AI is not going to take over. You’re not going to be its pet in the future. It’s going to be a tool which disrupts society, but we’re still going to be in charge. -Scott Whitlock, AI expert warns of too much ‘hype’: Humans Read More ›

moon
Moon detailed closeup
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post
Author
Eric Holloway
Date
March 20, 2023
Categorized
Artificial Intelligence
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We Can’t Build a Hut to the Moon

The history of AI is a story of a recurring cycle of hype and disappointment
Eric Holloway
March 20, 2023
4
Artificial Intelligence

Once upon a time there live a tribe who lived on the plains. They were an adventurous tribe, constantly wanting to explore. At night they would see the moon drift lazily overhead, and became curious. How could they reach the moon? The moon was obviously higher than their huts. Standing on the highest hut no one could reach the moon. At the same time, standing on the hut got them closer to the moon. So, they decided to amass all their resources and build a gigantic hut. Reason being that if standing on a short hut got them closer to the moon, then standing on a gigantic hut would get them even closer. Eventually the tribe ran out of mud and Read More ›

hive mind
Artificial intelligence. Network in hive mind brain. Vintage futuristic poster.
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post
Author
News
Date
March 19, 2023
Categorized
Artificial Intelligence
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Is the “Singularity” Already Here?

Two experts in the tech field warn that the singularity, as we've come to imagine it, might be right around the corner
News
March 19, 2023
2
Artificial Intelligence

The singularity refers to the future point when the human and the machine will merge––when the personal and technological distinction breaks down entirely. It sounds dystopian and far off. But, two experts in the tech field warn that the singularity, as we’ve come to imagine it, is right upon us. Writing for The Conversation, John Kendall Hawkins and Sandy Boucher comment, To understand why this isn’t the stuff of fairy tales, we need only look as far as recent developments in brain-computer interfaces (BCIs). BCIs are a natural beginning to the singularity in the eyes of many futurists, because they meld mind and machine in a way no other technology so far can. Elon Musk’s company Neuralink is seeking permission from the US Food Read More ›

retro-wave-80s-computer-all-in-one-illuminated-by-neon-light-isolated-on-black-stockpack-adobe-stock
Retro wave 80s computer all-in-one illuminated by neon light isolated on black
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post
Author
News
Date
March 17, 2023
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AI is Old News, Says Tech Consultant

AI actually dates back to the 1950s. It is not new, says Funk
News
March 17, 2023
1

This week, Robert J. Marks sat down with technology consultant and retired professor Jeffrey Funk, who contributes often to Mind Matters, usually in tandem with Gary Smith. Marks and Funk talked about tech startups, where the industry is headed, and the exaggerated hype that currently attends the discourse over AI. Funk talked about the various stages of AI development. “AI is not new,” he said. AI is 70 years old. ChatGPT and other generative AI models are based on neural networks, which have become economical through Moore’s Law, through this incredible increase in computing power that has been going on since the 1950s. But it’s slowed dramatically. -Jeffrey Funk, Jeffrey Funk on AI, Startups, and Big Tech | Mind Matters Read More ›

composite-collage-image-of-delighted-black-white-colors-person-hold-telephone-raise-fist-celebrate-like-notification-facebook-instagram-tiktok-stockpack-adobe-stock
Composite collage image of delighted black white colors person hold telephone raise fist celebrate like notification facebook instagram tiktok
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post
Author
News
Date
March 16, 2023
Categorized
Global Technology
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The Clock’s Ticking for TikTok

Biden admin might ban TikTok in the U.S. if company doesn't sell
News
March 16, 2023
2
Global Technology

The Biden administration is considering banning TikTok in the United States if the platform’s parent company, ByteDance, doesn’t sell it. The news arrives amidst growing concerns over national security and Chinese espionage tactics, particularly in light of the “spy balloon” that was shot down off the American east coast in February. ByteDance is a Chinese company, and as such, is subject to disclose its information to the Chinese Communist Party. Today, more than half of American states have placed bans on state-issued devices out of privacy and security concerns. Texas representative Paul Michael McCaul said, TikTok is a modern-day Trojan horse of the [Chinese Communist Party], used to surveil and exploit Americans’ personal information. It’s a spy baloon for your Read More ›

chatgpt-chat-concept-ai-artificial-intelligence-businessman-using-technology-smart-robot-ai-enter-command-prompt-contact-for-business-information-analysis-futuristic-technology-transformation-stockpack-adobe-stock
ChatGPT Chat concept AI, Artificial Intelligence. businessman using technology smart robot AI, enter command prompt, contact for business information analysis, Futuristic technology transformation.
Type
podcast
Author
Robert J. Marks and Jeffrey Funk
Date
March 16, 2023
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Jeffrey Funk on AI, Startups, and Big Tech

Robert J. Marks and Jeffrey Funk
March 16, 2023
1

In this podcast episode, technology consultant and author Jeffrey Funk joins Robert J. Marks to talk about the artificial intelligence industry, how it’s used by Big Tech, and AI’s exaggerated hype.  How do we respond to AI when technology is changing every year? Additional Resources

human rights
Circle of paper people holding hands on pink surface. Community, brotherhood concept. Society and support.
Type
post
Author
Richard W. Stevens
Date
March 13, 2023
Categorized
Artificial Intelligence
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Love Thy Robot as Thyself

Academics worry about AI feelings, call for AI rights
Richard W. Stevens
March 13, 2023
6
Artificial Intelligence

Riffing on the popular fascination with AI (artificial intelligence) systems ChatGPT and Bing Chat, two authors in the Los Angeles Times recently declared: We are approaching an era of legitimate dispute about whether the most advanced AI systems have real desires and emotions and deserve substantial care and solicitude. The authors, Prof. Eric Schwitzgebel at UC Riverside, and Henry Shevlin, a senior researcher at the University of Cambridge, observed AI thinkers saying “large neural networks” might be “conscious,” the sophisticated chatbot LaMDA “might have real emotions,” and ordinary human users reportedly “falling in love” with chatbot Replika.  Reportedly, “some leading theorists contend that we already have the core technological ingredients for conscious machines.”  The authors argue that if or when Read More ›

hands-stockpack-adobe-stock
hands
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post
Author
Peter Biles
Date
March 10, 2023
Categorized
Artificial Intelligence, Arts & Culture
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Observing and Communing

What human art and literature do that AI can't
Peter Biles
March 10, 2023
5
Artificial Intelligence, Arts & Culture

AI image generators like Midjourney or DALL-E are generally adept at capturing the accuracy of the human form. The concerns over copyright, job infringement, and general degradation of the visual arts via such AI are ongoing concerns for many artists and practitioners. However, a new New Yorker article by Kyle Chayka identifies a noticeable flaw in AI artwork: human hands. Missing the Big Picture Chayka begins by recalling an art class where he was asked to draw his own hand. It’s an assignment for beginners, and as behooves a novice, tempts the artist to focus more on the specific contours of the hand instead of the overall structure and form. The forest gets lost in the trees, so to speak. Read More ›

brain-psychology-mind-soul-and-hope-concept-art-3d-illustration-surreal-artwork-imagination-painting-conceptual-idea-stockpack-adobe-stock
Brain psychology mind soul and hope concept art, 3d illustration, surreal artwork, imagination painting, conceptual idea
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post
Author
News
Date
March 9, 2023
Categorized
Artificial Intelligence
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Blake Lemoine and Robert J. Marks on the Mind Matters Podcast

Marks and Lemoine discuss sentience in AI and the question of the soul
News
March 9, 2023
1
Artificial Intelligence

Robert J. Marks, director of the Walter Bradley Center for Natural & Artificial Intelligence, sat down with former Google employee Blake Lemoine, who made headlines last year when he claimed AI can be “sentient.” The claim also led to his departure from Google. The two had a fascinating conversation, to say the least. In today’s episode, they discuss whether AI can indeed become sentient, the non-computability of certain human traits, and the question of the soul. Marks and Lemoine couldn’t differ more on these fundamental points. Whereas Lemoine thinks AI can be sentient, Marks firmly rejects such a notion. In addition, Lemoine’s materialistic worldview controls his understanding of the brain, while Marks defends the existence of the immaterial mind. While Read More ›

digital-fractal-realms-stockpack-adobe-stock
Digital Fractal Realms
Type
podcast
Author
Robert J. Marks
Date
March 9, 2023
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Blake Lemoine and the LaMDA Question

Robert J. Marks
March 9, 2023
1

In this continuation of last week’s conversation, ex-Googler Blake Lemoine tells Robert J. Marks what originally got him interested in AI: reading the science fiction of Isaac Asimov as a boy in rural Louisiana. The two go on to discuss and debate sentience in AI, non-computable traits of human beings, and the question of the soul. Additional Resources

mature-woman-having-scones-with-orange-jam-stockpack-adobe-stock
Mature woman having scones with orange jam
Type
post
Author
Peter Biles
Date
March 7, 2023
Categorized
Artificial Intelligence
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AI and “Qualia,” the Ability to Experience

Robert J. Marks writes on AI's limits in new article at Salvo
Peter Biles
March 7, 2023
3
Artificial Intelligence

Robert J. Marks wrote an article for the Spring Issue of Salvo Magazine on AI, covering his ideas on its “non-computability” in the areas of love, empathy, and creativity. The Quality of Qualia I was particularly intrigued by Marks’s thoughts on qualia, a term used to describe the multifaceted realm of sensory experience. We often report on AI’s inability to be creative here at Mind Matters, but what about experiencing the world through touch, smell, and sight? Qualia is related to the mystery of consciousness, another non-computable feature of human life, and according to Marks, is far out of the purview of AI capabilities. Marks writes about the experience of biting into an orange as an example: If the experience Read More ›

students-making-notes-stockpack-adobe-stock
Students making notes
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post
Author
Gary Smith
Date
March 6, 2023
Categorized
Artificial Intelligence, ChatGPT
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Learning to Communicate

Why writing skills are so important, especially in today's artificial world
Gary Smith
March 6, 2023
6
Artificial Intelligence, ChatGPT

Educators have been shaken by fears that students will use ChatGTP and other large language models (LLMs) to answer questions and write essays. LLMs are indeed astonishing good at finding facts and generating coherent essays — although the alleged facts are sometimes false and the essays are sometimes tedious BS supported by fake references. I am more optimistic than most. I am hopeful that LLMs will be a catalyst for a widespread discussion of our educational goals. What might students learn in schools that will be useful long after they graduate? There are many worthy goals, but critical thinking and communication skills should be high on any list. I’ve written elsewhere about how critical thinking abilities are important for students Read More ›

earth-at-night-from-outer-space-with-city-lights-on-north-america-continent-3d-rendering-illustration-earth-map-texture-provided-by-nasa-energy-consumption-electricity-industry-ecology-concepts-stockpack-adobe-stock
Earth at night from outer space with city lights on North America continent. 3D rendering illustration. Earth map texture provided by Nasa. Energy consumption, electricity, industry, ecology concepts.
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post
Author
Peter Biles
Date
March 3, 2023
Categorized
Artificial Intelligence
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Robert J. Marks on The Laura Ingraham Show

In response to those who believe AI will take over the world, Marks says, "Look at history."
Peter Biles
March 3, 2023
3
Artificial Intelligence

Robert J. Marks, director of Discovery Institute’s Walter Bradley Center, recently appeared on a podcast episode with Fox News host Laura Ingraham to talk about artificial intelligence, tech, and Dr. Marks’s book Non-Computable You: What You Do That AI Never Will. Ingraham prefaced the conversation with some thoughts on the rapidly evolving technological world we find ourselves in, and the changes such developments are inflicting on society. In response to the futurism and unbounded optimism in AI systems like ChatGPT that many modern figures hold, Marks said that what computers do is strictly algorithmic, This leads us to the idea of whether or not there are non-computable characteristics of human beings, and I think there is growing evidence that there Read More ›

person on the precipice
Man standing in a high place looking up in wonder to the Milky Way galaxy. Small silhouette of a man under the Milky Way and the magical starry sky. Concept of human smallness.
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post
Author
News
Date
March 2, 2023
Categorized
Artificial Intelligence
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Time for Artificial General Intelligence? Not So Fast, OpenAI

OpenAI CEO is ambitious about the company's direction, but are his hopes profoundly misguided?
News
March 2, 2023
2
Artificial Intelligence

OpenAI CEO Sam Altman is ambitious about his company’s future, promising the world that they are developing “artificial general intelligence” (AGI) that will supposedly compete with human intelligence, per a recent Futurism piece. However, the ambition is misguided. Or more than that, the ambition is simply delusional. AI is “not even close” to attaining the creativity and intelligence of human beings, and Altman shouldn’t be parading OpenAI products as if it is. Victor Tangermann writes, In reality, however, LLMs have a very long way to go until they’re able to compete with the intellect of a human being — which is why several experts are calling foul on Altman’s recent blog post, calling it meaningless and misleading. After all, AGI Read More ›

touching chatbot
Chatbot computer program designed for conversation with human users over the Internet. Support and customer service automation technology concept.
Type
podcast
Author
Robert J. Marks
Date
March 2, 2023
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A Chat with Blake Lemoine on Google and AI Sentience

Robert J. Marks
March 2, 2023
1

Former Google employee Blake Lemoine claimed that the Large Language Model LaMDA was a sentient being. The claim got him fired. In this episode, Lemoine sits down with Robert J. Marks to discuss AI, what he was doing at Google, and why he believes artificial intelligence can be sentient.   Additional Resources

a-holographic-head-representing-modern-technology-ai-floats-in-a-classroom-setting-created-with-generative-ai-stockpack-adobe-stock
A holographic head representing modern technology / ai floats in a classroom setting. Created with generative ai
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post
Author
Gary Smith
Date
March 1, 2023
Categorized
Artificial Intelligence, Education
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Text Generators, Education, and Critical Thinking: an Update

The fundamental problem remains that, not knowing what words mean, AI has no critical thinking abilities
Gary Smith
March 1, 2023
7
Artificial Intelligence, Education

This past October, I wrote that educational testing was being shaken by the astonishing ability of GPT-3 and other large language models (LLMs) to answer test questions and write articulate essays. I argued that, while LLMs might mimic human conversation, they do not know what words mean. They consequently excel at rote memorization and BS conversation but struggle mightily with assignments that are intended to help students develop their critical thinking abilities, such as Lacking any understanding of semantics, LLMs can do none of this. To illustrate, I asked GPT-3 two questions from a midterm examination I had recently given in an introductory statistics class. Both questions tested students critical thinking skills and GPT-3 bombed both questions. I was hopeful Read More ›

artificial-intelligence-sentient-ai-thinking-for-itself-using-computational-data-and-a-human-like-sense-of-consciousness-and-conscience-generative-ai-stockpack-adobe-stock
Artificial intelligence - sentient AI thinking for itself using computational data and a human-like sense of consciousness and conscience. Generative AI
Type
post
Author
News
Date
March 1, 2023
Categorized
Artificial Intelligence
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Ex-Googler Blake Lemoine Still Thinks AI is Sentient

Lemoine posits that because AI can appear to act anxious and stressed, it can be assumed to be sentient
News
March 1, 2023
1
Artificial Intelligence

Blake Lemoine, who formerly worked for Google, has doubled down on his claim that AI systems like LaMDA and Chat-GPT are “sentient.” Lemoine went public on his thoughts on sentience in The Washington Post last June with his bold claim, and since parting ways with Google, has not backed down on his beliefs. Lemoine posits that because AI can appear to act anxious and stressed, it can be assumed to be sentient. Maggie Harrison writes at Futurism, An interesting theory, but still not wholly convincing, considering that chatbots are designed to emulate human conversation — and thus, human stories. Breaking under stress is a common narrative arc; this particular aspect of machine behavior, while fascinating, seems less indicative of sentience, Read More ›

cyborg eye
Human android cyborg eye futuristic control protection personal internet security access.Concept robot dna system, future scientific technology innovation science. Blue polygonal vector
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post
Author
Peter Biles
Date
February 28, 2023
Categorized
Arts & Culture
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Klara and the Sun: A Review

The sci-fi bestseller asks us: can machines become humans?
Peter Biles
February 28, 2023
5
Arts & Culture

Klara and the Sun is novelist Kazuo Ishiguro’s latest novel, a dystopian story told through the lens of an “artificial friend” (AF) named Klara. Ishiguro is known for his provocative speculative fiction, including the novels Never Let Me Go and The Remains of the Day. Klara and the Sun similarly alludes to a dark, post-industrial, futuristic world, but it is told through the innocent lens of an artificial mind, highlighting the vestiges of human behavior and brokenness in ways that perhaps an “ordinary” narrator might not be able to manage. The novel starts out with Klara on display in a store waiting to be purchased. Eventually, she’s chosen by a girl named Josie and her mother, and thus begins her Read More ›

robot soldier
Armed super soldier with supersonic gun in the cyber city. cyberpunk city. cyborg. Robot. Generative AI
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post
Author
News
Date
February 28, 2023
Categorized
Robotics
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“It All Comes Down to Ethics”

Robert J. Marks interviewed for recent article on "killer robots"
News
February 28, 2023
1
Robotics

Robert J. Marks and his book The Case for Killer Robots: Why America’s Military Needs to Continue Development of Lethal AI were mentioned in a Fortune Magazine article by Jacob Carpenter, which discussed the issue of robotic and AI-controlled weapons in police and military forces. Marks was interviewed for the article and his phrase “in the end, it comes down to the ethics” was also featured in the article’s title. The article weighs different perspectives on weaponized AI and whether this is the direction the country is headed in the future. Marks notes the parallels with the gun rights issue in the debate over weaponized robots. The issue will inevitably extend to the question of AI deploying firearms, not just Read More ›

artificial-intelligence-stockpack-adobe-stock
Artificial intelligence
Type
post
Author
Gary Smith
Date
February 27, 2023
Categorized
Artificial Intelligence, ChatGPT
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Let’s Take the “I” Out of AI

Large language models, though impressive, are not the solution. They may well be the catalyst for calamity.
Gary Smith
February 27, 2023
7
Artificial Intelligence, ChatGPT

When OpenAI’s text generator, ChatGPT, was released to the public this past November, the initial reaction was widespread astonishment. Marc Andreessen described it as, “Pure, absolute, indescribable magic.” Bill Gates said that the creation of ChatGPT was as important as the creation of the internet. Jensen Huang, Nvidia’s CEO, Jensen Huang, said that, “ChatGPT is one of the greatest things ever created in the computing industry.” Conversations with ChatGPT are, indeed, very much like conversations with a super-intelligent human. For many, it seems that the 70-year search for a computer program that could rival or surpass human intelligence has finally paid off. Perhaps we are close to the long-anticipated singularity where computers improve rapidly and autonomously, leaving humans far behind, Read More ›