Mind Matters Natural and Artificial Intelligence News and Analysis

TagArtificial Intelligence

a-woman-having-a-good-time-talking-with-ai-robot-friend-in-cafe-stockpack-adobe-stock
A woman having a good time talking with ai robot friend in cafe

AI: The Future of Friendship?

Odd visions of dystopia keep popping up in real life in our current social moment.

Odd visions of dystopia keep popping up in real life in our current social moment. An upcoming device simply called “friend” is now being advertised. Per the product description, the “friend” is a Bluetooth disk that hangs around a person’s neck and “listens” to the user. It then has the capacity to make conversation by “texting” you at random times of the day, like a human friend might do. The website includes a “frequently asked questions” portion, which is where you can discover what the product is and what it can do. Here’s a bizarre response to the question: “what does ‘always listening’ mean”: When connected via bluetooth, your friend is always listening and forming their own internal thoughts. We Read More ›

hand-of-woman-holding-pen-with-writing-on-paper-report-in-office-stockpack-adobe-stock
hand of woman holding pen with writing on paper report in office

Study: Writing by Hand is Good for the Brain. What Does that Say About ChatGPT?

Nothing can replace pen and paper

It might be time to get the pens and notebooks back out and shut off the keyboard for a while. Just pretend you’re back in the first grade and don’t have a minicomputer in your back pocket. Writing by hand can help stimulate the whole brain and stave off cognitive decline, according to a study by Van der Weel and Van der Meer (2024), as reported by Pamela B. Rutledge in Psychology Today. Using a more personal note, she writes, I’ve never been one to keep a journal, but I now wonder if the exclusive use of computers and the lack of handwriting practice is doing my brain a disservice by decreasing the activity of cortico-subcortical components of the writing Read More ›

Robert Marks & Zoltan Istvan Debate AI and Transhumanism

Are we on the verge of an era of incalculable human progress because of the power of AI, or are we threatened with being made obsolete and perhaps extinguished in an age of intelligent machines? In this episode, Robert J. Marks and author Zoltan Istvan debate secular transhumanism and artificial intelligence (AI). Marks argues that AI can never be creative Read More ›

a-robotic-hand-flawlessly-scribing-intricate-algorithms-a-fusion-of-precision-and-technology-stockpack-adobe-stock
A robotic hand flawlessly scribing intricate algorithms, a fusion of precision and technology.

Writers Are Getting Fired for…Not Using ChatGPT?

AI detectors aren't totally accurate, and the cost is steep for the writing industry
Even though writers wanted nothing to do with the chatbots, their work is still being flagged by detectors. And it's literally costing them their jobs. Read More ›
cell-phone-addiction-concept-many-teens-hold-smart-device-social-media-like-obsession-online-communication-problem-people-watch-mobile-gadget-screen-art-illustration-cyberspace-internet-network-stockpack-adobe-stock
Cell phone addiction concept. Many teens hold smart device. Social media like obsession. Online communication problem. People watch mobile gadget screen. Art illustration. Cyberspace internet network.

Haidt on AI: Social Media Companies Use It to Hook the Vulnerable

The famous American social psychologist and professor at New York University, Jonathan Haidt, thinks phones have essentially ruined a generation
His new book The Anxious Generation dives into the data that shows it. Adolescent mental health took a nosedive in the early 2010s: Smartphone world. Read More ›
robotic-hand-pressing-a-keyboard-on-a-laptop-3d-rendering-stockpack-adobe-stock
Robotic hand pressing a keyboard on a laptop 3D rendering

The Limits and Possibilities of Artificial Intelligence

In this panel discussion from the COSM technology conference, the panelists address the limits and possibilities of artificial intelligence (AI). George Montañez, an Assistant Professor of Computer Science, discusses generative AI models and how they work by encoding relations between text and images. He also mentions the phenomenon of model collapse, where AI systems degenerate when trained on their own Read More ›

abstract-digital-human-face-artificial-intelligence-concept-of-big-data-or-cyber-security-3d-rendering-stockpack-adobe-stock
Abstract digital human face.  Artificial intelligence concept of big data or cyber security. 3D rendering

AI Isn’t Going to Destroy the World (or Save It, Either)

Revisiting a classic podcast interview with Robert J. Marks

A classic episode of ID the Future dives into the controversial realm of artificial intelligence (AI). Will robots or other computers ever become so fast and powerful that they become conscious, creative, and free? Will AI reach a point where it leaves humans in the dust? To shed light on these and other questions, host Casey Luskin interviews computer engineering professor Robert J. Marks, head of the Walter Bradley Center for Natural and Artificial Intelligence. In this fast-paced interview, Marks touches on dystopian AI and the limits of computer algorithms (they can never do anything that is inherently non-computable, Marks argues), and discuss celebrity thinkers and entrepreneurs who’ve weighed in on the promises and perils of AI, such as Mark Zuckerberg, Elon Musk, Read More ›

hand-holding-smart-phone-on-colorful-background-stockpack-adobe-stock
hand holding smart phone on colorful background

“Dopamine-Maximizing AI”

Elon Musk on addictive algorithms and the future of AI
Tech lords often vacillate between hype and doom, and Musk, who signed a petition to curb AI research until its effects are known, falls into that tendency, too. Read More ›
glowing-digital-scheme-abstract-background-3d-illustration-stockpack-adobe-stock
Glowing Digital Scheme Abstract Background. 3D illustration

Applying the Theory of Intelligent Design

What are ID's implications for economics, metaphysics, and computer science?

As my PhD advisor Dr. Robert Marks likes to say: “You have to make the queen of the sciences get down and scrub the floors.” Intelligent design (ID) is a science, and so ID has to get down and scrub the floors. To further this goal, I’ve come up with a schema for the ways in which ID can be applied, and what it in fact means for ID to be applied. The upshot of this schema is not only to guide brainstorming, but it also demonstrates that ID is already applied in many areas, unbeknownst to all. As they say, the best way to get something done is to take credit for someone else’s work. First, let’s identify what ID is. ID is Read More ›

blockchain-information-flows-in-the-digital-global-networks-3d-illustration-of-data-cells-with-binary-code-elements-stockpack-adobe-stock
Blockchain Information flows in the digital global networks. 3D illustration of data cells with binary code elements.

The Financial World Has Lost the Plot

Cathie Wood on the investment opportunities of the future.

“I feel as though the financial world has lost the plot,” said Cathie Wood, CEO of Ark Invest, in last year’s star-studded COSM conference. Investors are avoiding risk and investing in safe but unpromising world of the past, said Wood, who went on to discuss the “trends and investment opportunities in technologies related to public blockchains, multiomic sequencing, energy storage, and robotics, that are tied together by advances in artificial intelligence.” Watch her intriguing talk below and let us know what you think of it in the comments! The fourth and final sequence of COSM 2023 videos have now been added to our YouTube channel, so you can enjoy a host of stimulating talks, panels, and conversations about artificial intelligence, Read More ›

big-data-and-artificial-intelligence-concept-machine-learning-and-circuit-board-deep-learning-stockpack-adobe-stock
Big data and artificial intelligence concept. Machine learning and circuit board. Deep learning

Final Release of COSM 2023 Videos!

The fourth and final tranche of COSM 2023 videos is now available.

The fourth and final tranche of COSM 2023 videos is now available — featuring topics such as how advances in artificial intelligence may affect automobile transportation, solutions to the vast amounts of energy artificial intelligence will require, and why we might be on the brink of seeing the most disruptive innovations the world has ever seen. If you weren’t able to attend, or perhaps you want to revisit some of your favorite speakers, take a look at our COSM 2023 playlist on YouTube! A few highlights of the recently released videos: You can also watch backstage interviews, in which Senior Fellow Jay Richards goes into greater depth with several speakers on the topics addressed onstage. Click here to go to Read More ›

robot-android-men-running-stockpack-adobe-stock
robot android men running

I, Robot Review, Part 2: The Ghosts in the Machine

Dr. Lanning describes these ghosts as random segments of code and asks questions like why robots choose to stand together rather than alone when they’re stored in a dark place
Dr. Calvin has been put in charge of decommissioning Sonny, but she’s found some unsettling things about the robot. For one thing, it can break The Three Laws. Read More ›
pen-writing-letter-stockpack-adobe-stock
Pen, Writing, Letter.

The Uniqueness of the Human Writer

LLMs are shortcuts, but sometimes the shortcut makes you miss the point of the journey
The place of the human writer in our increasingly automated world has been a point of debate for years, even before the advent of ChatGPT. Read More ›
system-artificial-intelligence-chatgpt-chat-bot-ai-technology-smart-robot-ai-chat-gpt-application-software-robot-application-chat-gpt-generative-ai-stockpack-adobe-stock
System Artificial intelligence ChatGPT Chat Bot AI , Technology smart robot Ai Chat GPT application software , robot application Chat GPT. Generative AI

Does ChatGPT Think?

Are Large Language Models like ChatGPT capable of legitimate thought?

It’s one of the hot topic questions and will almost certainly continue to be. Are Large Language Models like ChatGPT capable of legitimate thought? And what counts as “thinking”? Is there a quality to the concept that makes it distinctly human, or are the tech futurists right? Can AI computation be considered a type of cognitive activity? Stephen Wolfram, George Gilder, and Bob Metcalfe spoke on the possibilities and limits of AI at last year’s star-studded COSM conference. We are experiencing watershed moments in technology, with lots of hype to go along with it, but are we putting the cart before the horse in some cases? Discover more in this special recording on YouTube.

futuristic-ai-woman-the-evolution-of-agi-in-a-digital-world-facial-recognition-artificial-intelligence-ai-generated-art-stockpack-adobe-stock
Futuristic AI Woman: The Evolution of AGI in a Digital World, Facial recognition, Artificial Intelligence, AI Generated Art

Don’t Trust AI to Sketch Your Suspects

The resemblance is definitely NOT uncanny in this case

A man broke into an old woman’s house recently, and after being described to the police in Kent, England, an AI image of the fellow was rendered. Usually, of course, an artist will sketch the profile of the criminal suspect based on details provided by the witness, but now AI is having its shot; only, the result was laughable. The profile looked like it could have come from the 2008 version of the Wii. It isn’t detailed, the neck and head aren’t ratioed like a real person’s would be, and it just simply came out cartoonish. Frank Landymore reported on the incident over at Futurism, writing, The suspect is described as being a white man around five feet, five inches Read More ›

glowing-mind-image-mixed-media-stockpack-adobe-stock
Glowing mind image . Mixed media

No, Chatbots Are Not Conscious 

The arguments in favor of computer consciousness remain weak

In the midst of all the chatter surrounding AI and chatbots, one might be led to believe that the concepts of consciousness or even the soul, let alone the afterlife, are simply relics of outdated beliefs. This sentiment is often echoed by some scientists, raising the question: Is this truly the case? And should we readily accept this perspective? In a recent episode of Mindscape, renowned philosopher and cognitive scientist Raphael Millerie, who boasts an Oxford education and is now a fellow at the Center of Science and Society, teamed up with Sean Carroll, a prominent theoretical physicist known for debunking notions of the soul and the afterlife, to delve into the world of chatbots and AI (see episode 230). Read More ›

abstract-landscape-colorful-art-landscape-with-the-tower-of-babel-in-dramatic-light-art-illustration-digital-art-image-stockpack-adobe-stock
Abstract landscape. Colorful art landscape with the tower of Babel in dramatic light. Art illustration. Digital art image.

The New Tower of Babel

The old ways of arguing and understanding each other are on the decline, if not on life support.

We all know Babel (no, not the language learning company). It’s in Genesis. The Biblical story about God making so many languages and dialects and (let’s add) opinions that no one could understand each other or effectively communicate. One legacy of the triumph of digital technology and AI in every corner of our existence is that we’ve recreated this Babel. Let me try to unpack this, and bear with me if it seems I’m saying something derogatory about one belief or another — my aim is to avoid that game and try to explain the mechanism, the social and cultural story, by which our new Babel is ascendant, and the old ways of arguing and understanding each other are on Read More ›

Image1

Robert J. Marks Discusses Artificial Intelligence in D.C.

Marks is making the rounds talking about AI and his new book.
Marks’ views on AI are valuable contributions to the current discourse on the topic, so it’s wonderful his book is making a splash with some big names. Read More ›
large-language-models-generative-ai-illustration-stockpack-adobe-stock
Large Language Models - Generative AI illustration

Large Language Models Are Often Wrong, Never in Doubt

LLMs are statistically driven text generators, nothing more
As an economist, professor, and writer, I am reportedly in imminent danger of being replaced by large language models (LLMs). I’m not worried. Read More ›