^TagComputers

the variety of different types of chips and electronic components on the printed circuit board

^{Type
post

Author
News
Date
June 1, 2023

Categorized
Technology

Tagged
Computers, COSM 2022, Frederico Faggin, Intel, internet, Maria Teresa Cometto, Technology}

Celebrating an Internet Pioneer: Frederico Faggin

_{Faggin discussed his background and how he came to design the first commercial microprocessor at Intel} _{News

June 1, 2023

1

Technology}

For today’s featured video from the COSM 2022, check out this interview between journalist Maria Teresa Cometto and Frederico Faggin. Faggin discussed his background and how he came to design the first commercial microprocessor at Intel. For more similar material, visit the Center’s YouTube page to enjoy more lectures and videos from past COSM conferences.

Computer Microchips and Processors on Electronic circuit board. Abstract technology microelectronics concept background. Macro shot, shallow focus.

^{Type
post

Author
Jonathan Bartlett
Date
May 22, 2023

Categorized
Technology

Tagged
Amazon, Computers, Google, Microservices, programming, software development}

The Microservices Controversy from a Software Management Perspective

_{As projects get bigger, so do the reasons for having a microservice architecture} _{Jonathan Bartlett

May 22, 2023

6

Technology}

A new report by Amazon has caused a bit of a stir on the Internet. In it, the Amazon Prime video team reported that changing their architecture from a microservice architecture to a monolithic architecture resulted in a 90% cost savings. While the report itself was very mild (its only claim was that this architecture helped in this specific situation), it has caused the people who disliked the microservice trend to make some noise of their own. Here, I wanted to take a moment to reflect on what I see as the benefits of the microservice approach from a software development management perspective. If you are not familiar with microservice architectures, you can find out more information in my book, Cloud Read More ›

Artificial intelligence. Microchip connections, electric pulses and binary codes.

^{Type
post

Author
Jonathan Bartlett
Date
March 20, 2023

Categorized
Technology

Tagged
Chip, Computation, Computer Systems, Computers, Electronics, Engineering, Pi, Raspberry Pi, Wi-Fi}

The Raspberry Pi Phenomenon

_{A Raspberry Pi is a full computer that is not much larger than a credit card, but still packs enough power to be usable as a desktop computer} _{Jonathan Bartlett

March 20, 2023

5

Technology}

For the uninitiated, the Raspberry Pi is a single-board computer that runs the Linux operating system. It can be either operated as a desktop computer or as an embedded system (i.e., a custom electronic device), or both. Historically, computer systems were either general-purpose computers or embedded systems. General-purpose computers required too much hardware, too many chips, and too much power to work inside an electronic device. However, as manufacturers packed more and more functionality into less and less space using less and less power, eventually it became possible to have a computer that was small, cheap, powerful, and not especially power-hungry. The Raspberry Pi came about right as this was happening. A Raspberry Pi is a full computer that is not much Read More ›

Art collage. Businessman with a laptop instead of a head. Online research concept.

^{Type
post

Author
Jonathan Bartlett
Date
February 13, 2023

Categorized
Artificial Intelligence

Tagged
Accountability, AI, Associated Press, ChatGPT, CNET, Computers, Content, data, GPT-3}

The Need for Accountability in AI-Generated Content

_{Just because we live in a world of AI does not mean we can escape responsibility} _{Jonathan Bartlett

February 13, 2023

4

Artificial Intelligence}

AI-generated content has become increasingly common on the web. However, as we enter this new era, we will need to think through the moral and social ramifications of what we are doing, and how we should negotiate the new ethical landscape. But first, a brief recap of recent history. The first major player to pioneer AI-generated content was the Associated Press. AP realized that many market-oriented articles were pretty monotonous and read like templates anyway, so they decided to fully commit and auto-generate many of them. If you read an AP story about a company’s earnings report and it sounds eerily like every other story about other companies’ earnings reports, there’s a reason for that. Templated content, while annoying, provides window-dressing to raw Read More ›

Business man works in office with laptop. Concept of internet network. double exposure

^{Type
post

Author
Jonathan Bartlett
Date
January 30, 2023

Categorized
Artificial Intelligence

Tagged
AI, algorithm, ChatGPT, Computers, Google, GPT-3, Information, intelligence, truth}

Why ChatGPT Won’t Replace Google

_{With Google, the algorithm eventually leads you to content made by real people. With ChatGPT, you never leave the algorithm} _{Jonathan Bartlett

January 30, 2023

2

Artificial Intelligence}

To some extent, ChatGPT is a newer, easier-to-use interface than Google. Unlike Google, it doesn’t make you waste time by visiting those pesky websites. It not only looks into its database for content, but it also summarizes it for you as paragraphs. There is a problem lurking in there, however. Being computers, neither Google nor ChatGPT cares about the truth. They are algorithms, and they merely do as they are told. Additionally, you can’t code the human mind into algorithms. However, there is a fundamental difference between what ChatGPT does and what Google does that will prevent content generators like ChatGPT from displacing search engines like Google: Google eventually lets you out of its system. Ultimately, the goal of search Read More ›

^{Type
post

Author
Eric Holloway
Date
January 10, 2023

Categorized
Artificial Intelligence, Programming

Tagged
Artificial Intelligence, ChatGPT, Computers, Data Mining, Neural networks, Number sequence, Numbers (types)}

Is ChatGPT Solely a Neural Network? I Tested That…

_{Changing the random number test to a "computer easy, human hard" test requires simply that we ask ChatGPT to reverse the random number. It couldn't.} _{Eric Holloway

January 10, 2023

9

Artificial Intelligence, Programming}

ChatGPT is a direct descendent of GPT-3, and is a fancy form of a fancy machine learning algorithm called a neural network. For an overview of all of ChatGPT’s neural network complexity, here is a fun article. However, all that is beside the point. The important thing about a neural network: It can only generate what is in its training data. Therefore, ChatGPT can only produce what is in its training data. ChatGPT’s training data does not include the conversation you or I are having with ChatGPT. Therefore, if something novel occurs in the conversation, ChatGPT cannot reproduce it. That is, if ChatGPT is a neural network. Conversely, if ChatGPT reproduces novel text from the conversation, then ipso facto ChatGPT is not a Read More ›

Chat bot Robot Online Chatting Communication Business Internet Technology Concept

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post

Author
Peter Biles
Date
December 5, 2022

Categorized
Artificial Intelligence

Tagged
Andy Crouch, Artificial Intelligence, chatbots, Computers, David Decosimo, Elon Musk, Human exceptionalism, human exceptionalism (vs. computers), OpenAI, Twitter}

OpenAI Launches Impressive New Chatbot: ChatGPT

_{The sophisticated AI tool could revolutionize the internet, and come with big cost} _{Peter Biles

December 5, 2022

4

Artificial Intelligence}

Artificial intelligence is making great strides in 2022. A few months ago, the company OpenAI introduced DALL-E, a text-to-image generator, which they made open to the public. Some have raised concerns over the future role of artists and copyright issues considering AI art generators. Does AI pose a threat to human creators? Well, that question just got weightier and more multifaceted. OpenAI just released ChatGPT, what writer Jacob Carpenter calls, “the most advanced, user-friendly chatbot to enter the public domain.” ChatGPT can “write lines of code, pen a college-level essay, author responses in the voice of a pirate, and write a piano piece in Mozart’s style.” Carpenter goes on to point out that some are wondering if the chatbot threatens Read More ›

A salesperson working in an office on a virtual call

^{Type
podcast

Author
Wesley J. Smith and Robert J. Marks
Date
November 10, 2022

Tagged
AI, Algorithms, Artificial Intelligence, Computers, Consciousness, Humanize, immortality, Non-Computable You (book), Robert J. Marks, Sentience, transhumanism, Wesley J. Smith}

Can a Computer Be a Person?

_{Wesley J. Smith and Robert J. Marks

November 10, 2022

1}

Are we on the verge of the era of machines? Is AI destined to supplant most human endeavors and activities? Can a computer be deemed a person? And if so, should that computer be granted rights as part of the moral community? Will we ever attain immortality by uploading our minds into computers as transhumanists predict? And what the heck Read More ›

Beautiful night sky, the Milky Way, moon and the trees. Elements of this image furnished by NASA.

^{Type
podcast

Author
Michael Egnor
Date
August 26, 2021

Tagged
Arthur Schopenhauer, Bernardo Kastrup, Computers, Consciousness, Cosmopanpsychism, Death, dissociative identity disorder, epiphenomenal, Evolution, Intelligent Design, Intelligent design theory, Jerry Fodor, Materialism, metaphysics, Michael Egnor, mind, mutation, Near-death experiences, Panpsychism, Panpsychism (vs. materialism), Philosophy, Physics, Quantum Computing, Quantum Entanglement, Quantum Mechanics, Quantum Physics, Sabine Hossenfelder, sense, Sense of smell, Sense of touch, soul, subjective idealism, Teleology, Thomas Aquinas}

“If Nobody Looks at the Moon, Does It Exist?” and Other Metaphysical Questions

_{Michael Egnor

August 26, 2021

2}

If no one is looking at the moon, does it exist? Why has materialism been around for so long? Will computers ever be conscious? What happens to our consciousness after we die? Bernardo Kastrup tackles these questions and more with Michael Egnor in another bingecast! Show Notes 0:00:28 | Introducing Dr. Bernardo Kastrup 0:01:22 | How quantum mechanics points to Read More ›

^{Type
post

Author
News
Date
December 19, 2020

Categorized
Artificial Intelligence, Philosophy of Mind

Tagged
Computers, Consciousness, Duncan Riach}

A Silicon Valley Psychologist Doesn’t Believe in Consciousness

_{Duncan Riach thinks that, with increasing complexity, computers will appear to be conscious too but it’s a misunderstanding for both humans and computers} _{News

December 19, 2020

3

Artificial Intelligence, Philosophy of Mind}

Duncan Riach, who believes that computers can become selves, doesn’t believe in consciousness. As he explains, I’ve lost friends over this because a denial of consciousness undermines a final refuge of the arrogance of selfhood: universal consciousness. But even most normal people are strongly insistent that consciousness is a real thing, a special thing, and that they possess it. The problem I have is that there’s not only no evidence for it, but what people seem to be referring to as consciousness is explainable as an effect no more unusual, no less materialistically explainable, than water flowing downhill… Rather than jumping to the conclusion that this body has a soul and/or that somehow this “I am,” this feeling of something Read More ›

^{Type
post

Author
News
Date
December 2, 2020

Categorized
Science

Tagged
Albert Einstein, bitcoin, Computers, cryptocurrencies, Energy efficiency, Enrique Blair, Entanglement, Featured, John Bell, nonlocality, Quantum Entanglement, qubits, Robert J. Marks, Spooky action at a distance, Superposition}

“Spooky Action at a Distance” Makes Sense—in the Quantum World

_{Einstein never liked quantum mechanics but each transistor in your cell phone is a quantum device} _{News

December 2, 2020

8

Science}

In last week’s podcast, “Enrique Blair on quantum computing,” Walter Bradley Center director Robert J. Marks talks with fellow computer engineer Enrique Blair about why quantum mechanics is so strange. The discussion turned to why Albert Einstein, a brilliant but orderly mathematical thinker, did not really like quantum mechanics at all and what we should learn from that: https://episodes.castos.com/mindmatters/Mind-Matters-110-Enrique-Blair.mp3 The discussion of Einstein and “spooky action at a distance” (his way of describing quantum particles’ behavior) starts at approximately 27:45. The Show Notes and transcript follow. Excerpts from the transcript: Robert J. Marks: Albert Einstein didn’t like quantum mechanics or certain aspects of quantum mechanics. Dd he die thinking that quantum mechanics was a fluke? Enrique Blair (pictured): That’s an Read More ›

^{Type
post

Author
News
Date
November 18, 2020

Categorized
Economics, Global Technology

Tagged
Carbon, Carbon computing, Computers, Energy efficiency, Environment, Featured, Gaming AI (book), George Gilder, Robert J. Marks}

Could Carbon Computing Make Computers More Environment Friendly?

_{As a key component of life forms, carbon is abundant and energy efficient} _{News

November 18, 2020

6

Economics, Global Technology}

Carbon, a very abundant chemical element, is one of the building blocks of life, partly on account of its stability. It is a minimalist element, compared to the silicon used in computing today: … carbon dioxide is is a small gaseous molecule consisting of two oxygens both forming a double bond with a single carbon while silicon dioxide is a massive behemoth of a molecule made of huge numbers of alternating oxygen and silicon atoms and is more commonly known as sand. S. E. Gould, “Shine on you crazy diamond: why humans are carbon-based lifeforms” at Scientific American (November 11, 2012) But there’s something else about carbon. As George Gilder puts it, carbon-based life forms, like humans, consume very little Read More ›

The robot writes with a pen and looks at the computer monitor. Artificial Intelligence

^{Type
podcast

Author
Robert J. Marks
Date
September 24, 2020

Tagged
Abstract thought, Ada Lovelace, Alan Turing, Algorithm-of-the-Gaps, AlphaGo, Charles Babbage, Claude Shannon, Cognition, computer, Computers, Consciousness, Creativity, David Gelernter, disjunctive syllogism, Eugene Goostman, Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz, Kurt Gödel, Language, Lovelace test, Marcel Proust, Mathematics, Natural Language Generation, Natural Language Processing, non-algorithmic, novels, ontological argument, ontological proof, Ray Kurzweil, Saint Anselm, Selmer Bringsjord, Singularity, Sports, Theorems, Turing Test}

Bingecast: Selmer Bringsjord on the Lovelace Test

_{Robert J. Marks

September 24, 2020

3}

The Turing test, developed by Alan Turing in 1950, is a test of a machine’s ability to exhibit intelligent behaviour indistinguishable from a human. Many think that Turing’s proposal for intelligence, especially creativity, has been proven inadequate. Is the Lovelace test a better alternative? What are the capabilities and limitations of AI? Robert J. Marks and Dr. Selmer Bringsjord discuss Read More ›

^{Type
post

Author
News
Date
September 23, 2020

Categorized
Artificial Intelligence, Machine Learning, Natural Intelligence, Science

Tagged
Algorithms, Bacteria as living computers, Ben Medlock, Computers, James Shapiro, Self-organization, Stephen Hawking}

SwiftKey Co-founder: Computers Can’t Just “Evolve” Intelligence

_{Can vain hopes for AI spring from a wrong understanding of evolution?} _{News

September 23, 2020

5

Artificial Intelligence, Machine Learning, Natural Intelligence, Science}

Ben Medlock asks us to look at self-organization as a principle of life, lacking in computers. Read More ›

abstract binary code science computing center

^{Type
post

Author
News
Date
September 22, 2020

Categorized
Artificial Intelligence, Philosophy of Mind

Tagged
Algorithms, Brian J. Woolley, Computers, Darwinian evolution, Eric Holloway, Evolution, Featured, Goodhart's Law, Jonathan Bartlett, Kevin O. Stanley, No Free Lunch theorems, Word ladder game}

Can AI Really Evolve into Superintelligence All by Itself?

_{We can’t just turn a big computer over to evolution and go away and hope for great things} _{News

September 22, 2020

6

Artificial Intelligence, Philosophy of Mind}

At Science earlier this year it was claimed that Darwinian evolution alone can make computers much smarter. As a result, researchers hoped to “discover something really fundamental that will take a long time for humans to figure out”: Artificial intelligence (AI) is evolving—literally. Researchers have created software that borrows concepts from Darwinian evolution, including “survival of the fittest,” to build AI programs that improve generation after generation without human input. The program replicated decades of AI research in a matter of days, and its designers think that one day, it could discover new approaches to AI. Edd Gent, “Artificial intelligence is evolving all by itself” at Science (April 30, 2020) How does that work? The program discovers algorithms using a Read More ›

^{Type
post

Author
News
Date
September 10, 2020

Categorized
Artificial Intelligence, Philosophy of Mind, Religion

Tagged
aboutness, Bernardo Kastrup, Computers, Consciousness, cosmopsychism, Featured, intentionality, Michael Egnor, Near-death experiences, Nokia, Ray Kurzweil}

Michael Egnor: What Happens to Our Consciousness After We Die?

_{Computer programmer and philosopher Bernardo Kastrup provides a surprising answer} _{News

September 10, 2020

11

Artificial Intelligence, Philosophy of Mind, Religion}

In this week’s podcast, “Can Computers Think?”, Michael Egnor continued his discussion with philosopher and computer programmer Bernardo Kastrup. As a scientist, Bernardo has worked for The European Organization for Nuclear Research and for Phillips Research Laboratories, and has authored many academic papers and books. This week, they look at a big question, “Will computers ever be conscious?”. But Egnor brought up an even bigger one: “What happens to our consciousness after we die?” As a scientist, Kastrup has worked for The European Organization for Nuclear Research and for Phillips Research Laboratories and has authored many academic papers and books. He is a leading advocate of cosmopsychism, the idea that intelligence did not randomly evolve somehow to help life forms Read More ›

3D Rendering of artificial Intelligence hardware concept. Glowing blue brain circuit on microchip on computer motherboard. For stock trading, financial management, or technology product background

^{Type
podcast

Author
Michael Egnor
Date
September 10, 2020

Tagged
Arthur Schopenhauer, Bernardo Kastrup, computer, Computers, Consciousness, Death, metaphysics, mind, Near-death experiences, Philosophy, Teleology}

Can Computers Think?

_{Michael Egnor

September 10, 2020

1}

Will computers ever be conscious? What happens to our consciousness after we die? Has science made philosophy irrelevant? Dr. Michael Egnor and Dr. Bernardo Kastrup discuss consciousness, artificial intelligence, and philosophy. Show Notes 00:38 | Introducing Dr. Bernardo Kastrup 01:12 | Can computers think? 03:34 | Intentionality 07:11 | Does the natural world have a person behind it? 10:34 | Read More ›

^{Type
post

Author
Robert J. Marks
Date
May 30, 2020

Categorized
Artificial Intelligence, Arts & Culture

Tagged
Alan Turing, Computers, Determinism, DEVS, Featured, H. G. Rice, Pierre-Simon Laplace, Science fiction}

Hulu’s Devs Series: Where They Get Determinism Wrong

_{Devs disposes of a key limitation of computers that can supposedly predict the future with psychobabble} _{Robert J. Marks

May 30, 2020

5

Artificial Intelligence, Arts & Culture}

Call me a nitpicker: As a computer engineer, I must say, computers cannot predict the future.

Why Our Minds Can’t Really Be Uploaded to Computers

_{The basic problem is that human minds aren’t “computable.” Peter and Jane are not bits and bytes} _{News

April 22, 2020

10

Artificial Intelligence, Arts & Culture, Philosophy of Mind}

The underlying problem with creating immortality by uploading our minds to computers is that people are conscious and even the most sophisticated foreseeable computers are not. And we are not at all sure what consciousness even IS.

Why Your Computer Will Never Talk to You

_{As a jokester recently demonstrated, even “shirts without stripes” is a fundamental, unsolvable problem for computers} _{Eric Holloway

April 21, 2020

3}

At first, “shirts without stripes” might not seem like much of an issue but it turns out that many important and interesting problems for computers fundamentally reduce to this “halting problem.” And understanding human language is one of these problems.