Mind Matters Natural and Artificial Intelligence News and Analysis

TagRobert J. Marks

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IP, Intellectual Property Patent Concept

Entrepreneur Hal Philipp: Perils of Success for Solo Inventors

He warns, when it comes to patents, “size matters.” Big companies command respect and are harder to cheat than lone inventors

Hal Philipp’s inventions underpin automatic faucets, door sensors, and the capacitive touchscreens that made the smartphone era possible. In this podcast, he offers a candid field guide to turning ideas into impact. The discussion ranges from startup structure and venture capital to patent warfare, corporate brinkmanship, and the social aftershocks of the iPhone. Philipp is interviewed by Robert J. Marks and Bradley Norris. Engineering education Marks opens with a challenge to engineering education. Universities excel at training graduates for Boeing or Motorola, but seldom spotlight entrepreneurship as a viable path. Philipp agrees and then complicates the picture. If he could rewind, he says, he would “get a little more assistance,” likely allying with a larger organization to gain leverage. In Read More ›

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Businessman analyzing data with a touch screen

Defending a Patent: Lessons from Tech Entrepreneur Hal Philipp

In Part 2 of a 3-part interview, Philipp — inventor of the modern touchscreen — tells Robert J. Marks and Bradley Norris about his struggles with Apple

When we swipe a phone or tap a touchscreen, few of us realize how much engineering — and legal grit — underlies that simple gesture. In an interview with Mind Matters podcasting, inventor Hal Philipp traces the path from lone tinkerer to successful founder, and finally to weary veteran of patent warfare. Philipp, a key inventor behind modern capacitive sensing and touchscreens, delivers a sober message for innovators: invention is only half the battle; defending your invention can define your company’s fate. From Single-Point Touch to a Full Touchscreen Philipp’s early work focused on single-channel capacitive sensors — one-button touch or proximity detection. The breakthrough came when he generalized the idea into linear touch sliders and then into a circular Read More ›

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Glowing light bulb stands out. Photo generative AI.

Cold Calls to Touchscreens: Hal Philipp’s Entrepreneurial Journey

Philipp’s remarkable story illustrates seven core entrepreneurial principles
His business grew — not from grand design — but from a series of smart, well-timed responses to opportunity. Read More ›
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AI chatbot assisting doctor health care and medical support. artificial intelligence in medicine and robotic chat customer services. futuristic concept in smart healthcare system.

Chatbots Flunk at Resolving Medical Ethics Dilemmas

Surprisingly, despite evident limitations, they are being used in ethics tutorials in medical schools
The researchers discovered a limitation when they tweaked some standard puzzlers and - never short of an answer - bots didn’t pick up on the change. Read More ›
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A cell viewed under a microscope, rendered in stunning 4K detail.

Methodological Naturalism: Helpful Rule or Hindering Dogma?

If the observable data points to outcomes that natural causes cannot adequately explain, then ruling out supernatural causes from the outset is not scientific humility — it’s dogma
The conversation highlighted the need to follow the evidence wherever it leads — even if it leads to the possibility of divine intervention. Read More ›
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Cave entrance with sunlit stone steps, man ascending stairs towards bright light at end of tunnel. Symbolizing afterlife, near-death experience, inspiration, or hope beyond darkness.

A Neurosurgeon on Near-Death Experiences: Evidence for the Soul?

Michael Egnor sees striking parallels between NDEs and experiences described by mystics when ordinary thought is silenced, deeper reality breaks through
In clinical death, the brain’s chatter ceases involuntarily, granting a similar opening. Read More ›
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Omega, the letter of a Greek alphabet. Greek numerals, mathematical eight hundred number concept. Abstract, digital, wireframe, low poly mesh, Raster blue neon 3d illustration. Triangle, line dot

Podcast: Free Will, Determinism, and the Immortal Soul

Michael Egnor explains, to claim, “There is no free will,” is to make a rational argument while denying the very capacity that makes rational argument possible

In an intellectually rich discussion on Mind Matters News, neurosurgeon Dr. Michael Egnor and host Dr. Robert J. Marks explore the scientific, philosophical, and theological dimensions of free will, determinism, and the immaterial nature of the soul. The conversation centers around contents of the new book The Immortal Mind by Egnor and Denyse O’Leary. What emerges is a compelling case not only for the reality of free will, but also for the immortality of the human soul, grounded in reason and neuroscience. The self-refuting nature of free will denial The conversation begins with an analogy: If a spilled bottle of ink coincidentally formed the words “It’s going to snow,” no one would believe that message had real meaning. Similarly, Egnor Read More ›

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The image contains various celestial objects and mathematical calculations subtly illustrated on a dark starry background, ideal for space and science enthusiasts.

Michael Egnor on Faith, Reason, and the Architecture of Reality

In this week’s podcast, discussion with Robert J. Marks, he talks about the relationship between arguments from philosophical reasoning and faith
Egnor describes faith as a deep relationship that may not always yield happiness about life circumstances but fosters lasting joy, independent of circumstances. Read More ›
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Creative representation of social media engagement. A red

AI Blackmail & Clickbait:  Give Us Dirty Laundry

Despite all the hype about AI threatening blackmail, here’s what really happened…
Chatbots have been trained on such stories. People forget it’s just a machine and panic because they think of it as a person who really thinks things. Read More ›
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illustration showing a silhouette of a human head surrounded by expressive thought bubbles with various symbols and punctuation marks representing diverse mental processes.

The Mind Beyond the Brain: Insights from a Neurosurgeon

Dr. Michael Egnor argues, “There’s something about the relationship between the mind and the brain that’s not in the textbooks.”
Egnor’s work invites readers to reconsider the mysteries of the mind, urging a more open and curious approach to understanding human consciousness. Read More ›
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Thinking Machine. Clipping path included.

Why the Human Mind Is Not and Cannot Be a Meat Computer

On this week’s podcast, Robert J. Marks and Eric Holloway explain why that claim — sometimes called computationalism — is not even mathematically possible
f minds cannot be reduced to computers, then AI will never replicate human cognition in full. Realizing this fact  will affect how we approach education, governance, and economics. Read More ›
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AI-Driven Creative Content Generation

AI Large Language Models: Real Intelligence or Creative Thievery?

AI lacks originality because it cannot originate. It can only borrow. This is as true of impressive chatbots (large language models or LLMS) as of all other types
The real danger lies not in what AI can do, but in forgetting what only humans can do. Read More ›
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Big ideas. Illuminated light bulb among the rest of the unlit bulbs.

Can Evolutionary Processes Take Credit for Human Creativity?

Does the evolution of brain chemistry simply explain novels, speeches, and innovative ideas?
The genius of the human mind requires an external, intelligent source beyond the material world. Read More ›
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Rainbow over stormy sky. Rural landscape with rainbow over dark stormy sky in a countryside at summer day.

Idealism: Rethinking Reality Through a Divine Lens

Douglas Axe’s defense of idealism as a philosophy in a recent podcast should prompt deep questions: In what sense is the physical world real?
Idealism’s challenging alternative to physicalism and dualism proposes a resolution to metaphysical issues that aligns with quantum mechanics’ peculiarities. Read More ›
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Silhouette of Ancient Greek Galley Ship at Sunset, Majestic Ocean Scene

The Ship of Theseus: The Mystery of Personal Identity

If all your parts are slowly replaced, in what sense are you still you? A Mind Matters podcast discussion explores that
Walter Myers, an engineer and philosopher, sees the human soul as soul is what ultimately grounds human identity in something more than matter. Read More ›
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Shot of Corridor in Working Data Center Full of Rack Servers and Supercomputers with Cloud Storage Advantages Icon Visualisation.

The Cloud: Why It Is More Reliable Than It Sounds At First

Walter Myers III assures us that the data cloud is designed with failure in mind. Encryption and redundancy are backbones of digital storage security
Perhaps the most common myth Myers wants to bust is the idea that someone else can access your data in the cloud. Only you — and those you authorize — can. Read More ›
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Thoughtful female blogger looking away and feeling pondering on ideas for new article at own web page, pensive woman sitting in cafeteria with textbook in hand and thinking about plan for future trip

How a Neurosurgeon Showed That Abstract Thought Is Immaterial

Wilder Penfield, one of the first neurosurgeons to split human brains in half to relieve epilepsy, found much more than a treatment
Of his 55,000 brain stimulations that “activated complex networks,” not one generated abstract thought — implying that it is not a “product” of the brain. Read More ›
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Overhead of colleagues having a marketing meeting in modern office. Above a busy workplace, coworkers brainstorm and develop strategies for a startup business, unity, planning and innovation at work

How to Build an AI Company: Advice from a Seasoned Entrepreneur

In the podcast, Copps emphasized the necessity of remaining flexible and open to change: “Don’t be married to your idea.”
Marks, the podcast host, added an essential perspective on networking, stressing the value of facing fears and engaging with influential figures. Read More ›
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AI developer working on data models, surrounded by data visualizations

Perspectives of a Different Kind of AI Entrepreneur

How can entrepreneurs incorporate the benefits of AI while maintaining their dedication to serving fellow human beings? On this episode of Mind Matters News, host Robert J. Marks welcomes David Copps, a renowned entrepreneur, technologist, and thought leader with over two decades of experience pioneering advancements in artificial intelligence and other emerging technologies. He’s the founder and CEO of a Read More ›

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Artificial intelligence and mind backdrop

The Human Mind’s Sophisticated Algorithm and Its Implications

Winston Ewert argues that if some human cognition is algorithmic, that fact does not necessarily support a purely naturalistic view of intelligence
Ewert also notes that recognizing human cognition as, in part, an algorithm raises deeper questions about the origin and sophistication of that algorithm. Read More ›