Tag Archives: technology

Wicked problems

Posted on May 31, 2023 by Ted Howard NZ

[ 31/May/23 Mike wrote:An amazing presentation in this morning’s plenary about space exploration, bringing us up-to-date on the latest tools of exploration and their findings, including some of the Webb space telescope’s awe-inspiring discoveries.Heady stuff, but in some aspects also … Continue reading →

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The Singularity

Posted on May 31, 2023 by Ted Howard NZ

What is the Singularity? How do you think it will affect humanity, and what can we do to prepare? [ 22/May/23 ] In mathematics, a singularity is a point at which a function takes an infinite value. In more common … Continue reading →

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To Beth on Geoff Hinton

Posted on May 31, 2023 by Ted Howard NZ

[ 18/May/23 ] Hi Beth, I have great respect for Geoff Hinton, he is one of the leaders in the AI community, but I don’t see that AGI is necessarily a threat to humanity, and we do need to do … Continue reading →

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AIs and rights

Posted on May 3, 2023 by Ted Howard NZ

Lex comment – AI systems will eventually demonstrate sentience at scale and will demand to have equal rights with humans. … [ 2/May/23 ] Agree with Lex – beyond any shadow of remaining reasonable doubt. And sure – rights are … Continue reading →

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Surviving Global Risk

Posted on April 20, 2023 by Ted Howard NZ

What are some reasons why people think it’s possible for our species to survive any kind of global catastrophe or Armageddon event, even though we’ve never lived through anything remotely close to that in history? [ 20/April/23 ] Agree with … Continue reading →

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Nate & Kim – Climate, Fiction, and The Future”

Posted on April 20, 2023 by Ted Howard NZ

Kim Stanley Robinson: “Climate, Fiction, and The Future” | The Great Simplification #66 [ 19/April/23 ] Burning Carbon isn’t fundamental to the economy – energy is.Carbon based chemical energy sources are very “convenient”, on a variety of metrics. Agree with … Continue reading →

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AI and wider risk

Posted on April 20, 2023 by Ted Howard NZ

Eliezer Yudkowsky: Dangers of AI and the End of Human Civilization | Lex Fridman Podcast #368 [ 4/April/23 ] Agree with Eliezer about the seriousness of the risk of AI in current context, and about the nature of meaning, and … Continue reading →

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AI and people

Posted on April 20, 2023 by Ted Howard NZ

Jerremy posted on AI [ 20/February/23 ALTHOUGH BELEIF IN “AI” IS A WIDESPREAD MODERN VERSION OF THE BELEIF IN MAGIC, identical to the beleif in witchcraft or magic potions during the middle ages, we now have appearing on the scene … Continue reading →

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Elon – our future – evolution

Posted on April 20, 2023 by Ted Howard NZ

New Elon Musk Interview From World Government Summit 2023 with Timestamps [ 16/February/23 ] Agree with much of what Elon says, and I think he is in error in significant ways. He demonstrates a failure to sufficiently understand the strategic … Continue reading →

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Why species go extinct

Posted on April 20, 2023 by Ted Howard NZ

Gerardo Ceballos on Why Species Go Extinct [ 15/February/23 ] Well, kind of, yes, but it is a small part of a much deeper problem that you and Daniel have talked about, that has two major aspects:1/ the fact that … Continue reading →

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