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Then I assume you're against any tech that would allow brains to be digitized, right?

by nxzero 10y ago

JoshTriplett 10y ago
Not at all; I'm incredibly in favor of doing so, and I would argue that a human mind running in a computer is still unambiguously human. The hard part comes in defining when a computer has reached that point. I'm arguing that we shouldn't develop computer AI that comes anywhere close to needing to answer that question; we don't need that to solve the problems that AI can solve.
- nxzero 10y ago
  Why would it be undesirable for AI to have the capabilities you described, but desirable for a digitized brain to have them?
  - JoshTriplett 10y ago
    > Why would it be undesirable for AI to have the capabilities you described Precisely because of the ethical questions. I want problem-solving AIs to work on all the problems humanity needs solved, starting with "humans die" and then going on to lower-priority problems. I don't want AI to have goals and values of its own, which might potentially diverge from those of humans; I want it to serve humanity's goals and values. We can build a system capable of human-level problem-solving and well beyond, without actually creating a sentient being. If, and that's a big if, we want to create an artificial sentient being, that's a separate problem with its own set of ethical concerns; that seems both more dangerous and far less useful than human-level problem-solving. (In the event we did create such a being, such a being would absolutely need to have the same rights as humans or any other sentient species; I'd just rather avoid having to define and draw such a line, and get distracted by the fight over that, when it'd be far more useful to have machines capable of solving problems.) > but desirable for a digitized brain to have them? I hope the value of preserving human life is self-evident. Humans already have those qualities and many more; I want to see human life last forever, with all its qualities.
    - nxzero 10y ago
      Digitized-humans goals would potientally diverge bio-humans too. For that matter, goals of humanity in general is pretty divergent. Divergence is good, not bad.
      - drdeca 10y ago
        Not all divergence is good. Optimizing for [the elimination of all entities which have an idea of good], would be bad, and would be very different.

Then I assume you're against any tech that would allow brains to be digitized, right?

by nxzero 10y ago

Then I assume you're against any tech that would allow brains to be digitized, right?

Not at all; I'm incredibly in favor of doing so, and I would argue that a human mind running in a computer is still unambiguously human. The hard part comes in defining when a computer has reached that point. I'm arguing that we shouldn't develop computer AI that comes anywhere close to needing to answer that question; we don't need that to solve the problems that AI can solve.

nxzero 10y ago
Why would it be undesirable for AI to have the capabilities you described, but desirable for a digitized brain to have them?
- JoshTriplett 10y ago
  > Why would it be undesirable for AI to have the capabilities you described Precisely because of the ethical questions. I want problem-solving AIs to work on all the problems humanity needs solved, starting with "humans die" and then going on to lower-priority problems. I don't want AI to have goals and values of its own, which might potentially diverge from those of humans; I want it to serve humanity's goals and values. We can build a system capable of human-level problem-solving and well beyond, without actually creating a sentient being. If, and that's a big if, we want to create an artificial sentient being, that's a separate problem with its own set of ethical concerns; that seems both more dangerous and far less useful than human-level problem-solving. (In the event we did create such a being, such a being would absolutely need to have the same rights as humans or any other sentient species; I'd just rather avoid having to define and draw such a line, and get distracted by the fight over that, when it'd be far more useful to have machines capable of solving problems.) > but desirable for a digitized brain to have them? I hope the value of preserving human life is self-evident. Humans already have those qualities and many more; I want to see human life last forever, with all its qualities.
  - nxzero 10y ago
    Digitized-humans goals would potientally diverge bio-humans too. For that matter, goals of humanity in general is pretty divergent. Divergence is good, not bad.
    - drdeca 10y ago
      Not all divergence is good. Optimizing for [the elimination of all entities which have an idea of good], would be bad, and would be very different.