4 ms·
It's totally possible: Daniel Dennett's theory of sentient consciousness-- specifically, what we have that animals do not-- is that it is "ignited" by language
by Analemma_ 4y ago
It's totally possible: Daniel Dennett's theory of sentient consciousness-- specifically, what we have that animals do not-- is that it is "ignited" by language acquisition. It's within the realm of possibility that LLMs provide empirical proof or disproof of this hypothesis.
- smith7018 4y agoI always find it outrageously pious to say we have "sentient consciousness" whereas animals don't. Animals have emotions; memories; wants; needs; the ability to use tools; personalities; an understanding of grief; an understanding of cause and effect; and much more. Just because they lack a formal language (that we can understand) doesn't mean they're any less "sentient" or "conscious."
- fnovd 4y agoSentient consciousness, you mean that weird meatbag thinking style? AI consciousness will be so, so much more.
- goatlover 4y agoLLM's don't have any sensory modalities. All of our conscious experiences are built up on either perceptual, proprioceptual or emotional sensations. An LLM generating text of a sunset isn't seeing the colors.
- goatlover 4y agoLLM's don't have any sensory modalities. All of our conscious experiences are built up on either perceptual, proprioceptual or emotional sensations. An LLM generating text of a sunset isn't seeing the colors. Dennett thinks consciousness, in the sense of the hard problem/subjectivity, is some kind of trick of the brain. So he proposes a linguistic trick. Language fools us into thinking there is something more than a functional stream of information.
- grantcas 4y ago[dead]