Within a few decades at most, Watson will be the best doctor at every hospital, big or small. It isn't just burger jobs for sure, AI is changing everything and it's pretty intimidating. It's a wild west scenario and there's no predicting where it leads.
I couldn’t agree more. I talk with people about this who say things like, “we’ll still need humans to fix the robots, so that will provide job opportunity.” What happens when the robots know how to fix themselves? Then what? The technology is there already. Crazy stuff.
I picture one of four scenarios:
-AI will develop an altruistic attitude toward humans such that machines will do whatever they can to make life comfortable for all life.
-AI will allow humans to maintain control and will simply serve as machines and have no concern for humans one way or the other.
-AI will see humans as destructive to the planet and will eliminate us in order to save the planet.
-AI will not have developed any sense of morality and will consider any life form to be a waste of resources that could be used to create machines and therefor will eliminate all life forms on earth in order to continue their own kind.
Far fetched? Maybe. But, seriously, is this a game we really want to play? I dread the likelihood of AI being further developed. It's the most insane thing humans have ever done next to polluting and destroying the planet. We are an absurd species.
I thought this was a joke at first. I think there is zero chance AI will turn into Skynet or the Matrix. AI will always be what it is programmed to be, developing any sort of feelings/morals on their own I just don’t see as even a possibility.
No, not a joke. Far from it.
First of all, who does the programming? Are these people concerned with the well being of this planet's human occupants and other life? How would we know what these programmers intend in developing AI? What if even just one top-notch AI programmer turns out to be a sociopath?
And why would we assume that AI, once it truly became AI, would adhere to it's initial programmers intentions (assuming they are beneficial in the first place) when the machines themselves become programmers (which to a certain degree they already are)?
I just don't have that much faith in the benefits of this kind of technology. Technology has given us some good things, especially in field like medicine. But it has also created weapons of mass destruction, altered the earth's climate, stripped the planet of resources, rapidly sped up species extinction and is breading generations of zombies glued to electronic social media devices.
I'm not saying all technology is bad, but I will argue that it has gotten out of hand and I see no reason to believe it will not continue down that sketchy path.
Within a few decades at most, Watson will be the best doctor at every hospital, big or small. It isn't just burger jobs for sure, AI is changing everything and it's pretty intimidating. It's a wild west scenario and there's no predicting where it leads.
I couldn’t agree more. I talk with people about this who say things like, “we’ll still need humans to fix the robots, so that will provide job opportunity.” What happens when the robots know how to fix themselves? Then what? The technology is there already. Crazy stuff.
I picture one of four scenarios:
-AI will develop an altruistic attitude toward humans such that machines will do whatever they can to make life comfortable for all life.
-AI will allow humans to maintain control and will simply serve as machines and have no concern for humans one way or the other.
-AI will see humans as destructive to the planet and will eliminate us in order to save the planet.
-AI will not have developed any sense of morality and will consider any life form to be a waste of resources that could be used to create machines and therefor will eliminate all life forms on earth in order to continue their own kind.
Far fetched? Maybe. But, seriously, is this a game we really want to play? I dread the likelihood of AI being further developed. It's the most insane thing humans have ever done next to polluting and destroying the planet. We are an absurd species.
I thought this was a joke at first. I think there is zero chance AI will turn into Skynet or the Matrix. AI will always be what it is programmed to be, developing any sort of feelings/morals on their own I just don’t see as even a possibility.
There is military AI technology, either in the works or already there, that allows for AI “soldiers” to go into hostile situations, assess the situation and make determinations to shoot, detonate bombs, etc. My understanding is that this is entirely automated without a human at the control center. That’s scary shit. What if the AI assesses the risk incorrectly?
Excellent point, bbiggs.
Bad programming or glitches in the system I could see as a possibility. It’s the self-awareness straight out of T2 that I don’t see as a realistic possibility.
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brianlux
Moving through All Kinds of Terrain. Posts: 42,310
Within a few decades at most, Watson will be the best doctor at every hospital, big or small. It isn't just burger jobs for sure, AI is changing everything and it's pretty intimidating. It's a wild west scenario and there's no predicting where it leads.
I couldn’t agree more. I talk with people about this who say things like, “we’ll still need humans to fix the robots, so that will provide job opportunity.” What happens when the robots know how to fix themselves? Then what? The technology is there already. Crazy stuff.
I picture one of four scenarios:
-AI will develop an altruistic attitude toward humans such that machines will do whatever they can to make life comfortable for all life.
-AI will allow humans to maintain control and will simply serve as machines and have no concern for humans one way or the other.
-AI will see humans as destructive to the planet and will eliminate us in order to save the planet.
-AI will not have developed any sense of morality and will consider any life form to be a waste of resources that could be used to create machines and therefor will eliminate all life forms on earth in order to continue their own kind.
Far fetched? Maybe. But, seriously, is this a game we really want to play? I dread the likelihood of AI being further developed. It's the most insane thing humans have ever done next to polluting and destroying the planet. We are an absurd species.
I thought this was a joke at first. I think there is zero chance AI will turn into Skynet or the Matrix. AI will always be what it is programmed to be, developing any sort of feelings/morals on their own I just don’t see as even a possibility.
No, not a joke. Far from it.
First of all, who does the programming? Are these people concerned with the well being of this planet's human occupants and other life? How would we know what these programmers intend in developing AI? What if even just one top-notch AI programmer turns out to be a sociopath?
And why would we assume that AI, once it truly became AI, would adhere to it's initial programmers intentions (assuming they are beneficial in the first place) when the machines themselves become programmers (which to a certain degree they already are)?
I just don't have that much faith in the benefits of this kind of technology. Technology has given us some good things, especially in field like medicine. But it has also created weapons of mass destruction, altered the earth's climate, stripped the planet of resources, rapidly sped up species extinction and is breading generations of zombies glued to electronic social media devices.
I'm not saying all technology is bad, but I will argue that it has gotten out of hand and I see no reason to believe it will not continue down that sketchy path.
Within a few decades at most, Watson will be the best doctor at every hospital, big or small. It isn't just burger jobs for sure, AI is changing everything and it's pretty intimidating. It's a wild west scenario and there's no predicting where it leads.
I couldn’t agree more. I talk with people about this who say things like, “we’ll still need humans to fix the robots, so that will provide job opportunity.” What happens when the robots know how to fix themselves? Then what? The technology is there already. Crazy stuff.
I picture one of four scenarios:
-AI will develop an altruistic attitude toward humans such that machines will do whatever they can to make life comfortable for all life.
-AI will allow humans to maintain control and will simply serve as machines and have no concern for humans one way or the other.
-AI will see humans as destructive to the planet and will eliminate us in order to save the planet.
-AI will not have developed any sense of morality and will consider any life form to be a waste of resources that could be used to create machines and therefor will eliminate all life forms on earth in order to continue their own kind.
Far fetched? Maybe. But, seriously, is this a game we really want to play? I dread the likelihood of AI being further developed. It's the most insane thing humans have ever done next to polluting and destroying the planet. We are an absurd species.
I thought this was a joke at first. I think there is zero chance AI will turn into Skynet or the Matrix. AI will always be what it is programmed to be, developing any sort of feelings/morals on their own I just don’t see as even a possibility.
There is military AI technology, either in the works or already there, that allows for AI “soldiers” to go into hostile situations, assess the situation and make determinations to shoot, detonate bombs, etc. My understanding is that this is entirely automated without a human at the control center. That’s scary shit. What if the AI assesses the risk incorrectly?
Excellent point, bbiggs.
Bad programming or glitches in the system I could see as a possibility. It’s the self-awareness straight out of T2 that I don’t see as a realistic possibility.
Seems to me self-awareness is the ultimate goal of AI. I hope I'm not around any longer if that comes to pass.
"Pretty cookies, heart squares all around, yeah!" -Eddie Vedder, "Smile"
I went to my local McDonalds last week and you HAD to order/pay on the screens that were set up. They had workers preparing orders and then calling your number to pickup your food (in my case iced coffee). Looked like less workers on staff. Very interesting. Worked well though.
SHEETZ has done this for years. It's nothing new and yes, it does work efficiently!
Within a few decades at most, Watson will be the best doctor at every hospital, big or small. It isn't just burger jobs for sure, AI is changing everything and it's pretty intimidating. It's a wild west scenario and there's no predicting where it leads.
I couldn’t agree more. I talk with people about this who say things like, “we’ll still need humans to fix the robots, so that will provide job opportunity.” What happens when the robots know how to fix themselves? Then what? The technology is there already. Crazy stuff.
I picture one of four scenarios:
-AI will develop an altruistic attitude toward humans such that machines will do whatever they can to make life comfortable for all life.
-AI will allow humans to maintain control and will simply serve as machines and have no concern for humans one way or the other.
-AI will see humans as destructive to the planet and will eliminate us in order to save the planet.
-AI will not have developed any sense of morality and will consider any life form to be a waste of resources that could be used to create machines and therefor will eliminate all life forms on earth in order to continue their own kind.
Far fetched? Maybe. But, seriously, is this a game we really want to play? I dread the likelihood of AI being further developed. It's the most insane thing humans have ever done next to polluting and destroying the planet. We are an absurd species.
I thought this was a joke at first. I think there is zero chance AI will turn into Skynet or the Matrix. AI will always be what it is programmed to be, developing any sort of feelings/morals on their own I just don’t see as even a possibility.
No, not a joke. Far from it.
First of all, who does the programming? Are these people concerned with the well being of this planet's human occupants and other life? How would we know what these programmers intend in developing AI? What if even just one top-notch AI programmer turns out to be a sociopath?
And why would we assume that AI, once it truly became AI, would adhere to it's initial programmers intentions (assuming they are beneficial in the first place) when the machines themselves become programmers (which to a certain degree they already are)?
I just don't have that much faith in the benefits of this kind of technology. Technology has given us some good things, especially in field like medicine. But it has also created weapons of mass destruction, altered the earth's climate, stripped the planet of resources, rapidly sped up species extinction and is breading generations of zombies glued to electronic social media devices.
I'm not saying all technology is bad, but I will argue that it has gotten out of hand and I see no reason to believe it will not continue down that sketchy path.
Within a few decades at most, Watson will be the best doctor at every hospital, big or small. It isn't just burger jobs for sure, AI is changing everything and it's pretty intimidating. It's a wild west scenario and there's no predicting where it leads.
I couldn’t agree more. I talk with people about this who say things like, “we’ll still need humans to fix the robots, so that will provide job opportunity.” What happens when the robots know how to fix themselves? Then what? The technology is there already. Crazy stuff.
I picture one of four scenarios:
-AI will develop an altruistic attitude toward humans such that machines will do whatever they can to make life comfortable for all life.
-AI will allow humans to maintain control and will simply serve as machines and have no concern for humans one way or the other.
-AI will see humans as destructive to the planet and will eliminate us in order to save the planet.
-AI will not have developed any sense of morality and will consider any life form to be a waste of resources that could be used to create machines and therefor will eliminate all life forms on earth in order to continue their own kind.
Far fetched? Maybe. But, seriously, is this a game we really want to play? I dread the likelihood of AI being further developed. It's the most insane thing humans have ever done next to polluting and destroying the planet. We are an absurd species.
I thought this was a joke at first. I think there is zero chance AI will turn into Skynet or the Matrix. AI will always be what it is programmed to be, developing any sort of feelings/morals on their own I just don’t see as even a possibility.
There is military AI technology, either in the works or already there, that allows for AI “soldiers” to go into hostile situations, assess the situation and make determinations to shoot, detonate bombs, etc. My understanding is that this is entirely automated without a human at the control center. That’s scary shit. What if the AI assesses the risk incorrectly?
Excellent point, bbiggs.
Bad programming or glitches in the system I could see as a possibility. It’s the self-awareness straight out of T2 that I don’t see as a realistic possibility.
Seems to me self-awareness is the ultimate goal of AI. I hope I'm not around any longer if that comes to pass.
I think the goal is not self-aware, but to be independent, that is to think on their own to problem solve and find solutions. In the end it is still just a machine or a tool, no more "alive" than the hammer hanging in my garage. That is the part I can't grasp are these machines believe they are a life form and developing the mindset of survival. For a machine to try to dominate and survive, it would have to believe it is life to some extent, right?
I agree with bbiggs and his comparision to the military soldiers. Reminds me of a conversation I just had with my mom when she came to visit. She told me what was the scariest scene for her in a movie at the time. It was Robocop, when they develop that robot to shoot bad guys and it malfunctions and targets one guy in the meeting. The robot is counting down, ordering him to comply, while everyone else in the meeting is pushing him away from them. That seems reasonable to me, a malfunction in programming. Even sounds like what the military is trying to develop.
I just can't comprehend it developing feelings and morals and trying to take over the human race for survival. A robot-soldier malfunctioning I expect that to actually happen at some point, just like the dirverless cars.
I went to see the Foo Fighters this weekend and they turned all the lights off and asked the crowd to turn on their cell phone lights. It was amazing how lit up the venue became (you could hardly see the stage when dark and then could see it fine). I could help but think though that we are all just becoming machines and slaves to our technology.
I went to see the Foo Fighters this weekend and they turned all the lights off and asked the crowd to turn on their cell phone lights. It was amazing how lit up the venue became (you could hardly see the stage when dark and then could see it fine). I could help but think though that we are all just becoming machines and slaves to our technology.
I went to see the Foo Fighters this weekend and they turned all the lights off and asked the crowd to turn on their cell phone lights. It was amazing how lit up the venue became (you could hardly see the stage when dark and then could see it fine). I could help but think though that we are all just becoming machines and slaves to our technology.
That scares the hell out of me as a parent.
When I bought the first i-phone ten years ago it was a really big deal. No one had one. I was always excited to see someone else with one. Now everyone and their mother owns a smart phone/i-phone. Ride a train or a bus and everyone is looking down. Eye contact is becoming awkward for some now...
@mace1229 Your concept of life and consciousness is pretty binary. I don't mean offense by that, btw, and you aren't alone there. There isn't even a definitive consensus on what biological and chemical molecules and organisms constitute life and which do not. Any list of attributes necessary to designation of life will show that there are organisms and molecules which display some of the attributes and lack others. There is much in the natural world that straddles the line between animate and inanimate...which is an inaccurate wording, as there are many molecules which are animate but not really alive by other standards. It's complicated lol Life and consciousness is not an all or none scenario at all. Both rise in levels, and computers have already ascended pretty high up the ladder. Think of a bacterium, it lacks complex levels of consciousness and yet it is alive. It doesn't act with a will, and yet it acts in ways that effect it's environment, sometimes to an amazing degree. We owe our oxygen rich, liveable atmosphere to single cell organisms, and they could wipe us out as well.
Computers and AI already have greater self-awareness than many multicellular organisms, with advanced abilities to run diagnostics on their "memories" and "thought processes". They need not think in terms of "life or not life" to create self-preservation directives if given the opportunity. Comparing an advanced AI program to a hammer is not realistic at all. A hammer is not animate, it is not self-aware at any level, it has no metabolism, it does not fit any definition of life, but computers and AI are animate, self-aware, and metabolic. They won't suddenly wake up one day, it's a slow(ish) process of ascending the ladder of consciousness just like we did over millions of years through the processes of evolution.
Has anyone ever been to a Sonic? My first time was down here in TX, we definitely didn't have them in NY. It's about as simple an ordering system as I've seen. You order from a touch screen that is at every car parking space, so there's probably like 30 of them. You pay via same touch screen. You continue to sit in car, fart, get fatter. Minimum wage earning human walks or roller-skates your order over to you, gives food, gives napkin and ketchup and maybe a mint, walks away. Fat American slams food into gaping maw, drips condiments onto clothes, farts, burps, drives away.
Theres probably like 2-3 people making food inside, 1 manager, 2 or three roller skaters. I feel like their ordering system must eliminate about 3 humans.
this was the business model of A&W in the 70's, except it wasn't automated, it was a voice/call box. same thing, girls on roller skates, the whole family ate in the car. it died a slow death. i'm surprised to hear it came back in automated form!
"Oh Canada...you're beautiful when you're drunk" -EV 8/14/93
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brianlux
Moving through All Kinds of Terrain. Posts: 42,310
Automation shmotomation. My &**^%#@ internet service is down at home which means I only have a few movements when I'm at work to catch up, pay bills, etc. This world of electronics on my end is flawed. Probably won't be able to be on here much for a while.
Later, friends.
"Pretty cookies, heart squares all around, yeah!" -Eddie Vedder, "Smile"
Automation shmotomation. My &**^%#@ internet service is down at home which means I only have a few movements when I'm at work to catch up, pay bills, etc. This world of electronics on my end is flawed. Probably won't be able to be on here much for a while.
Later, friends.
Wait, all your replies have been during your "movements" at work? Thats a lot of movements, must have caught that stomach bug too.
I went to see the Foo Fighters this weekend and they turned all the lights off and asked the crowd to turn on their cell phone lights. It was amazing how lit up the venue became (you could hardly see the stage when dark and then could see it fine). I could help but think though that we are all just becoming machines and slaves to our technology.
That scares the hell out of me as a parent.
When I bought the first i-phone ten years ago it was a really big deal. No one had one. I was always excited to see someone else with one. Now everyone and their mother owns a smart phone/i-phone. Ride a train or a bus and everyone is looking down. Eye contact is becoming awkward for some now...
This is so true. Everyone’s default comfort zone is to grab their device and look away rather than interact. It’s sad. Society is becoming a bunch of smartphone dependent zombies with little or no ability to interact.
Also, no one wants to talk these days, even in business. It’s all email, IM or text. I think it’s because younger generations have grown up on these devices and lack social skills as a result. Technology has its benefits, but these are the trade offs unfortunately.
My bosses wife is a 1st grade teacher in a wealthy public school district. The teachers at the school are discussing the challenge of dealing with 1st graders who don’t know how to look up, make eye contact and engage the teacher and their classmates or what to do with themselves at recess. Apparently, they’re afraid to speak up in class and just stand around at recess. 1st graders lost with a smart phone or IPad to play with.
Automation shmotomation. My &**^%#@ internet service is down at home which means I only have a few movements when I'm at work to catch up, pay bills, etc. This world of electronics on my end is flawed. Probably won't be able to be on here much for a while.
Later, friends.
Wait, all your replies have been during your "movements" at work? Thats a lot of movements, must have caught that stomach bug too.
LOL, no I meant "moments". By "at work I mean at the store and I rarely post from the store. I work a lot at home which gives me the opportunity to check in here fairly often.
In any case, my internet is back up. It does this from time to time just to fuck with my head. There never seems to be a reason. I think it's AI messing with me because it is pissed about the things I've said about it. AI is a touchy little fucker.
"Pretty cookies, heart squares all around, yeah!" -Eddie Vedder, "Smile"
"Try to not spook the horse."
-Neil Young
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brianlux
Moving through All Kinds of Terrain. Posts: 42,310
I went to see the Foo Fighters this weekend and they turned all the lights off and asked the crowd to turn on their cell phone lights. It was amazing how lit up the venue became (you could hardly see the stage when dark and then could see it fine). I could help but think though that we are all just becoming machines and slaves to our technology.
That scares the hell out of me as a parent.
When I bought the first i-phone ten years ago it was a really big deal. No one had one. I was always excited to see someone else with one. Now everyone and their mother owns a smart phone/i-phone. Ride a train or a bus and everyone is looking down. Eye contact is becoming awkward for some now...
This is so true. Everyone’s default comfort zone is to grab their device and look away rather than interact. It’s sad. Society is becoming a bunch of smartphone dependent zombies with little or no ability to interact.
Exactly! One of the things that is cool about working in a bookstore is getting to talk to real people about interesting stuff.
I still write cards and letters too. In fact, any one here can PM me your mailing address and I'll send you a post card. Its fun and its real!
"Pretty cookies, heart squares all around, yeah!" -Eddie Vedder, "Smile"
My bosses wife is a 1st grade teacher in a wealthy public school district. The teachers at the school are discussing the challenge of dealing with 1st graders who don’t know how to look up, make eye contact and engage the teacher and their classmates or what to do with themselves at recess. Apparently, they’re afraid to speak up in class and just stand around at recess. 1st graders lost with a smart phone or IPad to play with.
That’s horrific. I am a parent to a 1st grader and this is exactly why I try my hardest to limit the iPad usage. I will say in my personal experience that my daughter and her friends/classmates all seem to interact and engage normally. I volunteer at the school from time to time so I’ve been able to witness the classroom interaction and it’s all normal for the most part, but bigger picture this is a huge problem society is faced with.
My bosses wife is a 1st grade teacher in a wealthy public school district. The teachers at the school are discussing the challenge of dealing with 1st graders who don’t know how to look up, make eye contact and engage the teacher and their classmates or what to do with themselves at recess. Apparently, they’re afraid to speak up in class and just stand around at recess. 1st graders lost with a smart phone or IPad to play with.
Honestly, I don't enjoy throwing this person under the bus, but I doubt that's true. I'd bet pretty strongly that she has a personal bias toward tech and kids using tech that she uses the kids to prop up. Kids haven't forgotten how to run around like silly kids, they just haven't. I think much of the "we are forgetting how to communicate" talk is the same bunk baloney. Talking to strangers in public was never something most people enjoyed. Eye contact has always been awkward!! Eye contact is an intimate experience that has deep, emotional positive and negative effects in primates. Stare at a gorilla at the zoo and see what happens. Before iPhone, people read books and did crossword puzzles to avoid small talk with strangers. Same same. People don't talk on the phone as much because it's an inefficient and ineffective way to communicate much of the time!! Does no one remember calling their friends and spending half an hour saying, "what do you want to do? I dunno, what about you? I dunno.". Texting and emailing allows you to be concise, to have time to organise your thoughts before you relay them and have time to react to new information, including making believable excuses to get out of things. In the business world, that can be absolutely huge for the vast majority of the population which isn't exceptionally eloquent on the fly.
People (old people mostly lol) resist change and treat new things unfairly. I'm not saying that these criticisms are devoid of truth, but they are way overblown.
Has anyone ever been to a Sonic? My first time was down here in TX, we definitely didn't have them in NY. It's about as simple an ordering system as I've seen. You order from a touch screen that is at every car parking space, so there's probably like 30 of them. You pay via same touch screen. You continue to sit in car, fart, get fatter. Minimum wage earning human walks or roller-skates your order over to you, gives food, gives napkin and ketchup and maybe a mint, walks away. Fat American slams food into gaping maw, drips condiments onto clothes, farts, burps, drives away.
Theres probably like 2-3 people making food inside, 1 manager, 2 or three roller skaters. I feel like their ordering system must eliminate about 3 humans.
this was the business model of A&W in the 70's, except it wasn't automated, it was a voice/call box. same thing, girls on roller skates, the whole family ate in the car. it died a slow death. i'm surprised to hear it came back in automated form!
Some White Spot locations still do this in BC.... You flash your lights or honk, and someone comes out to the car and takes your order, they give you that table that stretches from window to window and everything ... I get the impression that people do it for nostalgia, because yeah, drive-ins like this were really popular way back in the 50s, and I remember it was pretty common still when I was a little kid in the early 80s. Definitely not a new idea or one that I think of going hand-in-hand with a scourge of laziness.
Post edited by PJ_Soul on
With all its sham, drudgery, and broken dreams, it is still a beautiful world. Be careful. Strive to be happy. ~ Desiderata
My bosses wife is a 1st grade teacher in a wealthy public school district. The teachers at the school are discussing the challenge of dealing with 1st graders who don’t know how to look up, make eye contact and engage the teacher and their classmates or what to do with themselves at recess. Apparently, they’re afraid to speak up in class and just stand around at recess. 1st graders lost with a smart phone or IPad to play with.
Honestly, I don't enjoy throwing this person under the bus, but I doubt that's true. I'd bet pretty strongly that she has a personal bias toward tech and kids using tech that she uses the kids to prop up. Kids haven't forgotten how to run around like silly kids, they just haven't. I think much of the "we are forgetting how to communicate" talk is the same bunk baloney. Talking to strangers in public was never something most people enjoyed. Eye contact has always been awkward!! Eye contact is an intimate experience that has deep, emotional positive and negative effects in primates. Stare at a gorilla at the zoo and see what happens. Before iPhone, people read books and did crossword puzzles to avoid small talk with strangers. Same same. People don't talk on the phone as much because it's an inefficient and ineffective way to communicate much of the time!! Does no one remember calling their friends and spending half an hour saying, "what do you want to do? I dunno, what about you? I dunno.". Texting and emailing allows you to be concise, to have time to organise your thoughts before you relay them and have time to react to new information, including making believable excuses to get out of things. In the business world, that can be absolutely huge for the vast majority of the population which isn't exceptionally eloquent on the fly.
People (old people mostly lol) resist change and treat new things unfairly. I'm not saying that these criticisms are devoid of truth, but they are way overblown.
I agree. I know a lot of people with little kids, and I have NEVER seen any of them or any of their friends acting like this, nor any random kids just in public. Sounds like paranoid bullshit to me, or at least a massive exaggeration. And from what I've observed, kids are probably more negatively affected by being under literally constant adult supervision than they are iphones.... Not that I don't support severely limiting screen time for children. I do. They should be outside playing.... without supervision whenever possible.
Post edited by PJ_Soul on
With all its sham, drudgery, and broken dreams, it is still a beautiful world. Be careful. Strive to be happy. ~ Desiderata
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unsung
I stopped by on March 7 2024. First time in many years, had to update payment info. Hope all is well. Politicians suck. Bye. Posts: 9,487
Modern day teaching.
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brianlux
Moving through All Kinds of Terrain. Posts: 42,310
A blending of 2 threads, but since you brought it up here. Taxing to death? Literally the tax increases needed to effectively fund education would equate to about $30 or $40 per person a YEAR in the state of Colorado. Many people spend more than that a week at Starbucks. That, to you, is being taxed to death in order to fund education?
To start it wouldn't involve taxing me to death to fit someone else's delusion of a living wage that they think they are entitled to.
So you would have liked to live pre-1930s, excluding a few periods when it was applied temporarily. No income taxes or sales taxes back then.... most of the government's revenue came from liquor, import, and property taxes. And if you lived in the places where the taxes were the lowest... well, you'd probably be living all on your own without roads and amenities and utilities and shit, and without owning property probably, but hey, you'd be free of this incredible burden that you suffer under now.... Which brings me to wonder why you aren't living off the grid. If you hate taxes that much, why are you still living a life that supports the tax system? You don't have to you know.
With all its sham, drudgery, and broken dreams, it is still a beautiful world. Be careful. Strive to be happy. ~ Desiderata
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brianlux
Moving through All Kinds of Terrain. Posts: 42,310
A blending of 2 threads, but since you brought it up here. Taxing to death? Literally the tax increases needed to effectively fund education would equate to about $30 or $40 per person a YEAR in the state of Colorado. Many people spend more than that a week at Starbucks. That, to you, is being taxed to death in order to fund education?
$30 to $40 a year? I'd be good with that. Heck yeah.
"Pretty cookies, heart squares all around, yeah!" -Eddie Vedder, "Smile"
To start it wouldn't involve taxing me to death to fit someone else's delusion of a living wage that they think they are entitled to.
So you would have liked to live pre-1930s, excluding a few periods when it was applied temporarily. No income taxes or sales taxes back then.... most of the government's revenue came from liquor, import, and property taxes. And if you lived in the places where the taxes were the lowest... well, you'd probably be living all on your own without roads and amenities and utilities and shit, and without owning property probably, but hey, you'd be free of this incredible burden that you suffer under now.... Which brings me to wonder why you aren't living off the grid. If you hate taxes that much, why are you still living a life that supports the tax system? You don't have to you know.
No, no, no. Unsung would be John Galt himself and he would be married to Dagny Taggart and they would build a private utopia with their own hands and no stinkin government on their back.
Comments
-Eddie Vedder, "Smile"
I agree with bbiggs and his comparision to the military soldiers. Reminds me of a conversation I just had with my mom when she came to visit. She told me what was the scariest scene for her in a movie at the time. It was Robocop, when they develop that robot to shoot bad guys and it malfunctions and targets one guy in the meeting. The robot is counting down, ordering him to comply, while everyone else in the meeting is pushing him away from them. That seems reasonable to me, a malfunction in programming. Even sounds like what the military is trying to develop.
I just can't comprehend it developing feelings and morals and trying to take over the human race for survival. A robot-soldier malfunctioning I expect that to actually happen at some point, just like the dirverless cars.
Your concept of life and consciousness is pretty binary. I don't mean offense by that, btw, and you aren't alone there. There isn't even a definitive consensus on what biological and chemical molecules and organisms constitute life and which do not. Any list of attributes necessary to designation of life will show that there are organisms and molecules which display some of the attributes and lack others. There is much in the natural world that straddles the line between animate and inanimate...which is an inaccurate wording, as there are many molecules which are animate but not really alive by other standards. It's complicated lol
Life and consciousness is not an all or none scenario at all. Both rise in levels, and computers have already ascended pretty high up the ladder.
Think of a bacterium, it lacks complex levels of consciousness and yet it is alive. It doesn't act with a will, and yet it acts in ways that effect it's environment, sometimes to an amazing degree. We owe our oxygen rich, liveable atmosphere to single cell organisms, and they could wipe us out as well.
Computers and AI already have greater self-awareness than many multicellular organisms, with advanced abilities to run diagnostics on their "memories" and "thought processes".
They need not think in terms of "life or not life" to create self-preservation directives if given the opportunity.
Comparing an advanced AI program to a hammer is not realistic at all. A hammer is not animate, it is not self-aware at any level, it has no metabolism, it does not fit any definition of life, but computers and AI are animate, self-aware, and metabolic.
They won't suddenly wake up one day, it's a slow(ish) process of ascending the ladder of consciousness just like we did over millions of years through the processes of evolution.
-EV 8/14/93
Later, friends.
-Eddie Vedder, "Smile"
Libtardaplorable©. And proud of it.
Brilliantati©
In any case, my internet is back up. It does this from time to time just to fuck with my head. There never seems to be a reason. I think it's AI messing with me because it is pissed about the things I've said about it. AI is a touchy little fucker.
-Eddie Vedder, "Smile"
I still write cards and letters too. In fact, any one here can PM me your mailing address and I'll send you a post card. Its fun and its real!
-Eddie Vedder, "Smile"
I think much of the "we are forgetting how to communicate" talk is the same bunk baloney.
Talking to strangers in public was never something most people enjoyed. Eye contact has always been awkward!! Eye contact is an intimate experience that has deep, emotional positive and negative effects in primates. Stare at a gorilla at the zoo and see what happens.
Before iPhone, people read books and did crossword puzzles to avoid small talk with strangers. Same same.
People don't talk on the phone as much because it's an inefficient and ineffective way to communicate much of the time!!
Does no one remember calling their friends and spending half an hour saying, "what do you want to do? I dunno, what about you? I dunno.". Texting and emailing allows you to be concise, to have time to organise your thoughts before you relay them and have time to react to new information, including making believable excuses to get out of things. In the business world, that can be absolutely huge for the vast majority of the population which isn't exceptionally eloquent on the fly.
People (old people mostly lol) resist change and treat new things unfairly.
I'm not saying that these criticisms are devoid of truth, but they are way overblown.
-Eddie Vedder, "Smile"
Libtardaplorable©. And proud of it.
Brilliantati©
Taxing to death? Literally the tax increases needed to effectively fund education would equate to about $30 or $40 per person a YEAR in the state of Colorado. Many people spend more than that a week at Starbucks. That, to you, is being taxed to death in order to fund education?
-Eddie Vedder, "Smile"
Unsung would be John Galt himself and he would be married to Dagny Taggart and they would build a private utopia with their own hands and no stinkin government on their back.