If you would like to find out more about recent discussions on creating an
open source seed AI and the public reaction to the Singularity and how the
SIAI should handle the media see the recent archives of the SL4 mailing list.
http://sysopmind.com/archive-sl4/current/
Hope that helps,
Paul
PS-apologies if you are already a member. Couldn't find any recent postings
by you.
Adrian Tymes wrote:
>[snip]
>Eliezer: having built complex systems myself, I say that putting all
>the information out for anyone to see - including notes sufficiently
>detailed for someone other than yourself to actually build the system -
>is a practical prerequisite to actually building what you propose.
>Granted, in theory one could do it by oneself. In practice, that leads
>to practically infinite development times for complex projects, i.e.
>the job does not ever get finished. On the other hand, putting the
>information up and letting others work on it will lead to faster
>completion - even if (as sometimes happens) putting your thoughts
>together enough that you can honestly say others can write from it,
>forces you to put your thoughts together enough that *you* can write
>from it, whereas keeping it all in your own head allows the
>self-deception that you have it organized enough. (I have been guilty
>of this myself, in some of my earlier works that are now so thoroughly
>abandoned there's not even anything to point to.) Even if you only
>have partially complete notes, put them up - that way other people, and
>yourself, can *far* more easily see exactly what is missing, which is
>necessary to fill in the gaps. (As an example, consider the purpose of
>things like Sourceforge. Or, if you want something from my own past,
>consider the plasma engine calculator I posted here: there were flaws
>in my calculations - creds to anyone who wishes to go back in the
>archives and check, check the power-to-heat equation first - but I did
>not see them until I'd posted it; even though, as it turned out, no one
>else found the error, or at least found it and told me about it.)
>
>Sorry if this comes across as a flame; it is not meant that way. Your
>system has promise, but I would like to see it made into reality
>instead of being forever a dream. Keeping the development
>specifications (as opposed to the grand plan) to yourself is highly
>unlikely to make the system real. This is more important now that you
>have this level of publicity; you may get contacts over the next few
>days that, if given *all* the details you have *quickly* (not delayed
>for weeks), may be able to make it real - and might well be the only
>shot your project will get at reality within the next several years.
>
>Let me emphasize that last point: how you handle the sudden interest in
>your project could, by itself, potentially make the difference between
>a Singularity around 2005-2010 with Friendly AI, and a Singularity
>around 2030 or later with unFriendly AI. (This is the type of thing
>the ads a few years ago meant by "the power of one".) Granted, that's
>just potential - single digit, at best, percent chances either way -
>but it ain't zero chance, given what you've got already. (Though I
>must admit the chances against are higher than the chances for, I can
>still hope for the best.)
Like computer viruses, successful mind viruses will tend to be hard for
their victims to detect. If you are the victim of one, the chances are that
you won't know it, and may even vigorously deny it. Richard Dawkins
This archive was generated by hypermail 2b30 : Mon May 28 2001 - 09:59:47 MDT