Re: Matrix Shmatrix

Eliezer S. Yudkowsky (sentience@pobox.com)
Fri, 09 Apr 1999 19:12:01 -0500

Robin Hanson wrote:
>
> SPOILER WARNING: DON'T READ FURTHER IF YOU DON'T WANT TO KNOW!
>
> On the negative side, humans cloud the skys to take solar energy
> away from AIs, who then grow humans as energy sources, putting
> them in a virtual reality to distract them from being eaten?!
> Special humans born with an ability to hack the AI's operating
> system better than the AIs?! AIs who have to run and chase
> things in their virtual reality rather than just deleting the
> relevant files?! AIs too stupid to out guess spunky humans
> or to find the hidden human "city" on an Earth run by AIs?
> A fight for human freedom lead by an all-knowing "oracle" who
> gives orders and explains little? Pleeaase.

Yeah, well, do you see me complaining about how the AIs got a black eye? Actually, I think all these plot holes could be reasonably explained away in a sequel. All you really need is the hypothesis that the AIs are insane, which also allows the introduction of a "sane AI" as a good guy, perhaps undoing any ills caused by the "black eye" given to Our Future Pals in the first movie.

-- 
        sentience@pobox.com          Eliezer S. Yudkowsky
         http://pobox.com/~sentience/AI_design.temp.html
          http://pobox.com/~sentience/singul_arity.html
Disclaimer:  Unless otherwise specified, I'm not telling you
everything I think I know.