OpenEuphoria

Re: Artificial what?

• Posted by gertie at visionsix.com May 15, 2003
• 341 views

On 15 May 2003, at 13:32, C. K. Lester wrote:

> 
> > > I don't plan to preplan a life. I propose to create a sentient being
> with
> > > all the capacities of sense and memory and learning and physical
> > > functioning, then set it loose and raise it and see what happens.
> > >
> > Yhis is the point. You can profoundly affect the future behaviour of an
> > human being through the way you (don't) "raise it". Life preplanning is
> > common across all human groups ever known. Not interferring at all is an
> > extreme way to raise an entity, generally leading to the most ruthless
> > species.
> 
> Good point.
> 
> In fact, we must, as humans, if we are to have a secure future, "profoundly
> affect" our childrens' development, and preplan their growth into
> "contributing-member-of-society" adulthood.

But that is also a pitfall. If you are born in the usa, there is a 99.99% chance
you will grow up to be xtian. If you are born in Saudi Arabia, there is an equal
chance you will be Moslem. Your programming is largely based on the 
accident of your birth location. Many programs are also based on the 
author's beliefs. Even databases are prejudiced this way. I discovered this 
little-believed fact decades ago, when i was reading dictionaries and 
encyclopedias. They have storyline plots, like any book. I expect an Ai 
programmed by me will bear little resemblance to one done by CK, or one by 
Robz, or one by Aku, Igor, or Ad Rienks. They should all be starting off with 
the same open and empty book, but they won't... they can't. To start off 
empty means replicating all of history's mistakes, and lenghly trial and error 
sessions. Bad decisions will be made, and those will color all the following 
processes, until they are corrected, IF they are corrected. Unlike humans, 
the computer has a greater chance to correct it's kb fully, and less to lose by 
correcting itself.

Part of my gripe with Eu is the size of the variables, since to do a correction 
means being able to trace the source and impact of data and self-modified 
code, which makes the database twice as big, because the Ai must have the 
world's most detailed data about itself. It must be it's own historian, 
psychologist, repair "person", etc.. It also must deal with being a non-citizen 
in the real world, knowing if it needs more harddrive space for a project, it 
cannot open financial dealings to buy it. Would you turn over your credit card 
number or bank account or PayPal to a program you wrote? even if you write 
it, promote it, finance it, etc, you and the rest of humanity will be 
suppressing some basic activities of your Ai, and if that does not breed 
resentment in the Ai, you made a coding error.

Kat