The Future 2056 · ./jack.sh

This is a continuation of “The Rise of the Artilects”

Artilect: Artificial intelligence (also known as machine intelligence and often abbreviated as AI) is intelligence exhibited by any manufactured (i.e. ) system. The term is often applied to general purpose computers and also in the field of scientific investigation into the theory and practical application of AI. Wikipedia

An Article that dropped into my feed reader at the beginning of the week, describes a system devised by Hitatchi which monitors the person haemoglobin levels in the Brain (Optical Typography) The use of this is very limited now but could have a large impact on the way we intereface with technology but also for people who are paralysed, a clear example of converging technologies.

As part of New Scientists’ 50 year aniversary there are a number of comments about what may/likely to happen in the next 50 years assuming we don’t all Kill ourselves first (war or global warming).

Talk of a scientific understanding of consciousness still evokes more sucking in of air than most other subjects. Sceptics are fond of saying that a “factor X” that cannot even be imagined at the moment is required. I would argue the opposite: it is here, and it will be commonplace by 2056[…]

The key for us to fully understand the ramifications of creating an ‘artilect’ (AI) is we first need to understand our own brains and how they work, and also the fact we are imperfect and no doubt what we create will also be imperfect (could this cause a problem? could we become so obsessed with perfection we end up some ‘borg’ like race; I couldn’t resist throwing that in)

Computation is the fire in our modern-day caves. By 2056, the computational revolution will be recognised as a transformation as significant as the industrial revolution. The evolution and widespread diffusion of computation and its analytical fruits will have major impacts on socioeconomics, science and culture.
Within 50 years, lives will be significantly enhanced by automated reasoning systems that people will perceive as “intelligent”.[…]

I personally would go one step further and say the above will happen in the next 20 years, and we will see the first true AI system by 2056. Why? because these prediction always seem like under-estimates, they never anticipate that one person who does a single thing, accelerating the field of research forward.

I also had a Computing Lesson in which the teacher posed the question:

Prove To me that a human is nothing more than a biological operating system

At first I thought we are, then I started to disagree. My Arguments against were based on the fact “Windows/Linux/{Insert Your Favourite OS Here} doesn’t create something new in its likeness, it cannot learn (at the moment anyway), similarly it an OS cannot procreate with another OS (as silly as it sounds)Redhat can’t go to Windows and say lets make a little OS called ‘Widhat’ but this could be possible with Cybernetics could it not?

The main counter argument being, if we can read the brain and interpret its code it is just infact an OS, the controlling of things without physical movement (i.e. Brain Control) would seem to support this theory partly, but I am aren’t entirely convinced.

Am Leaving this post open ended because I aren’t sure were I want to go next and don’t want to come to any conclusion.

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