tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7684947744137573659.comments2022-07-01T13:54:44.860+01:00Biscuits and tea with WilliamWilliamhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06058545605608198274noreply@blogger.comBlogger38125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7684947744137573659.post-53215727840505000062022-07-01T13:54:44.860+01:002022-07-01T13:54:44.860+01:00Nice post thanks for ssharingNice post thanks for ssharingAlexhttps://www.alexmosley.com/noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7684947744137573659.post-47136536005031414292021-08-14T10:47:59.634+01:002021-08-14T10:47:59.634+01:00Fair enough :P
Yeah there's certainly a lot o...Fair enough :P<br /><br />Yeah there's certainly a lot of other stuff to work on to improve the future. Some of these AI people argue that AI is the most important thing to work on because they believe it has a dangerously high chance of making all our other problems irrelevant before we can stop it, given the chance.<br /><br />Plus I guess some people just like thinking about this stuff! I do. Humans and society are messy :PWilliamhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06058545605608198274noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7684947744137573659.post-46929250564583555932021-08-14T10:36:54.925+01:002021-08-14T10:36:54.925+01:00Yeah, well; not much fun talking about something t...Yeah, well; not much fun talking about something that others have thought about to death. So I have to set that to one side if I want to engage :p<br /><br />But also, I think solving real-world inequality among humans is a similar and more useful challenge. <br /><br />Humans are the most advanced intelligence on the planet. Those with power pursue more power for their ends, which leads to more inequality. How could we adjust societal systems to lead to power being redistributed and levelled out over time?Matthewhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15223034999560788264noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7684947744137573659.post-16457112500040715222021-08-14T09:53:47.969+01:002021-08-14T09:53:47.969+01:00I'm not sure exactly what you mean, but if it&...I'm not sure exactly what you mean, but if it's capable of doing great harm before disintegrating then this would still be relevant wouldn't it?<br /><br />Also, it's worth pointing out that people with a lot of expertise about AI are worried about this.Williamhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06058545605608198274noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7684947744137573659.post-26678048312003494682021-08-14T09:11:42.080+01:002021-08-14T09:11:42.080+01:00I think these tales are in danger of being very op...I think these tales are in danger of being very optimistic about the hypothetical AI. <br /><br />An AI that’s on a path to taking over the world is likely to destroy itself before it gets there. <br /><br />Systems are either stable or unstable. There are balances and counterweights to make a stable system self-correcting. Creating an AI that has huge intelligence, knowledge, logic and desire won’t be stable.<br /><br />I guess the question is how much collateral damage will it do before it self destructs?Matthewhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15223034999560788264noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7684947744137573659.post-24907495477688545992021-08-13T11:05:03.557+01:002021-08-13T11:05:03.557+01:00Actually, even if we aim to "evolve together&...Actually, even if we aim to "evolve together", it's not safe if the AI is still hoping to take over the universe as soon as it figures out a way around us.<br /><br />So we're at the same problem - designing an AI that will safely co-exist with us without wanting to take over or do something awful in pursuit of its goals which we didn't define carefully enough.Williamhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06058545605608198274noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7684947744137573659.post-79648479067842740942021-08-13T10:56:58.826+01:002021-08-13T10:56:58.826+01:00Well designing that reward system correctly is the...Well designing that reward system correctly is the problem that Rob Miles' videos are usually about. It's interesting, and extremely important, to think about the ways it could go wrong!<br /><br />"Evolving together" might be impossible. I'm reminded of how homo sapiens is now the only human species on the planet, out of maybe dozens that existed prehistorically.<br /><br />And if we augment ourselves, at what point is that the same problem (if those augmentations produce "humans" with goals that we'd find objectionable)?Williamhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06058545605608198274noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7684947744137573659.post-23413369592398648082021-08-13T08:25:23.837+01:002021-08-13T08:25:23.837+01:00I think it comes to inter-dependence. Humans are p...I think it comes to inter-dependence. Humans are programmed to take of each other, and so can coexist. <br /><br />Intelligent life (AI) will need a very complex reward system.<br /><br />But can species evolving at very different rates co-exist?<br /><br />Maybe about the same time we have artificial life, we’ll be well into augmenting ourselves. We’d have access to the same resources and intelligence, and so could evolve together. <br /><br />🤞🤞🤞Matthewhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15223034999560788264noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7684947744137573659.post-76026747316381035992015-04-10T11:32:44.275+01:002015-04-10T11:32:44.275+01:00It was pretty awesome! I'll be going back ;)It was pretty awesome! I'll be going back ;)Williamhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06058545605608198274noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7684947744137573659.post-33870827310058566792015-04-07T19:14:50.352+01:002015-04-07T19:14:50.352+01:00Just caught up on your adventures. It looks and so...Just caught up on your adventures. It looks and sounds absolutely amazing. I really want to go to Japan now!Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14236718580438363366noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7684947744137573659.post-12953219813227947022015-04-06T15:17:55.051+01:002015-04-06T15:17:55.051+01:00awwwesommme!!!!awwwesommme!!!!Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10339565207118583985noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7684947744137573659.post-82954219520941524592015-04-01T20:21:34.586+01:002015-04-01T20:21:34.586+01:00Oh dear! At least you didn't have to sleep in ...Oh dear! At least you didn't have to sleep in an airport/train station/street!Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14236718580438363366noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7684947744137573659.post-24417398311379696512012-09-04T16:35:46.420+01:002012-09-04T16:35:46.420+01:00He already did one.
He answered questions for ha...<a href="http://www.reddit.com/r/IAmA/comments/z1c9z/i_am_barack_obama_president_of_the_united_states/" rel="nofollow">He already did one.</a> <br /><br />He answered questions for half an hour and in an interesting turn of events <a href="http://blog.reddit.com/2012/08/potus-iama-stats.html" rel="nofollow">nearly DDoSed reddit.</a> Usually reddit is the one that takes down other sites.<br /><br />There were also articles on CNN and BBC about it and reddit user Shitty_Watercolour had his/her shitty water colour which welcomed Obama to reddit<a href="http://barackobama.tumblr.com/post/30523388911/in-case-you-missed-it-president-obama-met-reddit" rel="nofollow"> featured on Obama's Tumblr</a>.<br /><br />I think that just about sums it up.ashwinhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03557389610385021930noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7684947744137573659.post-45460524549110722532012-08-30T16:57:15.680+01:002012-08-30T16:57:15.680+01:00I win (14 days ago) :P
RE: Barack Obama's AMA...<a href="http://www.reddit.com/r/todayilearned/comments/y9jep/til_the_chills_you_get_when_listening_to_music/c5tm8xp" rel="nofollow">I win</a> (14 days ago) :P<br /><br />RE: Barack Obama's AMA, I keep seeing it mentioned, is he actually doing one on reddit? I haven't seen it. Any good?Williamhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06058545605608198274noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7684947744137573659.post-50289067386694855292012-08-30T11:55:29.845+01:002012-08-30T11:55:29.845+01:00Haha you're right!! We must use reddit in the ...Haha you're right!! We must use reddit in the exact same way. I came across <a href="www.reddit.com/r/frisson" rel="nofollow">/r/frisson</a> a couple of days ago. <br /><br />After seeing your comment I did a little bit of digging in my Reddit saved comments/links list and discovered that I read <a href="http://www.reddit.com/r/AskReddit/comments/yt927/what_is_your_favorite_sensation/" rel="nofollow">this</a> AMA and saw <a href="http://www.reddit.com/r/AskReddit/comments/yt927/what_is_your_favorite_sensation/c5ynp9g" rel="nofollow">this comment</a> in it. So I ended up in /r/frisson. And I learned a new word! I tried submitting something but apparently they don't accept self posts so I posted it on my blog instead.<br /><br />Did you read Barack Obama's AMA yet?ashwinhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03557389610385021930noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7684947744137573659.post-4794951608018211142012-08-29T20:28:50.743+01:002012-08-29T20:28:50.743+01:00Is this just another coincidence or did I mention ...Is this just another coincidence or did I mention frisson publicly somewhere? I swear, we must use reddit in the exact same way or something - I came across <a href="http://www.reddit.com/r/frisson" rel="nofollow">r/frisson</a> the other day, having never heard of the word before...Williamhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06058545605608198274noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7684947744137573659.post-2689815301637201142012-08-29T20:22:09.563+01:002012-08-29T20:22:09.563+01:00Excerpts like that always send a shiver down my sp...Excerpts like that always send a shiver down my spine, a sudden, passing sensation of excitement, a shudder of emotion from the epicness of science. Frisson.ashwinhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03557389610385021930noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7684947744137573659.post-58676057119838061802012-07-16T12:58:01.131+01:002012-07-16T12:58:01.131+01:00Well advice about being practical in this world, i...Well advice about being practical in this world, in which we <i>don't</i> yet have robots doing all the hard graft, isn't misguided. But telling you not to think <i>at all</i> is like telling you to <i>be</i> a robot.Williamhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06058545605608198274noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7684947744137573659.post-17651400692271780562012-07-16T12:56:00.079+01:002012-07-16T12:56:00.079+01:00Yes, there is a difficulty given that education fu...Yes, there is a difficulty given that education fundamentally <i>does</i> have its audience picked for it. That would be the source of any objection to Vihart here, and I'm not saying I know who's right. I think the power Vihart's talking about is in the <i>shaping</i> of the audience. If I teach maths in a way that maths geeks enjoy, will I influence my children to be maths geeks? That would be nice!Williamhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06058545605608198274noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7684947744137573659.post-41853974802296603062012-07-16T12:50:45.886+01:002012-07-16T12:50:45.886+01:00Welcome!
I'm no longer sure I'm right to ...Welcome!<br /><br />I'm no longer sure I'm right to object to the phrase 'gravity is a force', in light of the responses I've had, but it just seems to massively undermine one's ability to grok Einstein. Maybe it's just for me (I didn't do any Physics in post-16 education). I worry about the general public's confusion when confronted with science that contradicts their childhood education. I do genuinely think that children <i>could</i> be taught a more advanced scientific curriculum (except that teachers probably don't understand most of it - having not had such an education themselves!).<br /><br />Anyway, I'll stick my neck out and say that not only shouldn't children be taught explicitly that gravity is a force (which itself doesn't imply they should be taught relativity), but I also reckon they could be taught the basics of relativity. That's more controversial however, and I'm far from certain about it!Williamhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06058545605608198274noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7684947744137573659.post-63054444284857289152012-07-15T15:03:10.646+01:002012-07-15T15:03:10.646+01:00I've thought about this a lot. My parents are ...I've thought about this a lot. My parents are always telling me to be "practical" in life. This comment pops up when I try to do something interesting like read up a book on philosophy or do a little bit of art or anything that's not directly related to my school studies (despite the fact that I get good grades anyway). My father seems to hold the belief that it is wrong for children to read books on philosophy by authors like Bertrand Russel. He wants me to "stop thinking too much about these things and get some real work done."<br /><br />I always try to make to make the point that there is plenty of time to do well in both but I rarely get a positive response.ashwinhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03557389610385021930noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7684947744137573659.post-37847847222824644562012-07-15T07:38:41.156+01:002012-07-15T07:38:41.156+01:00I quite agree Vihart, sixtysymbols, periodicvideos...I quite agree Vihart, sixtysymbols, periodicvideos and other education based youtube channels are often much more effective at teaching concepts than a classroom setting. In fact, I by the time I started my O-Levels my learning was completely independent of my school. Almost 80% of my learning happened at home on the internet through my own efforts.ashwinhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03557389610385021930noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7684947744137573659.post-42543243690200249572012-07-15T06:37:45.360+01:002012-07-15T06:37:45.360+01:00Hey there! I ended up here after your comment on m...Hey there! I ended up here after your comment on my blog. :)<br /><br />Anyway, yes, as I grow older and try to really understand how the world works I keep finding that I have to "unlearn" the stuff they taught me at school and change my "perspective" quite frequently. <br /><br />I only figured out a few months ago, after watching this excellent series of video lectures by Leonard Susskind (check it out on youtube it's quite awesome.) that gravity isn't a force in the strictest sense. What we observe as gravity is merely objects following the geodesic in curved spacetime. This concept is <i>incredibly</i> difficult to wrap your mind about. <br /><br />Even in relativity beginners learn many "almost correct" models like "space-time is like a rubber sheet which distorts when mass is present" but no analogy is ever completely right. <br /><br />In fact, if you want to be completely right the only thing you can say is: "Gravity is only completely described by these set of equations ,<i>(points to einstein equations)</i> and all analogies are only partially correct.<br /><br />So perhaps it's necessary to teach these partially correct models at school at least until we can understand the brain twisting details of general relativity.<br /><br />Oh and you've got yourself a subscriber. :)ashwinhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03557389610385021930noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7684947744137573659.post-45793810095790802972012-07-14T10:02:53.766+01:002012-07-14T10:02:53.766+01:00I'm having technical trouble writing this comm...I'm having technical trouble writing this comment in one, so here's part 2<br /><br />Applying the message to education is harder. You have your audience<br />and massage picked for you. Your goal is to get the message across to<br />this audience as effectively as possible. That changes the game, but<br />maybe playing in the same way would be effective.<br /><br />I think we best remember out teachers that loved the subject, and<br />weren't afraid to show that enthusiasm.<br /><br />I certainly agree that trying to water the message down to avoid<br />alienating the audience is doomed. You only end up alienating<br />everyone. But you can't _change_ the audience, only what and how you<br />present to them.Matthewhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15223034999560788264noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7684947744137573659.post-53264579429748632862012-07-14T09:39:51.952+01:002012-07-14T09:39:51.952+01:00Interesting stuff. That books sounds cool. I wonde...Interesting stuff. That books sounds cool. I wonder what else that guy from the _70s_ had insights to.<br /><br />The message _definitly_ applies to artists (including writers, bloggers, youtubers etc). Pandering to your audience is bad; do what you do, say what you say, and if you resonate with people your audience will grow. And the awesome thing about the Internet is the extended reach of artists and audiences. People can find stuff that resonates with them.Matthewhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15223034999560788264noreply@blogger.com