Tuesday, September 01, 2009

Buddhist Geeks - Episode 136: Enlightenment 2.0

Interesting discussion. I disagree wth researchers who think AI is close at hand - we don't even know how the human brain makes consciousness, let alone how to make a conscious machine.

Buddhist Geeks - Episode 136: Enlightenment 2.0

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This week we speak with Ben Geortzel, an artificial intelligence researcher and Zen-dabbling spiritual seeker. Ben shares with us his introduction to Zen and his on-going relationship to spiritual practice. He also explains what is meant by "strong artificial intelligence" and AGI (artificial general intelligence) and explains why he thinks a fully functioning AI may be as little as a decade away.

Finally, we explore the overlap between his work as an AI researcher and his experiences with Zen and other spiritual practices, through discussing a story he wrote entitled, "Enlightenment 2.0" about an enlightened AI being who determines that it is possible to construct a more enlightened mind, what Ben calls a "super mind", but isn't sure whether or not it is possible for us.

This is part 1 of a two-part series. Listen to part 2, Artificial Wisdom (airing next week).


1 comment:

Hokai said...

I share your disagreement on this point. We know close to nothing on human mind (consider scarce knowledge of neuroglia, the function of amygdala, or even the neurons in the abdomen etc.), and the AI optimism is only a product of an incredible behavioral ("right-hand") emphasis of neuroscience and psychology in general, the same reductionism that generates overuse of psycho-drugs.