How Can People Plan for the Technological Future and Who Should Be Their Guides into the Future? by David Brown

David Brown

Essay Abstract

This essay raises questions concerning who or what might influence technology. If the future becomes increasingly incomprehensible, then will people turn more toward religion?

Author Bio

David Brown has an M.A. in mathematics from Princeton University and was for a number of years a computer programmer.

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Joe Fisher

Dear Mr. Brown,

I thoroughly enjoyed reading your essay. May I just point out something that you appear to have missed? Big Science and Big Religion are commercial ventures. They have been specifically designed to make money. They have no expectation of ever making a scrap of sense.

Presently, the predominantly white male government of the United States has spent a few billion dollars erecting machinery that supposedly can recognize signs of extra-terrestrial intelligent life forms. A few white, primarily male scientists get paid thousands of dollars a year to monitor electronic hissing noises detectors.

The recently passed budget of the United States cut $9 billion from the Food Stamp program. Scientists of course cannot allow emotions get in the way of a hefty paycheck. Big Religion is delighted. Poverty pays better than affluence.

Ross Cevenst

Hi Joe,

The search for extra-terrestrial life occupies a tiny tiny tiny fraction of the world's budgets. Considering its implications for humanity surely its worth this small sum? Things like defence, health and welfare receive many many many times larger shares of public spending (I'll avoid getting into normative politics on these issues).

I agree poverty is a big issue though deserving of better analysis than we give it now!

Ross

Gyenge Valeria

Dear David!

Congratulation! I enjoyed reading your essay. It raised well formed fundamental questions to which I also called attention in my essay. I tried also questioning - Whether who could be responsible for running and maintaining those incomprehensible (at least for me:) technologies and what final objective for?

Although I did not pointed out such exactly in my essay, I was glad to read in your essay the more precise questions and statements.

I peculiarly liked:

"...Arthur C. Clarke suggested that a sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic..."

"...Does artificial intelligence have far more connection with molecular biology than with mathematics and foundational issues in physics? .."

"...Do foundational issues in physics have profound connections with psychology and religion?..."

I deem, there is much involved here (we should name rather Creation science) than ordinary physics. Read my comments on pages I found relevant, and I suggest reading my essay too.

You can also search for 'Metatron 24 breastplate' especially > grid-gateway-to-future regarding to your scientific papers, mainly "Does Each Superstring Have 24 D-Brane Charges?" (All is too technical and incomprehensible for me, at least at my present consciousness state and my present life time, but I can feel connections to somehow resolve certain deep problems. )

Kind regards,

Valeria

[deleted]

Hi David,

you ask a great many worthwhile questions in your essay but I felt rather bombardrd with so very many to contemplate in a very short time.It becomes a kind of "mind fog". Just one or two of those questions might have formed the basis of an essay. The second half of the essay seems to be lots of quotes put together, talking sense but I think it would have been better to intersperse them with your own novel, original thoughts. I'm not sure if they address all of the questions raised, I think not, though I haven't checked.

The problem of keeping AI under control is interesting. A large dog can learn respect by not being allowed through doorways before the owner, being made to move rather than being stepped over, having to relinquish toys and food, not walking ahead. Perhaps there must be places AI is not allowed to go before obtaining permission, perhaps freedom can be taken away at the will of a human. Perhaps AI should not be allowed to pursue its own searches but be made to 'heel' by having to work on the human directed tasks. Perhaps it can be rewarded with free time or play activities as a reward for compliance. Though it may require feelings of pleasure and displeasure to guide its ongoing behavior, without that it may have a specific kind of learning disability, that prevents it from understanding its social position and social expectations.

Children too need discipline and reward to learn good manners and etiquette and generally acceptable behaviour. Neglected children and dogs can have behavioral problems because they have not received that essential nurturing input,that gives good outcomes. I wonder if we will also have to have societies for the prevention of cruelty to artificial intelligences.

Aaron Feeney

P.S., I will use the following rating scale to rate the essays of authors who tell me that they have rated my essay:

10 - the essay is perfection and I learned a tremendous amount

9 - the essay was extremely good, and I learned a lot

8 - the essay was very good, and I learned something

7 - the essay was good, and it had some helpful suggestions

6 - slightly favorable indifference

5 - unfavorable indifference

4 - the essay was pretty shoddy and boring

3 - the essay was of poor quality and boring

2 - the essay was of very poor quality and boring

1 - the essay was of shockingly poor quality and extremely flawed

After all, that is essentially what the numbers mean.

The following is a general observation:

Is it not ironic that so many authors who have written about how we should improve our future as a species, to a certain extent, appear to be motivated by self-interest in their rating practices? (As evidence, I offer the observation that no article under 3 deserves such a rating, and nearly every article above 4 deserves a higher rating.)

Peter Jackson

David,

An enjoyable read raising some valid points and questions. I suspect only at the bottom due to mention of the 'God' word people so fear, and lack of responses from you. I find most of the value here is reading and discussing other essays. Nevertheless I'll score it fairly, which I hope will lift you to a better place!

Best wishes

Peter

[deleted]

Hello David

Georgina Parry rightfully pointed out that when in her 'comments' section I most rudely did nothing more than regurgitate a precise of my own essay without a single comment on her own work, that such was 'inappropriate'. I could only apologise, remorsefully agree & thank her for pointing it out !

Why am I telling you this ? Simply because you asked all - well many or most - of the questions that my own findings on evolutionary biology's behalf answer - indeed answer in a very powerful, doable & optimistic way.

I start my essay by claiming that evolutionary biology is crystal clear on the matter of the future !!!

I would love you to read & rate my essay.

You make reference to many a woman's conviction that she has met many a man who thinks that he is 'god's gift to her' to paraphrase somewhat.

There is (was) one man who pointed out that because of the human infant's extreme helplessness, human mothers stand in relation to their babies as that which is all-knowing (omniscient), all-powerful (omnipotent), all-provident & omnipresent, that is to say that their existential position is that of the Abrahamic/Christian "God" towards humanity.

In short, that mothers are quite literally gods to their children.

Although I didn't say it quite like this in my essay I should have, but my conclusion is that evolutionary biology quite clearly & quite unequivocally insists that if we are to survive we must re-centralise women & dismantle patriarchy - after which, & led by our mothers, nature will escort us back onto that pathway which will lead us up to this universe's highest, most exalted existential plane.

This is just another way of saying if mothers get everything right, humanity will not only be ok, but will thrive & progress just as far as this universe can transport any indigenous entity.

But as long as the patriarchy rules, we're doomed !!!

I'd love to know what you think of my ideas .........

Thank you,

Margriet Anne O'Regan