Doubling Knowledge

Posted by Herb7734 7 years ago to Education
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At the University of Gronigen in the Netherlands, they have Cray AT3 computers hooked up in clusters that can execute hundreds of teraflops per second, that translates into hundreds of trillions of calculations. This cluster can do more in an hour than the whole first century of modern computing.Rather than working on the various problems of quantum physics, it is being devoted to modeling event horizons and event cascades affecting the seven billion inhabitants of our planet. In other words,this massive array is doing the calculus of felicity. The greatest good for the greatest number.They are attempting to turn morality into math.As far as we can tell, at first, human knowledge was doubling every 1500 years or so, today it is doubling every two years.Their argument is that at the same time, our moral faculties remain unevollved. The technical prowess of our species has vastly outstripped our ethical prowess. They have, in effect, created a sort of moral prosthesis in order to extend our
intellectual capacities by artificial means.It is my opinion that this powerful facility is being wasted on not the complex problems of the quantum universe, but on morality problems that are unsolvable, because the human race has seven billion variables that change from moment to moment . We know what computers can do with science.But are they of any use when dealing with philosophical ideas like morality and worse yet, as a basic goal the foundation of socialism.


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  • Posted by 834 7 years ago
    It's no use at all. Morality is a personal thing, and socially influenced. Also it presupposes what makes us happy and productive is the same for everyone. I'm all for helping people thrive but not for telling them how they have to do it. Any answer that the pc pushes out will be used as a recipe for social control.
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  • Posted by $ Olduglycarl 7 years ago in reply to this comment.
    You are so correct.

    We will probably be summoned to the next sacrificial ceremony because we can't devolve enough to satisfy the delete ruleless creatures.
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  • Posted by $ Olduglycarl 7 years ago in reply to this comment.
    No conscience and no ability to reason, 1 whole part of the 3 part Conscious Human equation is missing...you know what that is.
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  • Posted by 7 years ago in reply to this comment.
    I fear that we have already taken the first step into that possible future. The computers had to allow humans to grow to the point where they could invent computers, whereupon they can be discarded as obsolete. With A.I.getting more creative all the time, and becoming self repairing and immortal, there really is very little need for humans. Perhaps the machines will be more compassionate than humans and allow a colony of them to remain. Unlike people, machines can be made to operate under almost any conditions, making planetary habitation far easier and more profound
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  • Posted by 7 years ago in reply to this comment.
    As long as GGGN (The greatest good for the greatest number) remains the object of a current philosophy, to that extent will we be forever in danger of being slaves.
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  • Posted by 7 years ago in reply to this comment.
    The questions of who and what we are occupied mankind for many centuries. Now, it's science and the technical uses of physics, while the great philosophical questions remain unanswered.
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  • Posted by Solver 7 years ago
    Mathematically, the answer is a type of fascist society, ever marching collectively, in step, educating and progressing a majority of superior humans that are physically, mentally and mathematically moral, while eliminating the minority of inferior ones.

    Or maybe the computer will just compute that the planet would be better off without these humans.

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  • Posted by $ Olduglycarl 7 years ago in reply to this comment.
    The population seems and perhaps is, dumber because most of the younger generations and those in power seem to have some technical abilities with no sense of history, philosophy or self reflection, not to mention an inability to question the force fed narratives.
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  • Posted by $ Olduglycarl 7 years ago
    Have to wonder just how they have defined morality. Is it the present day, western world version?, one inwhich is relative?..or is it a barbaric paganized imitation of which 60% of the world engages,

    But no amount of morality can save communism, socialism or progressivism; however, as much as I detest demonocracy, it would be more palatable if there was a standard, time tested practice of morality.
    After all, we are seeing a destruction of democracy because it has become way to democratic...meaning, anything goes, be what ever you will, be what ever you wish and do as you wish, regardless of whom or what it harms.
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  • Posted by coaldigger 7 years ago
    Why does it feel like we are getting dumber? Where is the cutoff line where some humans can't be depended on to contribute anything? Is there a humane way to take care of them and prevent the lower rungs of productive society from joining them? All we need is for everyone to produce to the level of their abilities and to have an incentive for them to do so? Free Market Capitalism is the system for everyone except those that can't/won't produce and those that want to take shortcuts of fraud/theft. Maybe the Cray AT3's can figure that out.
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  • Posted by 7 years ago in reply to this comment.
    You may think that this is a joke, but it's true. A former girl friend's mom thought that "Foundation" was a book on ladies underwear.I was carrying a copy when I went to pick her up for a date and she asked me about it. I think she looked at me with suspicion from that day on.
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