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Berserker Aliens: The Deadliest Answer to the Fermi Paradox

One day they may come for us.

Are Berserker probes hunting advanced life? Exploring the deadliest Fermi Paradox solution.

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Currents 072: Ben Goertzel on Viable Paths to True AGI

https://www.jimruttshow.com/currents-ben-goertzel-2/

Jim talks with Ben Goertzel about the ideas in his recent essay “Three Viable Paths to True AGI.” They discuss the meaning of artificial general intelligence, Steve Wozniak’s basic AGI test, whether common tasks actually require AGI, a conversation with Joscha Bach, why deep neural nets are unsuited for human-level AGI, the challenge of extrapolating world-models, why imaginative improvisation might not be interesting to corporations, the 3 approaches that might have merit (cognition-level, brain-level, and chemistry-level), the OpenCog system Ben is working on, whether it’s a case of “good old-fashioned AI,” where evolution fits into the approach, why deep neural nets aren’t brain simulations & attempts to make them more realistic, a hypothesis about how to improve generalization, neural nets for music & the psychological landscape of AGI research, algorithmic chemistry & the origins of life problem, why AGI deserves more resources than it’s getting, why we may need better parallel architectures, how & how much society should invest in new approaches, the possibility of a cultural shift toward AGI viability, and much more.

Your Music Playlist Could Influence Your Driving Ability in Unexpected Ways

For many of us, listening to music is simply part of the driving routine – as ordinary as wearing a seatbelt. We build playlists for road trips, pick songs to stay awake, and even turn the volume up when traffic gets stressful.

More than 80 percent of drivers listen to music on most trips. And many young drivers find it difficult to concentrate without it.

We tend to think music relaxes us, energises us, or helps us focus when we’re behind the wheel.

The Brain’s Best Defense Against Aging Could Be Your New Favorite Hobby

Getting older means losing things. Some are fine, like any f**ks you have left to give or your tolerance for cheap tequila. Others, like the ability to follow a conversation in a loud room, hit harder.

But scientists now think there’s a way to fight back. And it might start at a piano bench.

Researchers publishing in PLOS Biology found that older adults who have played music for decades have brains that function more like those of someone half their age, at least when it comes to understanding speech in loud environments. In brain scans, they showed cleaner, more focused activity while listening to spoken syllables buried in background noise. Their brains weren’t scrambling. They already knew what to do.

“Gödel, Escher, Bach”: Minds, Machines, And Math

NOTE: Some folks have mentioned my pronunciation of Gödel is wrong, I do apologize for that.

Any author mulling artificial intelligence as a story element owes it to themselves to encounter this spellbinding, one-of-a-kind book. You also deserve to sit down with it if you’re curious about any number of other SF&F-adjacent topics: mathematics, pattern recognition, the definition of consciousness, the concepts of recursion (finite and infinite)… but most of all, the way profundity can be made to look like pure play.

“Gödel, Escher, Bach” at Amazon.com: https://www.amazon.com/dp/0465026567?tag=lifeboatfound-20

Opening music: “Crystal City” by Karl Casey @ White Bat Audio.
Opening background: “XANNN” @ https://vimeo.com/165286507 (Creative Commons)

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I Made Building Redstone 100x Faster!

Get GameMaker (for free): https://opr.as/GM-MattBatWings2

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Music (in order):
LitKidBeats — GOOD VIBES https://youtu.be/WRBRA3ZZ1cM?si=r-2ikldhC-Op2oKq.
Lukrembo — Rose https://youtu.be/XIhyti2Qa74?si=Gsnn8ojJO40EyP_2
Lukrembo — Sunset https://youtu.be/gv7hcXCnjOw?si=GLePgnLRHvO4nIal.
Lukrembo — Afternoon https://youtu.be/tayfXQfFDZE?si=OEKMhcsVNtWmkVT0
Harris Heller — Call Me Daddy https://open.spotify.com/track/7G0KJtPB7nEqjwARGiHsQM
massobeats — aromatic https://youtu.be/vpgK_3TJI_A?si=0gqH7t4jhpN9iyA1
Harris Heller — The White Fox https://open.spotify.com/track/6DndosNZf2c5rIdJzA3fg1
Harris Heller — Trendy https://open.spotify.com/track/5Iyyvfv9vPW7duF3BFuGAh.
massobeats — rose water https://youtu.be/xakBzg5atsM?si=GaGq9pEbFmZeIe2L
Harris Heller — All the Right Moves https://open.spotify.com/track/4RSiie0I5lgEFSDxmahdU4
Haris Heller — Deepwater.
Lukrembo — Branch https://youtu.be/xPOy2pkImiU?si=mqKN2mdEMuc4CRCT
Harris Heller — Wrong But Not Right https://open.spotify.com/track/7igQSq0L0TmbM84N7lFCSI
MOST TRACKS CAN BE FOUND HERE — https://freetouse.com/music

Functions in Hyperspace

Functions describe the world. Join me on a tour of hyperspace, and see the many strange creatures that live there. They are just functions with lots of inputs and outputs. They are parametric surfaces that take inputs u and v, and output spatial x, y, z coordinates, and r, g, b, a color outputs. This produces a colored 3D surface. Then you can add additional inputs and visualize a single slice of each input parameter, and slide through different parameter values to see different slices of the function over time. This causes the colored surface to evolve over time.
I take my time to build up the mathematical intuitions behind visualizing functions, starting with 1-in-1-out functions, and pushing it up to 7-in-7-out functions, and beyond.

Enter Hyperspace: https://evolvecode.io/hyperspace/inde… Code: https://github.com/MaxRobinsonTheGrea… Discord: / discord ~SUPPORT ME~ Scrimba: https://scrimba.com/?via=EmergentGarden Patreon: / emergentgarden Ko-fi: https://ko-fi.com/emergentgarden Twitter: / max_romana Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/emergentgard… ~SOURCES~ Functions Describe the World: • On Mathematical Maturity Thomas Garrity Hyperspace animation: • Blender Hyperspace Jump Shell Surfaces: https://www.geogebra.org/m/twfwsxb9 Music: / @acolyte-compositions Most come from this new album: • Stellar Nurseries (Full Album) AI Disclaimer: I used AI code tools for the website and animations. No AI video, images, script, voice, or music were used. ~TIMESTAMPS~ (0:00) Functions in Hyperspace (2:47) Visualizing Functions (5:37) Parametric Surfaces (10:01) Slices of Slices (14:55) More Parameters (18:28) Exploring the Zoo.
Source Code: https://github.com/MaxRobinsonTheGrea…
Discord: / discord.

~SUPPORT ME~
Scrimba: https://scrimba.com/?via=EmergentGarden.
Patreon: / emergentgarden.
Ko-fi: https://ko-fi.com/emergentgarden.
Twitter: / max_romana.
Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/emergentgard…

~SOURCES~
Functions Describe the World: • On Mathematical Maturity Thomas Garrity.
Hyperspace animation: • Blender Hyperspace Jump.
Shell Surfaces: https://www.geogebra.org/m/twfwsxb9

Music: / @acolyte-compositions.
Most come from this new album: • Stellar Nurseries (Full Album)

AI Disclaimer:

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