The Computational Universe

Searle’s argument frames an interesting question, but it does not eliminate any doubt or prove anything. It does not eliminate the specter that perhaps we can’t conceive of a complicated enough program that could mimic a brain. He poses a strange hypothesis that the brain has a special goo for giving meaning to ideas. Also, perhaps the program for having a strong AI would be conceivably much different than anything I can conceive with my knowledge of limited computer programs.
Also, you can take similar Chinese room experiments and change the parameters so that it does not seem as reasonable. If the brain was blown up to large proportions and a human was inserted into the brain to be in charge of a neuron, then that person would not understand the neuron inputs and outputs, but surely there is still consciousness in the brain. Therefore, it seems unreasonable to say that just because the guy in the Chinese room is just manipulating signals that there is no consciousness occurring.
My major problem with Searle’s article was that he was disguising his arguments regarding Philosophy of Mind in such a way as to make them relevant to computing, but also to take cheap shots at other Philosophers without necessarily making a thorough argument.
Also, though he does make some convincing arguments, his allusion to Occham’s razor rings somewhat hollow. It seems that the nature of the machine that most effectively simulates consciousness will probably be very complex and a degree of understanding removed from what we already think.

I am really excited to find out how the role of the internet in our society will change in the coming years. The story of the man who invented a simple household appliance to open his blinds at a particular time through the internet captured my imagination with regards to the underutilized possibilities of the internet.
Will Tim Berners Lee become the next paradigm shifting inventor such as Thomas Edison? Or will he become a forgotten hero? If history were kind and just, which it is often not, he would be the former. Obviously I agree with Sir Tim’s assessment that the internet is as popular as it is today because of his generosity. Hopefully he will become more celebrated as the internet becomes increasingly more important and the general public grapples with the full effect the internet is having on the world as we know it.
I’m sorry to repeat a common complaint that it was nearly impossible to follow all of the jargon which was used in the talk (e.g. XML, etc.), but I also understand that often times those who understand the best don’t always understand what others don’t understand. Meaning, he didn’t tailor to his audience. I think it would behoove visionaries to have a personal assistant to prepare lecture notes for their talks with appropriate definitions and a general outline of their ideas so that the information about cutting edge of development can become well understood and appropriately valued by the general public.

The scribbler is an interesting little gizmo that produces certain outputs when code is downloaded onto it.  These outputs translate into a variety of functions including moving forward, backward, turning left, turning right, spinning left, spinning right, detecting objects on any side, detecting engine stalls, detecting a following a line and turning on and off its LED light display.  These outputs allow for a surprising number of different functions.  For instance, the scribbler can use a marker to draw along a path, it can be programmed to move around a room without hitting any objects (provided that the color of the objects is not black and the light sensors can detect it), etc.  Indeed, the variety of functions leads us to ask ourselves why we consider “art” to be such an intrinnsically human function?  Of course, only humanity can value a piece of art more or less, but the scribbler robot asks us: what’s so special about it?  If the scribbler, a robot, can move around a piece of a paper to draw a shape, maybe that 5 year old child who is selling paintings for 40,000$ each is doing the same thing (creating an output from a mechanical, unthinking process), though perhaps with a slightly better agent and business manager. 

One of the major problems with the scribbler was its imprecision.  This could easily have been overcome with a more expensive machine, but simple tasks could easily be performed without much need of precision.  The problem lay in the fact that the machine could not detect how far it had moved, but rather relied upon an imprecise estimation with regard to how long the engine had been turned on. 

My name is Owen and I’m a senior in the Near Eastern Studies department.  I am writing my thesis on the iconography of royal art commissioned under the Emperor Humâyûn in India in the 16^th century.  After I graduate, I am most likely going to work for the Aga Khan Trust for Culture in Kabul, Afghanistan and get some first-hand experience with some of the places that I am writing about in my thesis.  With any luck I will get to New Delhi and Agra for a few weeks first in order to get myself acquainted with the spectacular remnants of the Mughal Empire in India, the most famous of which you may have heard of: the Taj Mahal. 

I am originally from Manhattan and I went to Stuyvesant High School in Tribeca.  When I entered Princeton I thought that I was going to be studying contemporary politics in the Middle East, but I have since discovered the deep spiritual roots of a fascinating medieval culture.  If you have time, I invite you to become better acquainted with the Mughal Empire in order to understand many of the contemporary issues revolving around the area of Kashmir today. 

I have decided to take Computational Universe because I took Computers in Our World with Prof. Kernighan and really enjoyed it.  I was hoping that this class would fill out my knowledge of the subject.

I most often use a Mac at home, but I often find myself in Firestone on a PC.