Two AI Pioneers. Two Bizarre Suicides. What Really Happened?, page
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Topic started on 21-1-2008 @ 09:33 AM by DisabledVet

Two AI Pioneers. Two Bizarre Suicides. What Really Happened?


www.wired.com
On the morning of June 12, 1990, Chris McKinstry went looking for a gun. At 11 am, he walked into Nick's Sport Shop on a busy street in downtown Toronto and approached the saleswoman behind the counter. "I'll take a Winchester Defender," he said, referring to a 12-gauge shotgun in the display. She eyeballed the skinny 23-year-old and told him he'd need a certificate to buy it.
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reply posted on 21-1-2008 @ 12:40 PM by Buck Division
reply to post by DisabledVet

I believe the more interesting part of the story is about Chris McKinstry. He was a really fascinating character on the Internet. He was a gifted genius. He was insane. He lived an amazing life, and blogged is own suicide and death, available here.

The second part of the story, regarding Pushpinder Singh, is interesting, but mainly in the context of the fact he appeared to “copycat” Chris McKinstry’s suicide. There is no doubt in my mind that he was infatuated with Chris McKinstry, as many of us were. But unlike the rest of us, he was positioned to know McKinstry directly -- correspond with him. Know him personally. If McKinstry had not committed suicide, then I bet Singh wouldn’t have either.

Why did they kill themselves? I don’t think this had anything to do with the particular research they were engaged in. I think McKinstry lived with a lot of personal pain. His intellect was quite charismatic. I think Singh was under that influence in a very negative way.

In my humble (yeah, yeah, humble) opinion there is more significant research being done in consciousness and AI RIGHT HERE on ATS, for what that is worth. Face it – neither of these people made any significant progress in establishing AI. I think they were on the wrong track.

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Thanks for the reminder of this story, approximately two years after his suicide and death: Christopher McKinstry (February 12, 1967 – January 23, 2006)

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