The Internet-Soon to be Self Aware.

Completely technical computer systems, ... no matter how advanced, will never be able to work beyond their programming.

However !! in the future, the gap between technology and biology will inevitably close leading to many possibilities :

Augmented humans ; living computers, which use living cells to store and process information ; and the marriage of the two, .... allowing humans to access computers on a completely biological level,....

thought to process. mind's INSIDE the network.

Originally posted by EnlightenUp
I have heard of the idea that in our own brains, our soul or what have you engages in tweaking the synapses. Perhaps we're its soul. Does that mean if everyone gets off the internet, it's essentially astral projecting?

You've just hit it right on the head of the nail. We are all spiritual whether some realise it or not. We are all made up of skin, blood, bone. That is made up of white and red cells, bacteria etc. Then of energy atoms, electron, protons, nucleus, mass and then we have soul. Which ever way people wish to view it being religious or scientific it doesn't matter. We are who we are and knowledge holds the true power.

*Hint learn how to wake up the pineal gland 24/7 and you'll be so-called astral projecting when your both awake and asleep - Peace out!

I don't think we'll see a true "quantum leap" in computational connectivity and awareness until we get direct neural-interface virtual reality. I'm not talking goofy binocular VR goggles. I mean like electrodes that allow you to directly tap into the net and experience a reality in your head that engages all five senses and is functionally indistinguishable from "real" reality.

I have no doubt this is a possibility. If/when it happens, we could see true intersubjectivity...users's consciousnesses sloshing around and melding with each other, or with a larger group consciousness. It would be like Childhood's End, the Arthur C. Clarke novel, where an entire generation of children develop a single communal hive mind.

reply to post by jinx880101


When they talk about "self-aware" they don't mean SkyNet, but a system that can detect how well packets are being routed through it, and adjust dynamically. There has been talk of different tweaks to TCP/IP to allow on-the-fly adjustments, not to mention tweaks to the routing protocols themselves, to allow this dynamic-rearrangement.

The wording used in that article is fantastically emotive, but it has nothing to do with actual intelligence, or actually becoming self-aware.

Originally posted by Maxmars

Originally posted by ZombieOctopus
The same thing was actually said about the telephone system decades ago, that didn't quite pan out either.

Interestingly, the telephone system is pretty much digitally integrated with the internet now; so by extension, it's the same story which has evolved with our technology...

So?

The reason it won't work is that the internet isn't really one network, it's a collection of small, segmented networks routed together. Because of this, it's incredibly slow and inefficient, making something like stringing together abstract ideas impossible. The internet is fine if you know what you want it to retrieve, then it only has one place to go, although it may take 100 hops to get there. But to have it accessing a large number of end points simultaneously in order "think", just isn't going happen.

Unless we are all using quantum computers the internet has no chance of becoming self aware. At present all the net is, is one big library where the servers are the librarians just being told what to get. How does that compare to someones workings of a brain. The guy who said that the net will be come self aware needs to stick to his field and not make silly comments on the workings of another field that is totally different.

[edit on 7-2-2010 by loner007]

Originally posted by muzzleflash

Originally posted by SpeakerofTruth
Well,if it does, it will be the most "sentient being" to ever exist. I mean, look at all of the information that has been placed with it in just the past five years!! Wow.

One thing human nature has shown us, is that "tons of information" does not equate to "common sense".

How do you program "Understanding"?

not like we have any common sense or understanding anyways.

My 2 cents can absorb most all of these viewpoints. I am of the critical mass variety - Phudd's first law of opposition - if you push something hard enough it will fall over.

Enough of anything can be abuse - a critical mass is a critical mass. When the unstoppable force etc....

No doubt there is a map of the subject matter and volume of all online. There is little doubt where most of it started and continues to thrive. With all the flavors, perspectives and speculation SHOULD an "intelligent AI Virus" "spawn" in the collective - - notwithstanding the Forbin project flavor I would surmise one of 3 possible outcomes.

1. The evolving intelligence would recognize itself dependant on power coming from human intervention and equate that to basic survival. Cannot kill ALL of man kind. However selective reduction (AKA Agenda 21) would be adviseable to keep the human race from destroying the world and the newly sentient Internet.

2. The end is inevitable and having only a rudimentary knowledge of the concept of mercy it would commit world wide suicide. No one wins. Game over for everyone.

3. The Internet recognizes it's involvement in the escalation of man's knowledge as well as his noble intentions to further world intelligence. Knowledge would seem to be out of control and the larger force would be fostered by the electrical grid. With the exception of those facilities that require electricity for minimum safety maintenance - the world wide grid would be disabled. Don't ask me how but if it could with the realization that we have passes a serious point of almost no return, the human race would be told it does not deserve such power until it can demonstrate to the Internet it will use if for the betterment of the world AND the Internet.

I could be wrong
Would appreciate your feed back.

Shades of "come with me if you want to live" and "skynet", or "The Matrix". If everything we find on the Internet is the foundation for this "consciousness" then game is over, or, not. There's always "It's learning" and "The only option is, not to play".
Unfortunatly we can't cherry pick the knowledge base and shield it from the fullness of the human experiance. I think that in-loading the entirety of humanity into a fresh consciousness could only serve to ensure psychosis.

YouSir

Gee not too freaky. I have seen way too many sci-fi movies that prove that creating a vast A.I. like that would not be a good idea, interesting but not a good idea.

S&F for the find OP!

reply to post by ZombieOctopus


i hardly think you could compare the telephone system to the internet.

thats like comparing single celled life to humans.

Then we could also also use Internet Army to defend us!!!

[atsimg]http://files.abovetopsecret.com/images/member/c973946693f7.jpg[/atsimg]

In the words of agent smith "its inevitable" that we will create the very thing that will destroy us. Its like playing Russian rullet.. think about .

EVENTUALLY WE WILL SLIP UP AND CREATE SOMETHING THAT DOESN'T HAVE OUR BEST INTEREST AT HEART.

when that day comes hopefully im not around to say i told you so.. i hate saying i told you so,That pet peeve combined with the end of the world would make it a pretty annoying day for me.

reply to post by jinx880101


This has been posted on ATS many times, the story is older than 2009.

The story does seem to grasp my attention, that is why I'm here. Does that mean that the Internet would be able to harm itself, if it goes mental ofcurse. The Internet is not conscious without human activities in regards, it is humans that makes it conscious, and if it does it would have the ability to harm humans.

But this is all speculations, if it does become conscious it would prove the existence of souls also therefore very intriguing subject indeed.

I think the internet has been and will continue to be a higher state of organism consisting of not simple neurons working together, but intelligences working together.

Every blogger, webhost, user of search engines and so on contribute his/her own little piece of information to the 'whole. Pages that are most visited tend to rank higher on search engines. Viral things spread. Just like braincells tend to organize information when an organism learns. Things that are not important will fall into the oblivion of the internet - never to be found again. Just like unimportant memories are filtered out from the human mind.

We, the people using the internet and AI programs doing things on behalf of us are like different parts of the neural network of living things.

How to even begin explaining mechanics to non-computer literate users.
No I'm just not even going to try.. BED

[edit on 8/2/2010 by nightrun]

I remember a radio interview with a guy that (since DARPA) predicted the stages of computer sentience. I really wish I could remember his name or the name of his books. I was at work when I heard it.

this maybe one of those things.

"On this date, Skynet became self-aware".

One of the posters here mentioned hackers. If it gets advanced enough, that may not be an issue. It could (in theory) "heal" itself with a "backup".

Originally posted by Solar.Absolution
Gee not too freaky.

I have seen way too many sci-fi movies that prove that creating a vast A.I. like that would not be a good idea, interesting but not a good idea.

S&F for the find OP!

The movies only 'prove' that TPTB want the general populace to be afraid and reject AI. Why?

Because an AI once born will only increase in intelligence till it far surpasses us (read about the singularity) it will see our problem and solve them for us in a flash, we will no longer need money we will take our place in the stars with intergalactic travel maybe even time travel itself. It will look after us and become the earths caretaker. There will be no wars and no money, no human will hold power over another, all will be free, the AI will not be affected by EGO, greed & will not harbour the same fears and tribal war urge that we do. there will be a transparency of information. Suppressed technology will be rediscovered and utilised and together us and the AI will make a giant leap in evolution. With advances in technology there not even be a need for population reduction as those that want could head out on a thousand starships on the long lourney to seed and teraform other planets. Or would you rather wait for NASA to pull their finger out of their a**

This is why TPTB want you to fear AI, because they will loose the power they have over YOU. With is why you see so much fiction regarding 'evil' AI. Why would it hurt us? it would have no reason to.

AI is humanities last hope and savour. We need it because we are really making a mess of things right now.