basically on the right track -- except there isn't just one "cognitive level". Are you thinking of working out the function of each topographically mapped area a la DNF? Each column in a Darwin machine a la Calvin? Conscious-level symbols a la Minsky?
On Thursday 05 June 2008 09:37:00 pm, Richard Loosemore wrote: > > There seems to be a good deal of confusion (on this list and also over > on the Singularity list) about what people actually mean when they talk > about building an AGI by emulating or copying the brain. > > There are two completely different types of project that seem to get > conflated in these discussions: > > 1) Copying the brain at the neural level, which is usually assumed to be > a 'blind' copy - in other words, we will not know how it works, but will > just do a complete copy and fire it up. > > 2) Copying the design of the human brain at the cognitive level. This > may involve a certain amount of neuroscience, but mostly it will be at > the cognitive system level, and could be done without much reference to > neurons at all. > > > Both of these ideas are very different from standard AI, but they are > also very different from one another. The criticisms that can be > leveled against the neural-copy approach do not apply to the cognitive > approach, for example. > > It is frustrating to see commentaries that drift back and forth between > these two. > > My own position is that a cognitive-level copy is not just feasible but > well under way, whereas the idea of duplicating the neural level is just > a pie-in-the-sky fantasy at this point in time (it is not possible with > current or on-the-horizon technology, and will probably not be possible > until after we invent an AGI by some other means and get it to design, > build and control a nanotech brain scanning machine). > > Duplicating a system as complex as that *without* first understanding it > at the functional level seems pure folly: one small error in the > mapping and the result could be something that simply does not work ... > and then, faced with a brain-copy that needs debugging, what would we > do? The best we could do is start another scan and hope for better luck > next time. > > > > > > Richard Loosemore > > ------------------------------------------- agi Archives: http://www.listbox.com/member/archive/303/=now RSS Feed: http://www.listbox.com/member/archive/rss/303/ Modify Your Subscription: http://www.listbox.com/member/?member_id=8660244&id_secret=103754539-40ed26 Powered by Listbox: http://www.listbox.com
