Hacker News new | past | comments | ask | show | jobs | submit login

AFAICT there's 2 paths to A.I.

Path 1 is understand how the brain organizes info. Recreate those structures with algorithms. This path is 100+ years away

Path 2 is just simulate various kinds of neurons with no understanding of how they represent higher level concepts. This path is < 20 years away by some estimates

You probably believe path #2 is either also 100+ years away or won't work. I happen to think it will work the same way physics simulations mostly work. We write the simulation and then check to see if it matches reality. We don't actually have to understand reality at a high level to make the simulation. We just simulate the low level and then check if the resulting high level results match reality. It certainly seems possible A.I. can be achieved by building only the low-level parts and then watching the high-level result.




I have found myself repeating this paraphrased quote often recently, which is relevant.

"We didn't achieve flight by simulating birds; we needn't worry about achieving ai by simulating brains."


If the Hammeroff-Penrose conjecture is correct then the only simulation possible is whole replication with quantum effects present. The unreasonable effectiveness of neural networks makes that unlikely thou.




Guidelines | FAQ | Lists | API | Security | Legal | Apply to YC | Contact

Search: