All computations require time and memory, but researchers are finding new ways to require less of the latter.
Joscha Bach is a German cognitive scientist, AI researcher, and philosopher known for his work on cognitive architectures, artificial intelligence, mental representation, emotion, social modeling, multi-agent systems, and the philosophy of mind.
Links of interest:
• http://bach.ai/
• https://twitter.com/Plinz.
Steve and Joscha discuss:
00:00 Introduction.
01:26 Growing up in the forest in East Germany.
06:23 Academia: early neural net pioneers, CS and Philosophy.
10:17 The fall of the Berlin Wall.
14:57 Commodore 64 and early programming experiences.
15:29 AGI timeline and predictions.
19:35 Scaling hypothesis, beyond Transformers, universality of information structures and world models.
25:29 Consciousness.
41:11 The ethics of brain interventions, zombies, and the Turing test.
43:43 LLMs and simulated phenomenology.
46:34 The future of consciousness research.
48:44 Cultural perspectives on suffering.
52:19 AGI and humanity’s future.
58:18 Simulation hypothesis.
01:03:33 Liquid AI: Innovations and goals.
01:16:02 Philosophy of Identity: the Transporter Problem, Is there anything beyond memory records?
Music used with permission from Blade Runner Blues Livestream improvisation by State Azure.
Main episode with Michael Levin (June 2024): https://youtu.be/c8iFtaltX-s?list=PLZ7ikzmc6zlN6E8KrxcYCWQIHg2tfkqvR
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Dr. Michael Levin’s groundbreaking research redefines intelligence, agency, and selfhood, showing that it exists not just in brains but across all levels of biological systems—cells, organs, and entire organisms. Through his concept of the “morphogenetic code,” Levin reveals that bioelectric signals, not just DNA, guide cellular organization and behavior, enabling profound regenerative breakthroughs like limb regrowth and functional organ creation. His work extends into philosophy, reshaping how we view alien life, selfhood, and even the nature of existence by framing life as an emergent property of interconnected intelligences. Levin envisions tools like an “anatomical compiler” to revolutionize medicine and challenges us to rethink life, intelligence, and the cosmos, solidifying his place as one of the most important living scientists.
Deep Thinkers, Check This: https://www.skool.com/yoda/about.
Name of the field of biology the study of life in the universe. Exobiology?
Snippets from Nature’s past.
In human engineering, we design systems to be predictable and controlled. By contrast, nature thrives on systems where simple rules generate rich, emergent complexity. The computational nature of the universe explains how simplicity can generate the complexity we see in natural phenomena. Imagine being able to understand everything about the universe and solve all its mysteries by a computational approach that uses very simple rules. Instead of being limited to mathematical equations, using very basic computational rules, we might be able to figure out and describe everything in the universe, like what happened at the very beginning? What is energy? What’s the nature of dark matter? Is traveling faster than light possible? What is consciousness? Is there free will? How can we unify different theories of physics into one ultimate theory of everything?
This paradigm goes against the traditional notion that complexity in nature must arise from complicated origins. It claims that simplicity in fundamental rules can produce astonishing complexity in behavior. Entering the Wolfram’s physics project: The computational universe!
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Chapters:
00:00 Intro.
01:48 Fundamentally computational.
08:51 Computational irreducibility.
13:14 Causal invariance.
16:16 Universal computation.
18:44 Spatial dimensions.
21:36 Space curvature.
23:52 Time and causality.
27:12 Energy.
29:38 Quantum mechanics.
31:31 Faster than light travel.
34:56 Dark matter.
36:30 Critiques.
39:15 Meta-framework.
41:19 The ultimate rule.
44:21 Consciousness.
46:00 Free will.
48:02 Meaning and purpose.
49:09 Unification.
55:14 Further analysis.
01:02:30 Credits.
#science #universe #documentary
ETH researchers have developed a new gene switch that can be activated using a commercially available nitroglycerine patch applied to the skin. One day, researchers want to use switches of this kind to trigger cell therapies for various metabolic diseases.
The body regulates its metabolism precisely and continuously, with specialized cells in the pancreas constantly monitoring the amount of sugar in the blood, for example. When this blood sugar level increases after a meal, the body sets a signal cascade in motion in order to bring it back down.
In people suffering from diabetes, this regulatory mechanism no longer works exactly as it should. Those affected therefore have too much sugar in their blood and need to measure their blood sugar level and inject themselves with insulin in order to regulate it. This is a relatively imprecise approach compared to the body’s own mechanism.
New measurements of a certain type of supernova seems to indicate that our expanding universe isn’t accelerating at all, negating any need to invoke a mysterious ‘dark energy’ to explain supernovae observations.
After several dashed predictions, quantum computing is accelerating rapidly with actual use cases and scientific breakthroughs expected within years, not decades.
NETL helped scientists at Montana State University evaluate microscopic cementing agents developed by the University that can more effectively penetrate microfractures to improve underground storage of carbon dioxide (CO2), enhance gas well efficiency and seal fluid pathways in shales fractured for natural gas recovery.
The research targeted use of a process called ureolysis-induced calcium carbonate precipitation (UICP), which produces a biomineral solution that can reduce undesired fluid flow. This could enable the more effective restimulation of previously hydraulically fractured shale formations and reduce flow through fractured rocks above storage formations.
The collaborative project involved researchers at Montana State, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory and NETL and was supported by EPSCoR, a National Science Foundation program that improves research competitiveness of targeted jurisdictions and a U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) program that supports Ph.D. thesis research.