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Friday, August 16, 2019

Bohemian Noir: The robot revolt has begun





Rise of the machines: artificial intelligence will take jobs, warn filmmakers

The documentary Machine assesses the present state of AI, and warns that if we don't make some major ethical choices the future could be very bleak indeed.





… Čapek reflected on the origin of one of the play’s characters:


… The Czech Play That Gave Us the Word ‘Robot’ | The MIT Press Reader

The old inventor, Mr. Rossum (whose name translated into English signifies “Mr. Intellectual” or “Mr. Brain”), is a typical representative of the scientific materialism of the last [nineteenth] century. His desire to create an artificial man — in the chemical and biological, not mechanical sense — is inspired by a foolish and obstinate wish to prove God to be unnecessary and absurd. Young Rossum is the modern scientist, untroubled by metaphysical ideas; scientific experiment is to him the road to industrial production. He is not concerned to prove, but to manufacture.

A.I. Is Learning From Humans. Many Humans. NYT. Training our replacements on the grand scale


Is Your Journalism a Luxury or Necessity? "We hear a chorus of hot tips for 'smarter living,' and near silence on how to survive in America. ... There is no Wirecutter for the poor."