ALS Topic 13 - Is Artificial Intelligence (AI) Good for Us?
Focus questions for Adelaide Lunchtime Seminar, 21 July 2018 (https://www.meetup.com/AdelaideLunchtimeSeminar/ )
Note: The
questions below are not supposed to suggest biased answers. You
really can adopt any point of view your can suggest evidence for. Do
be prepared for others suggesting counter-evidence! Note: clearly
not all of these questions can be properly covered in a meetup, but
they give us a conscious choice about what to talk about while
making the background context clearer. It is up to the people who
come on the day to choose what aspects they would like to deal with.
Focus Questions:
1. What actually is AI (artificial
intelligence) in your understanding?
2. Some people working
in AI say that they are more afraid of 'smart' gadgets in the home
than AI. Why would this be?
3. It was common a couple of
decades ago to hear that computers didn't make mistakes, humans did
("rubbish in, rubbish out" was the mantra). To what extent, if at
all, has this changed?
4. People already surrender much of
their autonomy and trust their lives to conventional computer
algorithms (e.g. jet liners are mostly flown by computers, not
pilots). However, if AI based systems assume critical control
functions, and NOBODY can understand how those AI based systems
arrived at choices, are we back in an entirely faith-based
civilization like the Middle Ages?
5. How will legal codes
have to be written when humans are no longer responsible for
critical decisions (e.g. in driverless cars)?
6. There was an
acronym popular in the World War II era: 'SNAFU' - 'situation
normal, all fucked up'. Rules and regulations would often have been
intolerable if applied exactly, but human carelessness, laziness,
forgetfulness, kindness ... and so on normally meant that most
people could bend the rules enough to live a reasonable human life.
How will we cope if every slip and oversight is relentlessly
observed and punished in some form of ever-present, impersonal,
always correct AI environment?
7. There is a kind of human
law of entropy driven by laziness: If someone or something else can
do the job, we'll pay to avoid it. If someone or something else can
take reponsibility, we'll pay to avoid it. This already means that
huge numbers of people drift into a state of being mental and
physical slobs. If an AI driven environment becomes capable enough
to make all major life decisions, will we surrender autonomy
altogether?
8. The Titanic effect : When sophisticated ABS
braking systems first appeared in cars their automatic control was
supposed to eliminate many accidents. Instead, there were apparently
just as many accidents in these cars. Why? The drivers in old
rattlers knew when to be careful, but the drivers with ABS braking
put their faith in the machine and took more risks. Do you expect
this sort of thing to happen as AI takes over more and more
functions in life and the workplace?
9. A.I. is being
weaponized (like every technical and scientific innovation in
history). There is a large chunk of every human group whose first
priority is predatory conflict (probably an outcome of evolved
sexual display), and no religion or ideology or education has every
quite suppressed this. In other words, no matter how stupid,
conflict & war is a permanent part of the equation. How do you think
A.I. will be deployed in the conflict space, and what defences can
we devise against it?
10. Where do you think AI can be
deployed to help with problems and events affecting your own life,
and those of your children.
Be creative when thinking about
this!
11. There are strong signs that A.I. (and even much
simpler automation) will destroy huge numbers of professional and
working class jobs very soon. How do you expect to be affected by
this? What will you do about it?
Extra Reading
A.I. - there are no limits to where this
stuff is going: "'I was shocked it was so easy': meet the professor
who says facial recognition can tell if you're gay" - an interview
with the AI researcher and psychologist, Michal Kosinsky who also
says "I don't believe in free will" @
https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2018/jul/07/artificial-intelligence-can-tell-your-sexuality-politics-surveillance-paul-lewis
Traffic control on a grand scale: this looks
like a more benign use of AI: "China’s biggest ride-hailing platform
Didi Chuxing wants to crunch its data to improve traffic conditions"
@
https://www.scmp.com/tech/china-tech/article/2154027/chinas-biggest-ride-hailing-platform-wants-crunch-its-data-improve
"Jack Ma says humans will never be able to
compete with AI" @
https://www.facebook.com/worldeconomicforum/videos/10155457887166479/
AI in economic planning - interesting comments by Ludwig
Siegele : "What do you think about the use of advance data science
techniques and machine learning algorithms to critically analyse
modern economies and set interest rates based on such improved
analysis methods?" @
https://www.quora.com/What-do-you-think-about-the-use-of-advance-data-science-techniques-and-machine-learning-algorithms-to-critically-analyse-modern-economies-and-set-interest-rates-based-on-such-improved-analysis-methods
"The crucial flaw of self-driving cars? They
will always need human involvement - The introduction of new
technology into everyday life will always take longer than you
think" John Naughton @
https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2018/jul/15/crucial-flaw-of-self-driving-cars-always-need-human-involvement
"Global workforce will be decimated by fourth
[industial] revolution, says Siemens boss" @
https://www.theguardian.com/business/2018/jul/15/global-workforce-will-be-decimated-by-fourth-revolution-says-siemens-boss
Python seems to be the language of choice for
AI programming. In the last year it has had more Google searches
than 'Kim Kardashian', which sounds hopeful. Python is being widely
introduced in schools, at least in America: "Code.org, a charity,
notes that 40% of American schools now offer such lessons, up from
10% in 2013. Around two-thirds of 10- to 12-year-olds have an
account on Code.org’s website. Perhaps unnerved by a future filled
with automated jobs, 90% of American parents want their children to
study computer science". @
https://www.economist.com/science-and-technology/2018/07/21/python-has-brought-computer-programming-to-a-vast-new-audience?cid1=cust/ednew/n/bl/n/2018/07/19n/owned/n/n/nwl/n/n/n/137085/n
"The Fourth Industrial Revolution: what it
means, how to respond" Klaus Schwab, World Economic Forum @
https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2016/01/the-fourth-industrial-revolution-what-it-means-and-how-to-respond
"Industry 4.0, or the Fourth Industrial Revolution, is the current trend of automation and data exchange in manufacturing technologies. It includes cyber-physical systems, the Internet of things also cloud computing"
Wikipedia @
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Industry_4.0
Essential first
reading: "Artificial Intelligence", Wikipedia @
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Artificial_intelligence
"The meaning of life in a world without work
As technology renders jobs obsolete, what will keep us busy? -
Sapiens author Yuval Noah Harari examines ‘the useless class’ and a
new quest for purpose" - The Guardian @
https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2017/may/08/virtual-reality-religion-robots-sapiens-book?CMP=fb_gu
"The robot debate is over: the jobs are gone
and they aren't coming back". Tim Dunlop, The Guardian @
https://www.theguardian.com/sustainable-business/2017/mar/31/the-robot-debate-is-over-the-jobs-are-gone-and-they-arent-coming-back
"Who should die when a driverless car
crashes? Q&A ponders the future" - The Guardian @
https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2017/oct/03/who-should-die-when-a-driverless-car-crashes-qa-ponders-the-future
"World’s largest hedge fund to replace
managers with artificial intelligence ". Wall Street Journal @
http://www.wsj.com/articles/the-worlds-largest-hedge-fund-is-building-an-algorithmic-model-of-its-founders-brain-1482423694
"You Will Lose Your Job to a Robot—and Sooner
Than You Think" Mother Jones @
http://www.motherjones.com/politics/2017/10/you-will-lose-your-job-to-a-robot-and-sooner-than-you-think/?utm_source=pocket&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=pockethits
"How to ensure Australia thrives when the
robots come".Peter Hartcher @
www.brisbanetimes.com.au%2Fworld%2Fnorth-america%2Fhow-to-ensure-australia-thrives-when-the-robots-come-20170929-gyrgr9.html
"Are Russia’s leaders ready for the Fourth
Industrial Revolution?". Anastasia Kalinina, World Economic Forum,
2016 @
https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2016/12/are-russia-s-leaders-ready-for-the-fourth-industrial-revolution
Pedro Domingo, 2015 "The Master Algorithm: How the Quest for the Ultimate Learning Machine Will Remake Our World" - [book, ebook or MP3] - on Amazon @ https://www.amazon.com/Master-Algorithm-Ultimate-Learning-Machine/dp/1501299387
Thor's own websites:
1. articles at http://independent.academia.edu/ThorMay ;
2. legacy site: http://thormay.net .