Tell me, are you going to decide what is "garbage" and what sites I can or cannot visit? How about deciding what I see? Hear? Think?
No thanks. I'm an intelligent, responsible adult, and I can decide for myself what I can or cannot experience. I'm sorry that you see your self as a baby bird. Might I suggest you put yourself under adult supervision? It will give you a nice, secure feeling and you can avoid all that icky "personal responsibility" stuff.
Are you saying that life didn't evolve, or that our current understanding of the mechanism is in error. If the former, then just what is it that you think the fossil record and the genetic commonality of all life on earth mean?
Well said. The only thing I do under W95 is play games and surf. I'd rather be able to run Linux exclusively, and I can't do that and play the games I have. Bragging rights or anti-Windows bias have nothing to do with it.
As for my 'anti-MS attitude', I am opposed to Microsoft's corporate behavior and the effects of said behavior on the industry and me as a consumer. I also believe that Linux is vastly superior for things I want to do except for games, which was the whole point of my post. So, I use W95 for games, and look forward to the day when I can stay in Linux.
My system is W95/Linux dual boot, but I have been running W95 exclusively lately. Why? In a word: games. I have several games I enjoy - Diablo (an oldie but a goodie), Homeworld, System Shock II, and of course Quake III and Unreal Tournament. If I had the means to run these games under linux, I would reformat my W95 HD, put the CD in the microwave, and never look back. I would dearly love to run Linux 24/7. But, facts are facts: I can't play most of these games at all under Linux, and those that can work do so slowly. Is there more to life than games? Yes. Do I want to be able to play the games I own at a decent framerate? Yes.
So, when will, say, a GeForce DDR under Linux be able to give me QIII with 60FPS at 1024x768 resolution? Will Xfree86 4.0 do it? Will new Nvidia drivers do it? Will Wine do it? Or should I just get a Voodoo card and be done with it?
What - "There are some things that Man was not meant to Know." ? Spare me - sounds like a line from a second-rate Frankenstein movie. First, you complain about man "assuming the role of God." Which God? What evidence do you have to support the assertion that said God exists (note that I am not taking a position as to God's existence or nature)? Then you say that "man continues to disgust me". Self-loathing, perhaps?
We, as always, should proceed with caution and forethought. When we create new lifeforms, we should consider the ethical ramifications first. No question. However, you want science to only go so far, and no farther. Who draws that line? And, how are you going to enforce said limitation? I think Galileo said it best: "I refuse to believe in a God that would grant us intelligence and curiousity, and then have us forego their use." (BTW, if I have the quote wrong, I'd appreciate a reference to the correct version). If, you have a particular diety you believe created the Universe and has some Plan for us, think long and hard before you start trying to speak in His/Her name.
Not a flame, but a question or two. Who decides what is 'defective' and what isn't? Will parents be forced to disallow defective gene sequences? Will geneticists be sued if an engineered child isn't the well-behaved genius his/her parents hoped for? What will we lose by giving up some of our diversity?
If you are so down on Katz, then why are you reading his articles, and why are you posting here? Do you honestly think you will cause every single/. reader to say "By Jove, he's right!" and never read his articles again??
If you have something substantive to contribute, please do. If you are just here to bitch, don't bother.
That's your (if I may say so, shallow) take on it. People are protesting for a variety of reasons. Some are worried about their jobs. Some are worried about the environment. Some don't want to be under the de facto rulership of a corporation. Some, believe it or not, actually care about those Chinese slave laborers or Malaysian kids, and are speaking out for them. And, sure, some people do get a thrill about having something to protest.
Don't paint them all as irrelevant, and don't tell those "upper middle class college students" they shouldn't be protesting; I'm glad some of them are actually daring to care.
I like a little paranoia as much as the next person, but going from the detection of Stealth planes to a Chinese invasion of the US is a bit of a stretch, even for the eccentric segment of/. posters. I, for one, go to sleep every night with a high degree of confidence that tomorrow the sun will rise, there will not be black helicopters flying overhead, and those darn communists, socialists, liberals, secular humanists, gun control advocates, athiests or whatever your favorite Boogy Men happen to be won't be marching down Main Street. So, unload your guns and put them away, cancel your subscription to Survivalist Weekly, and have a warm cup of tea. You'll feel better. Really.
This is true only so long as your computer isn't an independent intelligence. Once that is the case, all bets are off. In my opinion, an intelligence should be granted certain rights regardless of it's physical substrate. Anything less will be slavery all over again. Let's not repeat our race's old mistakes.
Aside: Contrary to many idealistic axioms, it is impossible for two equal fulcrums to exist in the same system. Coexistence with artificial sentients is only a temporary setting.
That's an impressive-sounding statement, but it is also devoid of value. At this time, we have no reason to believe that coexistence with another sentient race (be they of our own making, or wee green blobbies from Alpha Centauri) is impossible. One of the hallmarks of intelligence is the ability to solve problems and adapt to new situations. When the human race encounters a new intelligence, many things could happen. To say that coexistence is not possible is right up there with saying that no one will ever need more than 640K of memory.
In any case, this need to place blame is, it seems to me, nothing more than insecurity. Placing blame doesn't fix problems, and it doesn't undo accidents. If you mean assigning responsibility, that's one thing. Pointing fingers and flinging lawsuits only makes lawyers richer and all of us poorer.
Grow up. There's nothing glamorous about being poor.
Quite true. Likewise, making a profit or being rich doesn't imply, in any way, moral superiority. You might be able to make an argument for profitablility being an indicator of intelligence, but it would be a weak argument at best.
Let's have a moment of silence for Byte, once a truly outstanding computer magazine. I remember when it had in-depth articles, even algorithms and source code. I looked forward to its arrival every month, and read it cover-to-cover. Later, it became nothing more than a product brochure.
My idea of a computer magazine: the old Byte. In-depth analysis, unbiased reviews, and informative tutorials. Too many magazines are becoming nothing more than advertiser whores. Indeed, a smart magazine would have a website for the quick, up-to-the-minute news, and a paper mag for the analysis and tutorials. Most of the magazines I see now are hopelessly out of date by the time they get to me.
"I was a slave. My father was a slave. My son was born a slave. It's life"
Claiming that nothing can be done is so much easier than taking responsibility and at least trying to change things. Yes, you may fail. But if you don't try, you can't win.
A fine example for the next generation: blindly follow the rules, and we probably won't throw you in jail. This act falls in the same pathetic bucket as the girl who was suspended for being a "drug pusher" - she gave her friend a Midol. Damnit, kids should be in school learning how to think and question, not how to be slaves. What next: have microphones and computers monitor what students say, and look for forbidden words? I'm sure the administrators would think that was a "double-plus good" idea.
The interesting thing about the Linux community is that it isn't run by the precepts of capitalism. Linux programmers write code because the need to, or choose to because it's fun or they just want to contribute. Many of them release their work for others to use, study, and modify in turn. We all benefit. No one is asking you to give your software away. It's your choice. Likewise, no one is keeping you from using all the free software out there. That is also your choice.
Capitalism is a way of doing things. It isn't the only way, or necessarily the best way. The nice thing about software is that you can give it all away, and you still have it. You don't have to come to our world, but you are wecome to.
Artificial Intelligence refers to the search for a human generated algorithm that will simulate intelligence on a computer.(notice I said simulate) I, for one, think that this is an impossibility.
That's an awful lot of bitterness for what amounts to a signal processing technique. Besides, last I heard there were quite a few successful applications for neural networks - credit card application processing and financial analysis, to name two.
Slashdot Mirror
But, there won't be much improvement in voice synthesis technology, so we'll all sound like we're talking through garden hoses. :)
No thanks. I'm an intelligent, responsible adult, and I can decide for myself what I can or cannot experience. I'm sorry that you see your self as a baby bird. Might I suggest you put yourself under adult supervision? It will give you a nice, secure feeling and you can avoid all that icky "personal responsibility" stuff.
Are you saying that life didn't evolve, or that our current understanding of the mechanism is in error. If the former, then just what is it that you think the fossil record and the genetic commonality of all life on earth mean?
"recent scientific work...life is too complex to have evolved" Yeah. Sure. Right. I don't suppose you have anything to back that up with, eh?
Thank you!!! I am sick to #$%#%$% death of reading the same damned wrong arguments. Bravo!
"whine and mumble"? You must have been reading something other than what I posted. So, AC, do you have any links to said hardware petitions?
As for my 'anti-MS attitude', I am opposed to Microsoft's corporate behavior and the effects of said behavior on the industry and me as a consumer. I also believe that Linux is vastly superior for things I want to do except for games, which was the whole point of my post. So, I use W95 for games, and look forward to the day when I can stay in Linux.
My system is W95/Linux dual boot, but I have been running W95 exclusively lately. Why? In a word: games. I have several games I enjoy - Diablo (an oldie but a goodie), Homeworld, System Shock II, and of course Quake III and Unreal Tournament. If I had the means to run these games under linux, I would reformat my W95 HD, put the CD in the microwave, and never look back. I would dearly love to run Linux 24/7. But, facts are facts: I can't play most of these games at all under Linux, and those that can work do so slowly. Is there more to life than games? Yes. Do I want to be able to play the games I own at a decent framerate? Yes.
So, when will, say, a GeForce DDR under Linux be able to give me QIII with 60FPS at 1024x768 resolution? Will Xfree86 4.0 do it? Will new Nvidia drivers do it? Will Wine do it? Or should I just get a Voodoo card and be done with it?
We, as always, should proceed with caution and forethought. When we create new lifeforms, we should consider the ethical ramifications first. No question. However, you want science to only go so far, and no farther. Who draws that line? And, how are you going to enforce said limitation? I think Galileo said it best: "I refuse to believe in a God that would grant us intelligence and curiousity, and then have us forego their use." (BTW, if I have the quote wrong, I'd appreciate a reference to the correct version). If, you have a particular diety you believe created the Universe and has some Plan for us, think long and hard before you start trying to speak in His/Her name.
Not a flame, but a question or two. Who decides what is 'defective' and what isn't? Will parents be forced to disallow defective gene sequences? Will geneticists be sued if an engineered child isn't the well-behaved genius his/her parents hoped for? What will we lose by giving up some of our diversity?
reading his articles, and why are you posting
here? Do you honestly think you will cause
every single
right!" and never read his articles again??
If you have something substantive to contribute,
please do. If you are just here to bitch, don't
bother.
Don't paint them all as irrelevant, and don't tell those "upper middle class college students" they shouldn't be protesting; I'm glad some of them are actually daring to care.
You know, there are caffeine-free varieties of coffee that are just as tasty. Really.
I like a little paranoia as much as the next person, but going from the detection of Stealth planes to a Chinese invasion of the US is a bit of a stretch, even for the eccentric segment of /. posters. I, for one, go to sleep every night with a high degree of confidence that tomorrow the sun will rise, there will not be black helicopters flying overhead, and those darn communists, socialists, liberals, secular humanists, gun control advocates, athiests or whatever your favorite Boogy Men happen to be won't be marching down Main Street. So, unload your guns and put them away, cancel your subscription to Survivalist Weekly, and have a warm cup of tea. You'll feel better. Really.
This is true only so long as your computer isn't an independent intelligence. Once that is the case, all bets are off. In my opinion, an intelligence should be granted certain rights regardless of it's physical substrate. Anything less will be slavery all over again. Let's not repeat our race's old mistakes.
That's an impressive-sounding statement, but it is also devoid of value. At this time, we have no reason to believe that coexistence with another sentient race (be they of our own making, or wee green blobbies from Alpha Centauri) is impossible. One of the hallmarks of intelligence is the ability to solve problems and adapt to new situations. When the human race encounters a new intelligence, many things could happen. To say that coexistence is not possible is right up there with saying that no one will ever need more than 640K of memory.
In any case, this need to place blame is, it seems to me, nothing more than insecurity. Placing blame doesn't fix problems, and it doesn't undo accidents. If you mean assigning responsibility, that's one thing. Pointing fingers and flinging lawsuits only makes lawyers richer and all of us poorer.
Quite true. Likewise, making a profit or being rich doesn't imply, in any way, moral superiority. You might be able to make an argument for profitablility being an indicator of intelligence, but it would be a weak argument at best.
My idea of a computer magazine: the old Byte. In-depth analysis, unbiased reviews, and informative tutorials. Too many magazines are becoming nothing more than advertiser whores. Indeed, a smart magazine would have a website for the quick, up-to-the-minute news, and a paper mag for the analysis and tutorials. Most of the magazines I see now are hopelessly out of date by the time they get to me.
Thank you for reinforcing my point. By the way, it was a typo - sue me.
Dear god, what a set of priorities.
Claiming that nothing can be done is so much easier than taking responsibility and at least trying to change things. Yes, you may fail. But if you don't try, you can't win.
Am I the only person who is outraged by this???
Capitalism is a way of doing things. It isn't the only way, or necessarily the best way. The nice thing about software is that you can give it all away, and you still have it. You don't have to come to our world, but you are wecome to.
What makes you think it's an impossibility?
That's an awful lot of bitterness for what amounts to a signal processing technique. Besides, last I heard there were quite a few successful applications for neural networks - credit card application processing and financial analysis, to name two.