it's probably unimportant, but herrnstein's matching law says that both rats and humans match their responses to their relative rates of reinforcement. humans, pigeons, and rats all behave very similarly in this aspect of behavior. check out http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/R.J._Hernstein
i think your metaphor may stand on its own, but the underlying psychology isn't quite right...
a few thoughts, not having read penrose, but being quite familiar with philosophical arguments based on psychology (as i do research pretty much in that domain):
consciousness and free will are different. the argument that free will and voluntary behavior are somehow dependent on quantum uncertainty is an easier claim to build than that of consciousness. consciousness is generally understood in cognitive psychology to be a top-down executive filter and chooser...
so it's quite possible for nonhuman animals to have free will/exhibit voluntary behavior, but not have what we understand as consciousness (or, if it's a gradient, have as much consciousness).
now, as far as neural development and the neurophysiology: repeatability does not entail deterministic function. the nervous system is highly stochastic (probabilistic). neural firing depends on activation to cross a critical threshold, mediated by molecules bouncing around. i'm not a biochemist, but i'm pretty sure one would tell you that "protein machinery" isn't machinery like humans build machinery. it's messy. it involves a lot of bouncing around until things end up "just right." this bouncing is at a low enough level that it very well can be influenced by quantum uncertainty.
now take this stochastic system and build a massively parallel processor from it, and build in the ability to filter the noise, basically. now you've got at least an illusion of voluntariness, in that behavior is unpredictable and self-initiated.
did you rtfa? this is a paper published in Science magazine.
the title of the paper is Learned Predictions of Error Likelihood in the Anterior Cingulate Cortex. it's by Joshua Brown and Todd Braver. 18 Feb 2005, vol 307... it's only four pages long, and not that hard to read (with some science/psych background)
wow. that's a beautiful device. how sturdily is it built? how's the interface? i own a 40gb 4g iPod and this is the first "ipod killer" that's made me feel even a moment of regret. good find!
New braincells are total wildcards. They can be used for anything. Put a grid of wires over a 1000X1000 patch of neurons shortly after birth. Use the grid for io, teaching the baby to use the interface. Viola, a computer finger.
actually, this isn't really true. function and location of embryonic neurons are actually preprogrammed based on their "birthtime" and "birthplace" in the embryo. based on this information, they migrate. additionally, other neurons near their end position emit neural growth factors (NGFs), the gradients of which further define the space (think triangulation based on chemical concentration).
however, although neurons are anything but wildcards, research is being done on in vitro "programmed" neural growth. we're far from the grid you speak of, particularly since brains are so highly specialized and localized.
i'm a neuropsychology student with both clinical and research experience.
neural plasticity refers to the brain's ability to change in reaction to major events. plasticity is a good thing, as it allows us to recover from lesions, disabilities, etc, with remarkable success. neural plasticity is what allows a blind person to read quickly with their fingertips (there are changes to the sensorimotor and occipital lobes that recruit neurons otherwise unneeded). neural plasticity is nothing to be afraid of, and really has nothing to do with antidepressants.
ssri's, maoi's, and the other assorted antidepressants are not really "altering the way the neural system works," so much as aiding the system recover from an imbalance. ssri's increase levels of seratonin, which is the endogenous (already in your system) hormone that gives you "happy" feelings. this allows depressed individuals to regain control over their lives and enjoy them. ssri's aren't and shouldn't be prescribed for individuals that aren't depressed, but there really isn't any permenant change that they effect. the only major effect ssri's will have on a depressed teenager is that it will increase their chances of recovery from their depression.
no need to be afraid of antidepressants. they're not "changing" you, unless depression is intrinsic to your self-view.
thank you-
this is the first/. post that's ever caused me to laugh aloud. (and i've been reading for a while).
Re:Rendering in real-time won't happen...
on
Final Fantasy At 2.5FPS
·
· Score: 2, Informative
I'd be curious to see if directors/artists will ever be "satisfied" with the quality of cg... if the level of cg will be indiscernible from reality to the untrained eye, as processor speed increases and the render complexity remains constant, render time would speed up. given the teasers i've seen of FF, that level can't be too many years off. do you think fully "realistic" cg is attainable?
Electromagnetic Fields (EMFs) are known to cause genetic mutilation and at certain levels can act as a carginogen. It has been advised that cell phone users who use their cell service a lot should wear headsets insead of basically positioning your brain in a high flux e-field. if you look at the megacar webpage, it appears that the antennae of the system are close to the passengers' heads. imagine the radiation and emfs generated! i'll pass. 150kbps isn't much good if your brain is mush (or worse)... ----- --- - - - jacob rothstein
I specficially like the terminal style interfaces in movies that always have the obligatory skull-and-crossed-bones and pathetically slow disk drives (with extra-smooth progress bar). one must note that green on black is an especially loved color scheme.
The concept of limiting the license to one hard drive is quite limited, to say the least. How does one define a hard drive? Does a RAID count? IBM now has 73.4GB hard drives (Ultrastar 72ZX). What is the point of limiting the storage to one physical hard drive? Does the license apply to mp3's stored on other media? How is the hard drive license enforceable and how are partitions dealt with?
Just a rant, ignore me. ----- --- - - - jacob rothstein
idea: a nice rendering of the tux penguin in a lady liberty stance holding your favorite distro's box instead of the tablet. Not sure what to place the torch with. Any ideas? Lady liberty represents stability, reliability, and freedom.
Slashdot Mirror
xmlhttprequest doesn't require formatting of any sort. check out http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/XMLHttpRequest
enjoy!
it's probably unimportant, but herrnstein's matching law says that both rats and humans match their responses to their relative rates of reinforcement. humans, pigeons, and rats all behave very similarly in this aspect of behavior. check out http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/R.J._Hernstein
i think your metaphor may stand on its own, but the underlying psychology isn't quite right...
enjoy!
a few thoughts, not having read penrose, but being quite familiar with philosophical arguments based on psychology (as i do research pretty much in that domain):
consciousness and free will are different. the argument that free will and voluntary behavior are somehow dependent on quantum uncertainty is an easier claim to build than that of consciousness. consciousness is generally understood in cognitive psychology to be a top-down executive filter and chooser...
so it's quite possible for nonhuman animals to have free will/exhibit voluntary behavior, but not have what we understand as consciousness (or, if it's a gradient, have as much consciousness).
now, as far as neural development and the neurophysiology: repeatability does not entail deterministic function. the nervous system is highly stochastic (probabilistic). neural firing depends on activation to cross a critical threshold, mediated by molecules bouncing around. i'm not a biochemist, but i'm pretty sure one would tell you that "protein machinery" isn't machinery like humans build machinery. it's messy. it involves a lot of bouncing around until things end up "just right." this bouncing is at a low enough level that it very well can be influenced by quantum uncertainty.
now take this stochastic system and build a massively parallel processor from it, and build in the ability to filter the noise, basically. now you've got at least an illusion of voluntariness, in that behavior is unpredictable and self-initiated.
did you rtfa? this is a paper published in Science magazine.
the title of the paper is Learned Predictions of Error Likelihood in the Anterior Cingulate Cortex. it's by Joshua Brown and Todd Braver. 18 Feb 2005, vol 307... it's only four pages long, and not that hard to read (with some science/psych background)
wow. that's a beautiful device. how sturdily is it built? how's the interface? i own a 40gb 4g iPod and this is the first "ipod killer" that's made me feel even a moment of regret. good find!
Well, as long as I don't have to sacrifice my Britney Spears ringtones, it's ok with me...
they are the virus!
jbr.
actually, this isn't really true. function and location of embryonic neurons are actually preprogrammed based on their "birthtime" and "birthplace" in the embryo. based on this information, they migrate. additionally, other neurons near their end position emit neural growth factors (NGFs), the gradients of which further define the space (think triangulation based on chemical concentration).
however, although neurons are anything but wildcards, research is being done on in vitro "programmed" neural growth. we're far from the grid you speak of, particularly since brains are so highly specialized and localized.
nah, when you're shooting ghetto style you have to hold it horizontally and push it, for extra oomph.
why did you have ducks under the sink, and why did you put them on?
hi. sorry. this is pure FUD.
i'm a neuropsychology student with both clinical and research experience.
neural plasticity refers to the brain's ability to change in reaction to major events. plasticity is a good thing, as it allows us to recover from lesions, disabilities, etc, with remarkable success. neural plasticity is what allows a blind person to read quickly with their fingertips (there are changes to the sensorimotor and occipital lobes that recruit neurons otherwise unneeded). neural plasticity is nothing to be afraid of, and really has nothing to do with antidepressants.
ssri's, maoi's, and the other assorted antidepressants are not really "altering the way the neural system works," so much as aiding the system recover from an imbalance. ssri's increase levels of seratonin, which is the endogenous (already in your system) hormone that gives you "happy" feelings. this allows depressed individuals to regain control over their lives and enjoy them. ssri's aren't and shouldn't be prescribed for individuals that aren't depressed, but there really isn't any permenant change that they effect. the only major effect ssri's will have on a depressed teenager is that it will increase their chances of recovery from their depression.
no need to be afraid of antidepressants. they're not "changing" you, unless depression is intrinsic to your self-view.
jbr.
i thing God can claim prior art on that invention.
yeah, but where do you think he's gonna find a lawyer in heaven?
thank you- /. post that's ever caused me to laugh aloud. (and i've been reading for a while).
this is the first
I'd be curious to see if directors/artists will ever be "satisfied" with the quality of cg... if the level of cg will be indiscernible from reality to the untrained eye, as processor speed increases and the render complexity remains constant, render time would speed up. given the teasers i've seen of FF, that level can't be too many years off. do you think fully "realistic" cg is attainable?
turn out the lights?
(cringe)
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Flying bots are illegal
Check http://www.battlebots.com/bnc_rules.asp
(a little whoring never hurt nobody)
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The samsung Yopy runs Linux. check out /. and /.
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karma be damned, i'm responding to a sig-
incredible quote, incredible movie. good choice.
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one of the criteria for the meter competition:
<i>Is the meter pleasing to engage with, sensually?</i>
i don't know what you do with your power meter.
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jacob rothstein
"...genetic mutilation..."
well, that too, but i meant mutation. damn fingers never type what i mean.
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jacob rothstein
Electromagnetic Fields (EMFs) are known to cause genetic mutilation and at certain levels can act as a carginogen. It has been advised that cell phone users who use their cell service a lot should wear headsets insead of basically positioning your brain in a high flux e-field. if you look at the megacar webpage, it appears that the antennae of the system are close to the passengers' heads. imagine the radiation and emfs generated! i'll pass. 150kbps isn't much good if your brain is mush (or worse)...
----- --- - - -
jacob rothstein
freud
i know he's not very politically progressive, but he sure got people thinking and was unconventional.
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jacob rothstein
I specficially like the terminal style interfaces in movies that always have the obligatory skull-and-crossed-bones and pathetically slow disk drives (with extra-smooth progress bar). one must note that green on black is an especially loved color scheme.
----- --- - - -
jacob rothstein
The concept of limiting the license to one hard drive is quite limited, to say the least.
How does one define a hard drive?
Does a RAID count?
IBM now has 73.4GB hard drives (Ultrastar 72ZX). What is the point of limiting the storage to one physical hard drive?
Does the license apply to mp3's stored on other media?
How is the hard drive license enforceable and how are partitions dealt with?
Just a rant, ignore me.
----- --- - - -
jacob rothstein
idea:
a nice rendering of the tux penguin in a lady liberty stance holding your favorite distro's box instead of the tablet.
Not sure what to place the torch with.
Any ideas?
Lady liberty represents stability, reliability, and freedom.
just a suggestion
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jacob rothstein
compaq owns digital. digital makes tru64.
don't sweat the petty things and don't pet the sweaty things.
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jacob rothstein