type lookuperror

[Steve D'Aprano]

On Fri, 19 Aug 2016 02:30 am, Chris Angelico wrote:

> On Fri, Aug 19, 2016 at 2:21 AM, Marko Rauhamaa <marko at pacujo.net> wrote:
>>
>> Yeah, I believe truly conscious machines will arise without being
>> designed through technological evolution. First they'll develop
>> electronics that can simulate brain cells; the clumsy gadgets will be
>> used to replaced cells damaged by Parkinson's or Alzheimer's. Then,
>> healthy people will start enhancing their brain functions by using the
>> same technology. Over time, wetware will be replaced by hardware, and
>> the hardware, in turn, will migrate to the cloud.
> 
> http://mtgsalvation.gamepedia.com/Esper

And when all the hardware is migrated to "the cloud" (stupid marketing speak
for "a bunch of computers that you don't control connected to the
internet"), what exactly will "the cloud" be running on? Moonbeams and
kitten purrs?

Anyone who puts their own mental capacity in the hands of an external entity
they cannot control (*especially* if it is an unregulated or self-regulated
for-profit corporation) will so deserve it when that entity threatens to
cut off 95% of their intelligence unless they upgrade to the Premium "Not A
Drooling Moron" service.

Personally I think it would be hilarious to see what happens when the
wireless connection to "the cloud" go down, and people's intellectually
capacity drop so low that they *literally cannot notice* that they're
missing anything. Denial Of Service attacks will be *hilarious*.

Of course, for this scenario to be plausible will require a much more
advanced understanding of human thought processes, one sufficiently
advanced that these cloud "brain providers" would be more than capable of
invisibly controlling your thoughts. At the basic end, they could inject
advertisements into your visual and auditory cortex without the need to go
through your eyes. By why bother with advertisements aimed to persuade you
to buy Buzz Cola when they can just inject the thought into your brain that
you want to buy Buzz Cola more than anything in the world?

Of course, the better Cloud Brain Providers will offer a premium service
where, for an extra price, they guarantee[1] not to inject thoughts into
your Cloud Brain. Naturally, except for thoughts required for the
maintenance and upkeep of the service ("I must pay the CBP bill today"),
thoughts you have previously Liked or expressed interest in, thoughts
mandated by law, thoughts from companies that you have an existing business
arrangement, and other exempted organisations such as approved charities
and religions.

The best part of it is, how could you tell whether or not your CBP is living
up to their service guarantees? If they're not, you literally will be
incapable of thinking that you are unsatisfied with their service.

I can hardly wait.






[1] Conditions apply.

-- 
Steve
“Cheer up,” they said, “things could be worse.” So I cheered up, and sure
enough, things got worse.