NEWSLETTER

	Part Three: The End of Humans Dr. Nick Bostrom is the director of the Future of Humanity Institute at Oxford in England. That means he is basically the archduke of future studies. He has advanced degrees with highest honors in philosophy and mathematics and mathematic logic and computational neuroscience and physics and artificial intelligence. What have you done, barely passed fifth grade? In July, Dr. Bostrom presented a paper he published in Philosophical Quarterly before a panel of the world’s toughest judges: Kids just like you!

Dr. Nick Bostrum: Lots of serious scientists believe that, in the future, we will have very powerful computers. Now, let’s just say that the scientists are right. Let’s say that our descendants will have very powerful computers. One thing that they might want to do with their computers is look at humanity and learn more about us, both socially and medically. To do that, they might build computer programs, or simulations. And those programs, if they were detailed enough, might even believe that they were feeling things and seeing things. Even though they were just computer programs designed to be exactly like you, they might not know the difference.

Dhilan: I’m pretty weird you know. Imagine if I was three inches tall.

Well, that is interesting. That is exactly the sort of thinking I would like for you to do. Now imagine if you had pretend glasses and you could watch an imaginary, underground football field versus actually having a real underground football field. Would it matter if it were real or not if it looked the same and felt the same?

Bhavan: Steven Gerrard is dumb. He missed that penalty and Lampard took a rubbish penalty.

OK, but we aren’t really here to talk about football.

Do you think there would be a difference between just having the experiences of something versus it happening for real? Philosophers have this thought experiment called “the experience machine.” The idea here is that you have this imaginary machine and you can go into it and have any experience you want. You can experience being a king or a queen or winning a war or kissing someone you fancy—any feeling you want to have. You can feel happiness or pressure. Would you or would you not go into the experience machine? Nothing that happens there is real. Think about it. Now, what do you think of the idea that we could almost certainly be living in a computer simulation in the future? You play computer games and every year they get more and more realistic with more details, right?

Jay: It’s not possible for us to live in a huge computer. We would have to be electric people. If we’re living in a huge computer, you’d have to find a massive plug to put in the universe and the computer would be massive as well.

OK, but in the future it may be possible to create people using computers. How about if each of you try to imagine what kind of people you would create. If you could make any kind of person in the world, who would you make.

Nikki: I’d make a nice lady, about 30 years old, who’s a doctor. She’s got loads of boyfriends, loads of money, a nice car, and a nice house. She’d be called Jane.

Carly: I’d have a boy in his teens—about 18 years old. He’s going to college. He’s doing well and he’s nice. I’d call him Chubbs.

Dhivan: If I could make a person out of a computer I’d make him friendly, happy, and safe. He’d be 11 years old. I would call him President Bush because I know President Bush. He’d have a big bush around his head. I’d give him flying powers and punching powers.

Ross: Mine would be happy, kind, and helpful. He would have night vision.

Good. Very interesting. And you see, what I argued in my paper is that it is possible that someone in the future decided to make a bookstore, and put me onto a stool and surround me by a boy in a shirt just like that one and a girl who had her thumb in her mouth until just now. And a gentleman with a camera, and…

Bhavan: Imagine if the world was made out of poo. We’d need gas masks like Adolf Hitler had.

Do you know what an academic is?

Jay: Is it a banana?

I believe I have come to the end of my lecture. Thank you.

VICE STAFF


VICE LECTURES FOR KIDS | 1 | 2 | 3 |

< PREV

MORE FROM THIS ISSUE

NEXT >

POST A COMMENT [SIGN IN] Hi, in case you haven't heard, you can now sign up to become a "member" of Viceland.com, which entitles you to all sorts of amazing benefits like pictures and a nickname. Click here to make your own profile. You can still comment if you don't, but you gotta do it all 'nonymously.

Name:
Comment: