Free Range with Mike Livermore

Mike Livermore speaks with ICA4 Fellow Henry Taylor, Senior Lecturer of Philosophy at the University of Birmingham. Taylor’s work examines the interaction between cognitive science and philosophy, with a particular focus on consciousness, perception, and attention.

After explaining that his interest in philosophy stretches back to his youth, Taylor describes his current work in psychophysics, or the study of the relationship between physical and psychological events (:50 – 5:40). Taylor then provides an in-depth explanation of his work into attention and summarize some of the key concepts and experiments of the field, including “inattentional blindness,” “blindsight,” and the G.Y. case, one of the field’s foundational studies. In addition, Taylor explains the importance of being able to test philosophical hypotheses in a lab (5:45 – 23:30). Taylor then expands on the concept of attention itself, providing different possible definitions of the concept and how scientists approach these definitions. (23:35 – 34:20). Livermore compares the difficulty with settling on one definition of a concept to the debates that occur when a given term must be defined for legal purposes, and Taylor then relates how similar debates occur in the scientific world (34:25 – 42:44). The conversation then shifts focus to consider the concept of consciousness, with Taylor summarizing both the concept and his work into the concept. Taylor touches on ideas such as subliminal messaging, the relationship between sight and perception, and the films Demolition Man and Minority Report. Taylor and Livermore point out the inherent vagueness of language, with Taylor using the famous Jaffa Cake tax tribunal case (43:00 – 54:25). This leads to a discussion of vagueness in relation to artificial intelligence, where Taylor explains that, in fact, vagueness can be a useful tool in understanding the world, because the world itself is often vague (54:30 – 1:04:46). The conversation winds up with Taylor contrasting differing views of how the world is constructed and conceived of (1:04:51 – 1:10:58).

The Intercontinental Academia (ICA) is a global network of future research leaders sponsored by the University-Based Institutes of Advanced Studies. The ICA4 explores the complementarities between artificial intelligence and neuro/cognitive-science.

Mike Livermore speaks with ICA4 Fellow Deshen Moodley, Associate Professor in the Department of Computer Science and Co-Director of the Centre for Artificial Intelligence Research at the University of Cape Town. Moodley’s work focuses on machine learning and probabilistic modeling systems.

Moodley begins by remembering his first encounter with computers, and how that spurred a lifelong interest in programming and, eventually, led him, first, to a career in the private sector before transitioning to an academic career. Moodley compares the differing aims of industry and academia, in addition to pointing out the way in which the structure of a country’s academic system influences the production of knowledge and the interaction between academia and industry (:55 – 8:53). Moodley then explains what machine learning is, where it fits within the broader field of artificial intelligence, and, after providing a basic introduction to Bayesian inference, offers examples of knowledge representation systems that the public might be familiar with in their daily life. Moodley then explains how these systems can be used to increase efficiency in areas like medical diagnoses and the subsequent relaying of that information to the patient (9:00 – 26:19). The conversation then delves into Bayesian networks, what they are, and how they are used in artificial intelligence research. Moodley describes how AI, using machine learning, might go about diagnosing an illness, before emphasizing the benefits of a hybrid system that combines Bayesian and knowledge-based systems (26:30 – 45:33). Shifting to one of Moodley’s key concerns about AI, the conversation touches on whether machine learning has increased access to knowledge. Moodley argues that fear of autonomous AI is one of the major hurdles to the field, with the result that society has been slow to incorporate these systems (45:45 – 55:22). The conversation concludes with a thought-provoking hypothetical (featuring cameos from Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie!) illustrating the difference between normative- and performance-based approaches to artificial intelligence (45:45 – 1:08:40).

The Intercontinental Academia (ICA) is a global network of future research leaders sponsored by the University-Based Institutes of Advanced Studies. The ICA4 explores the complementarities between artificial intelligence and neuro/cognitive-science.

Mike Livermore speaks with ICA4 Laura Candiotto, whose work focuses on the Philosophy of Emotions, and the intersection of epistemology, ethics, philosophy, and cognition. At the time this interview was recorded, Candiotto was a Senior Research Fellow at the Free University of Berlin’s Institute of Philosophy; she is now a Senior Researcher at the Centre for Ethics at the University of Pardubice, Czech Republic.

Candiotto begins by explaining what exactly she means when she refers to emotion in her work, how others in her field understand the term, and why competing theories of emotion lead to controversy amongst those in the field (1:07 – 9:04). Candiotto then describes how epistemology and emotion interact with each other, explaining that often an emotional response can reveal the truth of a situation (9:15 – 16:46). Taking a step back, Candiotto provides definitions for some of the key concepts to her research, including epistemology, virtue, curiosity, and intellectual character (16:52 – 25:50). This leads to a discussion of the function of emotion, the ethics of knowledge, and the creation of moral obligations. Candiotto explains that, in contrast to post-modernism, her research is centered on the belief that truth does exist and has value, while admitting that there are times where truth may be less important than understanding (25:57 – 36:26). Candiotto goes on to state that she believes that emotions can be both universal and biologically and culturally specific, then speaks about her forthcoming paper on epistemic cultures and how a society’s values can influence individuals’ emotional response (36:40 – 44:58). Livermore then provides a brief summary of the AlphaGo computer program, and asks Candiotto to situate her work within the context of machine learning (45:00 – 53:40). The conversation finishes with a rumination on one of artificial intelligence’s central questions: the relationship between motivation and the ethics of knowledge (53:45 – 58:33).

The Intercontinental Academia (ICA) is a global network of future research leaders sponsored by the University-Based Institutes of Advanced Studies. The ICA4 explores the complementarities between artificial intelligence and neuro/cognitive-science.

Mike Livermore speaks with ICA4 Fellow Jakub Growiec, Professor of Economics and Finance at the Warsaw School of Economics. Growiec’s work focuses on the world economy, economic growth, and the interaction between economics and technology.

The podcast begins with Growiec explaining his interest in economics, and the motivations that led him to tailor his work to become more accessible to the general public (:45 – 3:30). He then speaks about the idea of “instrumental convergence,” and why he believes it is an important component in the understanding of intelligence. Growiec explains how the four instrumental goals of artificial intelligence — self-preservation, efficiency, creativity, and resources — can be understood in the context of biological life. Using Nick Bostrom’s “paperclip maximizer” thought experiment, Growiec explains the relationship between general goals and instrumental goals, and hypothesizes about whether we are, in fact, living in a paperclip maximizer scenario and simply do not know it yet (3:35 – 14:02). Shifting focus, Growiec provides his specific definitions of hardware and software, definitions which are much broader than normal, and the relationship between those two things and societal revolution and advancement. Growiec locates these terms within the traditional dichotomy of management (hardware) and labor (software), and explains how advancements in either field have propelled human development. This leads to a discussion of the relationship between these advances in technological development and institutions and policy. Expanding on the difference between hardware and software, Livermore introduces the concept of rivalry, with Growiec explaining how the concept functions within the context of both software and hardware revolutions (14:05 – 35:32). Continuing the conversation on the impact of the software revolution we are currently experiencing, Livermore and Growiec discuss GDP, its limits, and some potential alternatives that we might use to measure economic growth. This part of the conversation touches on a variety of topics, including the contribution of video games to happiness, whether that can be measured via GDP, and the influence Napster and other P2P services had on IP law (35:40 – 49:35). Livermore then raises questions about artificial intelligence and inequality, leading Growiec to speak about those workers who have had their jobs overtaken by automation, and how increased automation will lead to further inequality. Growiec believes that governments will respond too slowly to this reality, but Livermore suggests that governments may incorporate automation as a means to combat some of its more negative aspects (49:39 – 1:08:25).

The Intercontinental Academia (ICA) is a global network of future research leaders sponsored by the University-Based Institutes of Advanced Studies. The ICA4 explores the complementarities between artificial intelligence and neuro/cognitive-science.