Comic Discussion > QUESTIONABLE CONTENT
WCDT Strips 3236 - 3240 (6-10 June 2016)
Gyrre:
--- Quote from: Radium_Coyote on 08 Jun 2016, 20:21 ---It's spelled Ptarth.
And it was always obvious that Bubbles had a deep, reflective mind. It's just that the scars from making it haven't gone away yet.
And as regards to the "Simulation Theory", I heard it very simply put this way: "Given the apparent age of the universe, what are the odds we're the first people to come up with that idea?"
--- End quote ---
What was the culture/belief system that thought were were each the dream of a long slumbering iant and that ssomeone's death was caused by their giant waking up?
Since we can create simulated worlds and create simulations within those simulations; if our reality is a simulation, it's not the lowest rung on the ladder. What are we, 64th or so from the bottom? Or was that an ass-pull by smbc-comics?
eschaton:
I see the point of the most recent comic as basically backstory to explain why a world with self-aware AI hasn't departed dramatically from our own. AI exists, but it's not truly "post-singularity" insofar as they are no AI's which are advanced so far beyond what human's are capable of that they are beyond human comprehension. Because if we reached that point, one way or another, no one in the QCverse would have jobs - either because unfriendly AI killed us all, or friendly AI established a post-work utopia.
That said, the world still doesn't quite make sense. Robotics are more advanced than our world. It's unclear to me why, for example, you just don't see "dumb" robots (ones without consciousness) working in coffeeshops. We know the chassis are cheap enough for an individual person to buy, thus they should be cheap enough for a businessperson to buy and put to work. Maybe any machine sufficiently advanced naturally becomes self-aware when it is turned on?
sitnspin:
Why would you assume a friendly AI would have any interest in creating a post-work utopia?
eschaton:
--- Quote from: sitnspin on 09 Jun 2016, 10:11 ---Why would you assume a friendly AI would have any interest in creating a post-work utopia?
--- End quote ---
Because it would be trivially easy to do so? Presuming something super-intelligent could quickly come up with solutions to vexing technological issues, like nanotech and cheap energy. And if it was friendly, it would display something akin to human compassion (which all AIs in the series have shown to limited degrees) likely concluding that inaction is immoral.
I suppose it's possible that the super-intelligent friendly AI could have a more "libertarian" attitude towards people - thinking it's better if people sink or swim on their own effort. But it would have to be an odd sort, because it would also have to avoid using its tremendous powers for material benefit.
Zebediah:
And even if a friendly nearly-omnipotent AI did want to create a post-work utopia, it would still take time and energy to do so. It wouldn't happen overnight.
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