Since there have been multiple discussions of aliens lately on this list, I think I should communicate a thought that I have had concerning them that I have not heard any one else say --- although I would be very surprised if others have not thought it --- and it does relate to AGI --- so it is "on list."
==== As we learn just how common exoplanets are, the possibility that aliens have visited earth seems increasingly scientifically believable, even for a relatively rationalist person like myself. There have, in fact, been many reportings of UFOs from sources that are hard to reject out of hand. An astronaut that NASA respected enough to send to the moon, has publicly stated he has attended government briefings in which he was told there is substantial evidence aliens have repeatedly visited earth. Within the last year Drudge had a report from a Chicago TV station that said sources at the tower of O'Hare airport claimed multiple airline pilots reported to them seeing a large flying-saucer-shaped object hovering over one of the building of the airport and then disappearing. Now, I am not saying these reports are necessarily true, but I am saying that --- (a) given how rapidly life evolved on earth, as soon as it cooled enough that there were large pools of water; (b) there are probably at least a million habitable planets in the Milky Way (a conservative estimates); and (c) if one assumes one in 1000 such planets will have life evolve to AGI super-intelligence --- the chances there are planets with AGI super-intelligence within several thousand light years of earth are very good. And since, at least, mechanical AGIs with super intelligence and the resulting levels of technology should be able to travel through space at one tenth to one thousandth the speed of light for many tens of thousands of years, it is not at all unlikely life and/or machine forms from such planets have had time to reach us --- and perhaps --- not only to reach us --- but also to report back to their home planet and recruit many more of their kind to visit us. This becomes even more likely if one considers that some predict the Milky Way actually had its peak number of habitable planets billions of years ago, meaning that on many planets evolution of intelligent life is millions, or billions, of years ahead of ours, and thus that life/machine forms on many of the planets capable of supporting intelligent life are millions of years beyond their singularities. This would mean their development of extremely powerful super-intelligence and the attendant developments in technologies we know of --- such as nanofabrication, controlled fusion reactions, and quantum computing and engineering --- and technologies we do not yet even know of --- would be way beyond our imagining. All of the above is nothing new, among those who are open minded about (a) the evidence about the commonness of exoplanets; (b) the fact that there are enough accounts of UFO's from reputable sources that such accounts cannot dismissed out of hand as false, and (c) what the singularity and the development of super-intelligence would mean to a civilization. ==== But what I am suggesting that I have never heard before is that it is possible the aliens, if they actually have been visiting us repeatedly are watching us to see when mankind achieves super-intelligence, because only then do we presumably have a chance of becoming their equal. Perhaps this means that only then we can understand them. Or perhaps it means that only then we can become a threat to them. If they are smart enough to get here from solar systems far away, and if they are smart enough to appear to instantly disappear the way many accounts claim UFO's do, then presumably they are smart enough to monitor our communications, decode them, and if they decide necessary for their benefit, to intervene, either benevolently or destructively. Those of you who frequent portions of the web much more wigged-out than I do --- which the entheogen discussing suggested some of you do --- will probably say "ho hum, been there, thought that." But whether is it a new thought or an old though --- if alien life forms are actually monitoring us, our achieving AGI would substantially change our relationship to them and may substantially change their behavior toward us --- and that might just be a very important thought. ==== 'd be interested in your thoughts. ==== Ed Porter -----Original Message----- From: Ben Goertzel [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] Sent: Tuesday, November 25, 2008 6:53 PM To: agi@v2.listbox.com Subject: Re: [agi] JAGI submission > I could also argue that the limitations on RSI would constrain a hard-takeoff singularity to an explosion of computational power, not of knowledge. But I think that might be a stretch. Not everyone agrees that there will even be a singularity in the first place. You could argue that, but not convincingly or effectively. How can you know what complex patterns a superhuman AI might find in the world ... or what beings, unknown to us, it might interact with and learn from? -- Ben G ------------------------------------------- agi Archives: https://www.listbox.com/member/archive/303/=now RSS Feed: https://www.listbox.com/member/archive/rss/303/ Modify Your Subscription: https://www.listbox.com/member/?&; Powered by Listbox: http://www.listbox.com ------------------------------------------- agi Archives: https://www.listbox.com/member/archive/303/=now RSS Feed: https://www.listbox.com/member/archive/rss/303/ Modify Your Subscription: https://www.listbox.com/member/?member_id=8660244&id_secret=120640061-aded06 Powered by Listbox: http://www.listbox.com
