Ponderings of science, philosophy, history, society, and many other topics
Amanda Gefter has an article at Nautilus a couple of you have asked me about: Reality Exists Without Observers? Boooo! The title is an accurate summary of her thesis. Gefter is responding to a book by Vlatko Vedral, where he reportedly argues for a reality that doesn't require observers. In terms of quantum mechanics, Vedral … Continue reading Does reality require observers?
Since I've been reviewing a lot of horror lately, I could see you being skeptical about my constant disclaimers that I'm not much of a horror fan. But the truth is some horror is so good in its non-horror elements that it's compelling even for people not into horror. That's the case with Sinners, which … Continue reading Sinners, and other TV notes
I recently discovered the new TV show Pluribus, about a scenario where the whole world gets turned into a hive mind, an annoyingly nice one, at least in the initial episodes, but where a few humans turn out to be immune to the virus that converts everyone else, including the cantankerous protagonist, Carol Sturka. The … Continue reading Maybe we’re already part of a hive mind
After watching the new Frankenstein movie this weekend, I decided to correct something. I'd never read the original novel by Mary Shelley. I was familiar with the overall story, but I think it came from reading a comic book adaptation at some point decades ago, one I knew was heavily abridged. A key question upfront … Continue reading Frankenstein; Or, The Modern Prometheus
Last night I watched Guillermo del Toro's new version of Frankenstein. As I frequently point out on this blog, I'm not a big horror fan, but I've frequently been impressed with del Toro's work, and Frankenstein is a classic. And it strikes me as more of an existential exploration than one invoking horror just for … Continue reading Frankenstein and other TV notes
Nature has an article noting that language models have killed "the Turing test" and asking if we even need a replacement. I think the article makes some good points. But a lot of the people quoted seem to take the opportunity to dismiss Turing's whole idea. I think this is a mistake. First, we need … Continue reading Why I still think Turing’s insight matters
I've done a couple of posts on Robert Reed's Greatship series, about a giant spherical Uranus-sized megastructure moving through space at a third the speed of light. It's discovered in intergalactic space and claimed by humans, who then invite anyone who can pay in some manner (resources, technology, science, or even just interesting stories) to … Continue reading The Dragons of Marrow and Hammerwing
Ned Block has a new paper out, for which he shared a time limited link on Bluesky. He argues in the paper that the "meat neutral" computational functionalism inherent in many theories of consciousness neglect what he sees as a compelling alternative: that the subcomputational biological realizers underlying computational processes in the brain are necessary … Continue reading Does consciousness require biology?
I've noted on this blog many times that I'm not much of a horror fan. But the Alien franchise has always been kind of an exception. Space horror might be a little better than the garden variety, just because it's space. But mostly I just enjoy the sci-fi worldbuilding, usually in the early stages of … Continue reading Alien: Earth, and other TV notes
A few weeks ago, I talked about Robert Reed's story collection, The Greatship. It's about a spherical Uranus-sized megastructure moving through space at a third the speed of light. Humans manage to reach it first and claim it, and then decide to take it on a tour of the galaxy, offering passage to anyone who … Continue reading Marrow and The Well of Stars
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