I share the concerns of https://futureoflife.org/open-letter/pause-giant-ai-experiments, but think that a pause is unrealistic.
I've just seen that they have a Plan B: "If such a pause cannot be enacted quickly, governments should step in and institute a moratorium."
Again, I think that a moratorium/pause is unrealistic, but there may be a differentiable version of this suggestion:
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"It is instructive to compare the situation in the life sciences to other areas of science in which the military has taken a stronger interest. The U.S. nuclear weapons program offers an example in which the Departments of Defense and Energy have played dominant roles in funding and shaping developments in nuclear physics and related fields. ...
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK222057/
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@rowat_c I offer the comparison with the Luddites who feared advancement and are now seen as having been a bit goofy in their worries.
No, let's see where this goes and let's apply it to our needs.
The advancement is going to happen. The only question is whether we reap advantages or not.
@volkris I'll take the bait, and defend Luddites: "The Luddites were not, as has often been portrayed, against the concept of progress and industrialisation as such, but instead the idea that mechanisation would threaten their livelihood and the skills they had spent years acquiring..."
https://www.historic-uk.com/HistoryUK/HistoryofBritain/The-Luddites/
In honour of deep Luddites, I'll reject Arabic numerals in favour of Roman to number this (hand-spun, not loom woven!) thread:
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@volkris This suggests that you and the Luddites might have common ground: would they modify your closing sentences to, "The advancement is going to happen. We're going to ensure that we reap advantages"?
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@volkris One way that society ensures that it reaps advantages is to develop good governance: we benefit from the internal combustion engine because society has a series of sanctions for e.g. driving on the wrong side of the road, not respecting road signs...
The Atomic Energy Act wasn't designed to prevent nuclear weapons research. Instead, it seemed to recognise that allowing every VC funded startup to build their own nukes might make it harder for society to "reap advantages".
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@rowat_c Oh we definitely benefit from internal combustion engines regardless of road signs and governance.
Really you're more referring to the benefit of the public road, not the benefit of the internal combustion engine.
The government makes the road so it can make the rules to govern its own roads. It's a completely different matter.
