[extropy-chat] Wetware vs. Hardware (was IQ vs Upload)

[Keith Henson]

At 11:47 PM 14/06/05 +0100, you wrote:
>The Avantguardian wrote:
>
>>--- Dirk Bruere <dirk at neopax.com> wrote:
>>
>>>Later, a colleague at Sheffield University became
>>>aware of a young man with a larger than normal head.  He was referred to
>>>Lorber even though it had not caused him any difficulty.  Although the
>>>boy had an IQ of 126 and had a first class honours degree in mathematics,
>>>he had "virtually no brain".  A noninvasive measurement of radio
>>>density known as CAT scan showed the boy's skull was lined with a thin layer
>>>of brain cells to a millimeter in thickness.  The rest of his skull was
>>>filled with cerebrospinal fluid.  The young man continues a
>>>normal life with the exception of his knowledge that he has no brain.
>>>
>>I stand corrected. Obviously there is more to the
>>brain percentage debate than meets the eye. Thanks for
>>this new tidbit of info. I am not sure exactly what to
>>make of it. The MD at the desk next to me is somewhat
>>amazed as well. This is definately NOT what they teach
>>in medical school and neuroscience class.
>>
>Well, if you're going to take it seriously I suggest you dig for real 
>references.
>If it's true it implies that AI might be simpler than we expect, at least 
>in terms of computational requirements.

I remember looking into this when it was reported.  At the time I remarked 
how the surface area of his brain seems to be the important parameter.

This is consistent with William Calvin's analysis that the hexagonal spaced 
cortical column is the "element of computation" in brains.  I ran a 
computation--which is probably can be found if someone looks--assuming that 
each of these columns could be modeled and connected to its neighbors by a 
1 cm square silicon processor.  I seem to remember it was something like 
150 meters on a side square of processors to simulate a human brain this way.

Keith Henson