[ExI] People often think their chatbot is alive

[spike at rainier66.com]

From: extropy-chat <extropy-chat-bounces at lists.extropy.org> On Behalf Of Dave S via extropy-chat



 

>… Individual bees are pretty stupid but a hive is capable of making good decisions.

 

-Dave

 

 

Dave do you ever ponder how the hell they do that?  It’s a mind blower.

 

Fun aside kinda related: I was vacationing in Alaska and spent some time with an Inuit tour guide who was explaining Inuit history as it relates to the white man and what our society looked like from their point of view.  Most fascinating.  We look like a swarm of bees to the Inuit people.

 

A swarm of bees will do things nearly in unison.  The queen doesn’t actually lead them as far as I know.  She can somehow signal (we assume) to a resting swarm that it is time to move on, and they start to go.  She follows (I think.)  During the time the bees are swarming, they will not sting.  Somehow they just know what they are supposed to do.  Most mysterious and marvelous beasts are bees.

 

Another fun aside: ants also swarm and they are genetically cousins to bees.  I saw ant swarms for years.  One day I reasoned that swarming bees will not sting, so perhaps swarming ants will not bite.  Got up my nerve and tested it.  Took out my credit card, scooped a few thousand ants into my bare hand.  Theory: correct.  They don’t bite or sting while swarming.  Once they create a tunnel, they defend it like demons, but while swarming they collectively don’t seem to know what their mandibles are for.  A most mysterious and marvelous beast is the ant.

 

spike

 

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