<!DOCTYPE html>
<html>
<head>
<meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8">
</head>
<body>
On 04/06/2025 18:44, spike wrote:<br>
<blockquote type="cite"
cite="mid:mailman.3.1749059086.4814.extropy-chat@lists.extropy.org">
<pre>BillK, there will surely be plenty of humans seduced by a vision of
humanitarian robots running everything, doing all the white collar work,
directing humans, who would suddenly be living in peace, working
together, doing what the software overlord directs, building, making
progress, etc.
spike</pre>
</blockquote>
<br>
Ever the optimist, spike.<br>
<br>
The thing that occurs to me is that humans start co-operating in
response to an external threat, not in response to peace and plenty.<br>
<br>
As soon as the threat is over, people tend to fragment and start
arguing again.<br>
<br>
This suggests that, instead of providing us with an utopia, AI (if
it cares at all about humans) would provide suitable threats, in
order to satisfy our primitive psychological needs. And keep the
peace.<br>
<br>
If anyone has seen 'Red Dwarf', a british comedy-SF TV series,
you'll understand what I mean. The superintelligent ship-mind keeps
manufacturing, or finding, crises, hazardous adventures and assorted
unpleasantness, to keep the one remaining human sane. It realises
that providing him with a life of leisure, safety and pleasure would
destroy him.<br>
<pre class="moz-signature" cols="72">--
Ben</pre>
</body>
</html>