[ExI] Oxford scientists edge toward quantum PC with 10b qubits.

spike spike66 at att.net
Wed Feb 2 02:44:05 UTC 2011


 

 

From: extropy-chat-bounces at lists.extropy.org
[mailto:extropy-chat-bounces at lists.extropy.org] On Behalf Of Samantha Atkins
.

 
 
>>.Ja.  .I am looking for something that can provide companionship for
an impaired human, whereas I think Richard is talking about software which
can write software.


>.The Eliza chatbot was very engaging for a lot of students once upon a
time.

 

I sure had fun with her.  I kept trying to get her to talk dirty to me.  She
wasn't very good at that.  But that's OK neither was I.  Seems like we
should be able to write code that would generate titillating text.

 

It's been 30 years now since the last time I played Eliza, and it was
already free staleware at that time.  I would sure as all hell think we must
have come up with some kind of improvement in all that time, ja?  Software
hipsters, what is the modern counterpart to Eliza?  I will be really
disappointed in you guys if the answer is Eliza.

 

>.   A cat will be more cuddly and humans much more fun to talk to for a
longish time.  But there is a definite spot in-between that we can just
about do something that will be appreciated.  - Samantha

 

Actually you may have stumbled upon exactly what I have been looking for.  A
warm cuddly android or estroid presents some daunting mechanical engineering
and controls engineering problems.  But with your in-between cat and
computer comment, you may have solved my problem: just go ahead and use cats
or dogs, then rig a microphone/speaker to their collar so that the elderly
patient can cuddle the actual beast while carrying on an Eliza-level
conversation with the machine/beast combination.

 

Or I suppose we could rig up another elderly person who has lost the power
of speech with an article of clothing which has a microphone/speech
recognition/Watson/Eliza-ish inference engine.  While still simulated
conversation, we might allow the patient to imagine she is talking to
another person.

 

Good thinking Samanatha!

 

spike

 

 

 

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