Elon Musk: Artificial intelligence = "summoning the demon"

[Jerky]

Awesome! Thank you!

Jerky

[BrandonD]

The group shown in this documentary is the same group that I participated in my ayahuasca ceremonies with many years ago.

Big thanks for the insight, but greater kudos available, in my own eyes at least , if you can tell me what you think of the video.

An accurate reflection of an Ayahuasca journey?

Edited to add respect for the courage.

I wanted to watch the full documentary before commenting. Yes, it is an accurate depiction of everything that happens.

During the ceremony, it really does sound like a hellish nightmare inside the ceremonial hut. The shamans are singing along with wailing and vomiting and screaming for help.

Several of the people that I described in my ayahusasca thread are in that video. The bizarre glowing light that several of us saw during the final ceremony was the shaman Alberto in that video, according to the shaman's apprentice Mimi (the British woman in the video).

This video actually made me cry which is a huge surprise, I can't remember the last time that has happened for any reason.

[BrandonD]

My experience through the 5 ceremonies was slightly different, though. The first one was extremely mild, I thought that perhaps I had just fallen asleep and had a weird dream. During the second ceremony, nothing at all happened and I found myself becoming increasingly angry and bitter throughout the entire night.

It wasn't until the third ceremony that I really experienced it, and I was dropped right on the fire. That was the night of the demons and the indescribable terror and all those things shown in the video. All that stuff definitely happens.

The fourth ceremony was some sort of past life regression. It was bizarre, but I was immensely happy and thankful that it wasn't stark abject terror of the previous night.

Then the fifth ceremony was wonderful, it was the first time that I have ever experienced what I would call joy.

After watching the video, it appears that I had to go through a few ceremonies before I experienced what people generally experience on the first night. I was following the same process or arc, but a bit later than everyone else.

[slimmouse]

Hey Brandon, thanks for both taking the time to watch the documentary, and then replying. I can imagine it would be extremely emotional for you... it put the fear of life into me, and Ive never been there - though interestingly enough Im even more prepared to have a bash lol.

Funny. Today I talked face to face for the first time in my life to someone who has actually taken ayahuasca - and it came up in casual conversation. Ive known the guy for some time now, and whilst i was surprised on the one hand, really I wasnt truly amazed -because of the nature of the man - Generally quiet, unassuming, respectful, and usually with a smile on his face.

Ive also archived the podcast i posted after. It appears to offer a great overall prep for anyone thinking of taking the plunge - as Souther explains quite eloquently whats actually going on during a ceremony in more intimate language

Im currently contemplating Southers reaction to Henry Kissinger rolling into the camp for treatment, and wondering whether there are enough healing shamen collectively left in the Amazon to deal with the energy releases ?

[Jerky]

What-what-WHAT? Did I miss the part in the doc about Kissinger taking the plunge?!

[BrandonD]

Ive also archived the podcast i posted after. It appears to offer a great overall prep for anyone thinking of taking the plunge - as Souther explains quite eloquently whats actually going on during a ceremony in more intimate language

He sends a sort of regimen before you travel up there. For about 2 weeks prior to the trip to Peru it is suggested that you don't drink alcohol, consume sugar or pork, or have sexual relations. This regimen continues for about 2 weeks after the ceremonies as well. There may have been a few more restrictions but it's been quite a while and I can't remember them all.

I have a major sweet tooth, I remember while I was there having several dreams about eating sweets

[slimmouse]

What-what-WHAT? Did I miss the part in the doc about Kissinger taking the plunge?!

Nah. That was just my own dark humored imagination imagining Hamilton Souther as a man fully aware of the machinations of the Dr as he wanders up the path into the camp. In truth my guess is that even if he wasnt fully aware then he'd more than likely feel it.

Actually, if you listened to the podcast, Hamilton goes briefly into the fact that there are indeed Shamen who practice both healing and what he calls the dark arts.

Which perhaps begs the question of whether anyone in the know about Heinz Kissiinger would be surprised to learn that such practitioners were in fact a satellite of kissinger associates inc. ? Places offering healing to them and the dark arts to the rest of us?

[BrandonD]

Actually, if you listened to the podcast, Hamilton goes briefly into the fact that there are indeed Shamen who practice both healing and what he calls the dark arts.

There were local guides who took us through the jungle during the day while we were not in the ceremonies. One of the guides took us to a tree that was covered in what looked like giant rose thorns. He said that this tree was used by brujos or negative shamans, they were paid to curse these spines which were then shot into the necks of certain victims. I took a photo of this tree, I have it somewhere in one of my external hard drives, if I can find it I will post it up here for you guys.

[Jerky]

Brandon, I would love to see that photograph and get your permission to post it and your story to my Useless Eater Blog.

Jerky

[BrandonD]

Sure I would be fine with that, let me go through my external drives, I know the pic is in there somewhere. There are also other cool pictures of the jungle area I was staying that I'll go ahead and post, in case you might like to see em.

[Nordic]

And now Stephen Hawking.

http://m.bbc.com/news/technology-30290540

Stephen Hawking warns artificial intelligence could end mankind

By Rory Cellan-Jones
Technology correspondent

Media caption
Stephen Hawking: "Humans who are limited by biological evolution, couldn't compete and would be superseded"

Prof Stephen Hawking, one of Britain's pre-eminent scientists, has said that efforts to create thinking machines pose a threat to our very existence.

He told the BBC:"The development of full artificial intelligence could spell the end of the human race."
His warning came in response to a question about a revamp of the technology he uses to communicate, which involves a basic form of AI.

But others are less gloomy about AI's prospects.

Translation of that last line: "but money can be made from AI before we're all eradicated"

[tazmic]

Limited hangout...

(Curiously the Hawkins' news piece was followed by a story about how a more advanced database could help catch paedophiles.)

Here's some consideration of machine teleology, in a short book from 1926, with a remarkably objective vision:

England was the industrial machine's first habitat on earth. There fanatical men led mobs against it.
Frail and clumsy as it was at first, its life was indestructible. And now man would not dare to destroy it if he could.
His own life is bound up with it. Steadily it has grown more powerful, more productive, more ominous. It has powers of
reproduction and variation which, if not inherent, are yet as if governed by an active biological principle. Machines produce
machines. Besides those from which we get the divisible product of artificial things, there are machines to make machines,
and both kinds—both the machines that make machines and those that transform raw materials into things of use and
desire—obey some law of evolution.


http://library.mises.org/library/ouroboros-or-mechanical-extension-mankind

And, just to to cheer is up:

[Nordic]

Not sure how you think it's limited hangout.

[tazmic]

Not sure how you think it's limited hangout.

If extinction through advanced AI is unavoidable then it certainly would be a limited hangout...

But seriously, we don't need advanced AI to be culturally consumed by a machinic telos, and distributed AI systems don't have to be that smart to be smarter than 'the mob', which is when we start listening to them, or have to - let's face it we are outsourcing our intelligence to them. (And getting the mob to worry about an elite concern may just be a clever trick of subjugation.)

Btw, any thoughts on why this artilect is assumed to be conscious? (Isn't it?) As if we just make a simulation complex enough it will therefore become so. Strikes me as a peculiarly backwards attitude akin to thinking that animals aren't conscious.

Well, our Skynet won't be.

[BrandonD]

We won't be designing artificial intelligence while we still don't understand human intelligence.