This episode speculates on a hypothetical textbook on artificial intelligence in the future and considers whether humans will still exist, as well as the potential benefits and drawbacks of AI progression.
The brain cannot be improved exponentially without improving the environment it exists in. Intelligence is not solely based on brain performance, but also on the system of brain, body and environment.
The brain has the potential to adapt to different inputs such as prosthetic devices and sensors which could potentially expand its capabilities beyond what we currently understand.
The acceleration of intelligence design will either boost the human species or lead to its demise, depending on how it is handled. The creation of human general intelligence through augmenting our own intelligence is likely to happen before the spontaneous generation of artificial consciousness.
Frances Chance explains how studying insects can help us have a better understanding of how animal nervous systems solve particular problems, to build a model for computers that work just like brains do.