Episode
#130 – Scott Aaronson: Computational Complexity and Consciousness
1:56:57
Published: Mon Oct 12 2020
Description
Scott Aaronson is a quantum computer scientist. Please support this podcast by checking out our sponsors: - SimpliSafe: https://simplisafe.com/lex and use code LEX to get a free security camera - Eight Sleep: https://www.eightsleep.com/lex and use code LEX to get $200 off - ExpressVPN: https://expressvpn.com/lexpod and use code LexPod to get 3 months free - BetterHelp: https://betterhelp.com/lex and use code LEX to get 10% off EPISODE LINKS: Scott's Blog: https://www.scottaaronson.com/blog/ Our previous episode: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uX5t8EivCaM PODCAST INFO: Podcast website: https://lexfridman.com/podcast Apple Podcasts: https://apple.co/2lwqZIr Spotify: https://spoti.fi/2nEwCF8 RSS: https://lexfridman.com/feed/podcast/ YouTube Full Episodes: https://youtube.com/lexfridman YouTube Clips: https://youtube.com/lexclips SUPPORT & CONNECT: - Check out the sponsors above, it's the best way to support this podcast - Support on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/lexfridman - Twitter: https://twitter.com/lexfridman - Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lexfridman - LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lexfridman - Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/LexFridmanPage - Medium: https://medium.com/@lexfridman OUTLINE: Here's the timestamps for the episode. On some podcast players you should be able to click the timestamp to jump to that time. 00:00 - Introduction 07:46 - Simulation 12:38 - Theories of everything 18:18 - Consciousness 40:32 - Roger Penrose on consciousness 50:44 - Turing test 54:31 - GPT-3 1:03:02 - Universality of computation 1:09:33 - Complexity 1:15:38 - P vs NP 1:27:57 - Complexity of quantum computation 1:40:03 - Pandemic 1:53:49 - Love
Chapters
The podcast host talks about four sponsors: SimpliSafe, 8Sleep, BetterHelp, and a fallback plan for home security.
00:00 - 04:17 (04:17)
Summary
The podcast host talks about four sponsors: SimpliSafe, 8Sleep, BetterHelp, and a fallback plan for home security.
Episode#130 – Scott Aaronson: Computational Complexity and Consciousness
PodcastLex Fridman Podcast
The fact that we don't know the laws of physics governing some phenomenon is not a strong sign that probing that phenomenon is going to crash the universe.
04:17 - 12:48 (08:31)
Summary
The fact that we don't know the laws of physics governing some phenomenon is not a strong sign that probing that phenomenon is going to crash the universe. Quantum computing might help answering natural science’s most precise questions like, the mystery of how gravity works with quantum mechanics.
Episode#130 – Scott Aaronson: Computational Complexity and Consciousness
PodcastLex Fridman Podcast
In the world of physics, a "theory of everything" refers to a unified description of general relativity, quantum mechanics, and all the fundamental interactions of nature.
12:48 - 20:42 (07:54)
Summary
In the world of physics, a "theory of everything" refers to a unified description of general relativity, quantum mechanics, and all the fundamental interactions of nature. However, others, like the speaker, would settle for an account that explains consciousness in different beings.
Episode#130 – Scott Aaronson: Computational Complexity and Consciousness
PodcastLex Fridman Podcast
In this transcript, the conversation explores the idea of whether a regular grid of exclusive or gates could be more conscious than a person or animal, despite being uniform and implementing only an error-correcting code.
20:42 - 28:29 (07:46)
Summary
In this transcript, the conversation explores the idea of whether a regular grid of exclusive or gates could be more conscious than a person or animal, despite being uniform and implementing only an error-correcting code. The method of abstracting a system, such as a brain or microchip, as a collection of components that are connected by a pattern of connections is discussed.
Episode#130 – Scott Aaronson: Computational Complexity and Consciousness
PodcastLex Fridman Podcast
The quest for understanding consciousness has made progress in unraveling the physical world, however, it remains uncertain in identifying what counts as progress, and a solution to its cognitive and emergent nature seem unclear.
28:29 - 35:20 (06:50)
Summary
The quest for understanding consciousness has made progress in unraveling the physical world, however, it remains uncertain in identifying what counts as progress, and a solution to its cognitive and emergent nature seem unclear.
Episode#130 – Scott Aaronson: Computational Complexity and Consciousness
PodcastLex Fridman Podcast
Physicist and mathematician Roger Penrose argues that quantum gravity could explain the mystery of human consciousness, but critics argue that this is unlikely because the effects of quantum gravity would only be observable at cosmological scales, not in the brain.
35:20 - 52:30 (17:09)
Summary
Physicist and mathematician Roger Penrose argues that quantum gravity could explain the mystery of human consciousness, but critics argue that this is unlikely because the effects of quantum gravity would only be observable at cosmological scales, not in the brain.
Episode#130 – Scott Aaronson: Computational Complexity and Consciousness
PodcastLex Fridman Podcast
The speaker discusses how AI can now write student-level essays on various topics, which could be considered a significant advancement towards general AI.
52:30 - 59:00 (06:30)
Summary
The speaker discusses how AI can now write student-level essays on various topics, which could be considered a significant advancement towards general AI.
Episode#130 – Scott Aaronson: Computational Complexity and Consciousness
PodcastLex Fridman Podcast
The speaker explains that GPT-3 may struggle with tasks that require more precise logical reasoning, despite its impressive predictions.
59:00 - 1:03:19 (04:18)
Summary
The speaker explains that GPT-3 may struggle with tasks that require more precise logical reasoning, despite its impressive predictions.
Episode#130 – Scott Aaronson: Computational Complexity and Consciousness
PodcastLex Fridman Podcast
This episode discusses the idea of universality in programming and how it dates back to Alan Turing's Turing machine, which has the same expressive power as modern programming languages like Java, C++, and Basic.
1:03:19 - 1:09:10 (05:51)
Summary
This episode discusses the idea of universality in programming and how it dates back to Alan Turing's Turing machine, which has the same expressive power as modern programming languages like Java, C++, and Basic.
Episode#130 – Scott Aaronson: Computational Complexity and Consciousness
PodcastLex Fridman Podcast
The security of most of the encryption that we currently use to protect the internet is based on the belief that factoring is an inherently hard problem for our computers.
1:09:10 - 1:14:19 (05:09)
Summary
The security of most of the encryption that we currently use to protect the internet is based on the belief that factoring is an inherently hard problem for our computers. If the prime factors are all very large, then it's not clear how you even get started.
Episode#130 – Scott Aaronson: Computational Complexity and Consciousness
PodcastLex Fridman Podcast
The podcast discusses algorithms that take exponential time - meaning that every time a data point is added to the input, the time required by the algorithm doubles.
1:14:19 - 1:19:16 (04:56)
Summary
The podcast discusses algorithms that take exponential time - meaning that every time a data point is added to the input, the time required by the algorithm doubles. This limits the capabilities of our computers for day-to-day tasks such as sorting, arithmetic, email readers, and games like Angry Birds.
Episode#130 – Scott Aaronson: Computational Complexity and Consciousness
PodcastLex Fridman Podcast
The speaker discusses the P versus NP problem in mathematics and the tendency for mathematicians to label things as conjectures rather than empirical facts or discoveries.
1:19:16 - 1:23:00 (03:44)
Summary
The speaker discusses the P versus NP problem in mathematics and the tendency for mathematicians to label things as conjectures rather than empirical facts or discoveries.
Episode#130 – Scott Aaronson: Computational Complexity and Consciousness
PodcastLex Fridman Podcast
Counting the number of valid solutions to constraint satisfaction problems could enable non-constructive proof of algorithms that are hard to find otherwise.
1:23:00 - 1:30:10 (07:09)
Summary
Counting the number of valid solutions to constraint satisfaction problems could enable non-constructive proof of algorithms that are hard to find otherwise. Such problems belong to the complexity class known as sharp P (#P).
Episode#130 – Scott Aaronson: Computational Complexity and Consciousness
PodcastLex Fridman Podcast
The beauty of the fundamental class of statistical zero knowledge (SCK) is explained to understand quantum computing better.
1:30:10 - 1:38:55 (08:45)
Summary
The beauty of the fundamental class of statistical zero knowledge (SCK) is explained to understand quantum computing better. A quantum computation works as a branching tree of possibilities where each path has a complex number attached to it called amplitude, and SCK uses optimization problems to reveal the solution without exposing why it's true.
Episode#130 – Scott Aaronson: Computational Complexity and Consciousness
PodcastLex Fridman Podcast
The speaker discusses their belief in rushing vaccines and the possibility of failures within health agencies predating the current political climate.
1:38:55 - 1:46:32 (07:36)
Summary
The speaker discusses their belief in rushing vaccines and the possibility of failures within health agencies predating the current political climate. They suggest the use of human challenge trials as a way to expedite the process.
Episode#130 – Scott Aaronson: Computational Complexity and Consciousness
PodcastLex Fridman Podcast
The speaker expresses their strong opposition to racism, sexism, and homophobia and emphasizes that everyone has the right to contribute to the discussion on how to effectively combat discrimination.
1:46:32 - 1:52:06 (05:34)
Summary
The speaker expresses their strong opposition to racism, sexism, and homophobia and emphasizes that everyone has the right to contribute to the discussion on how to effectively combat discrimination.
Episode#130 – Scott Aaronson: Computational Complexity and Consciousness
PodcastLex Fridman Podcast
The more people speak up against racism and discrimination from all walks of life and political persuasions, the easier it is to move forward, but it takes time and effort to carefully phrase responses to everything people say.
1:52:07 - 1:56:52 (04:45)
Summary
The more people speak up against racism and discrimination from all walks of life and political persuasions, the easier it is to move forward, but it takes time and effort to carefully phrase responses to everything people say.