Matrioshka Brain: The Ultimate Supercomputer in Space Critically Selected 2026-09-21 | Matrioshka Brain: The Ultimate Supercomputer in Space
Historical Artifacts Worth Visiting | Angkor Wat #shorts #short #youtubeshorts Critically Selected 2023-09-07 | Let’s take a look at Angkor Wat’s cultural and historical significance.Angkor Wat used architectural principles to meet the needs of environmental and social factors. An axial and concentric composition was used instead of traditional compositions to unify the building elevation.The intricate form coupled with the imposing height of Angkor Wat draws the eye upwards to read the great stories of the Gods, myths, and history carved in stone across the walls and up the columns of Angkor Wat.Angkor Wat borrows the Gopura, a monumental tower often built at the entrances of South Indian temples. However, the pyramidal quincunx is unique to Khmer architecture. The quincunx is a geometric pattern consisting of five points, with four of the points forming a quadrilateral and the fifth at the center.
Benefits Of Gaming! #youtubeshorts #shorts #short Critically Selected 2023-09-06 | Video games have mostly been associated with negative impacts on players such as addiction, depression, time-wasting, and aggression. However, according to recent studies games can actually be good for you when played in moderation of course. Scientists have been able to identify many cognitive, emotional, as well as social benefits of playing video games.
The Science Of Astral Projection #shorts #short #youtubeshorts Critically Selected 2023-09-02 | We are going to discuss an idea that is centuries old and drives many to believe with certainty in the existence of life after death. This idea is currently known as Astral Projection where a person is able to leave their physical body at will and take a tour of the entire universe without any physical restrictions!
How Long Would It Take To Walk Around The Earth? #youtubeshorts #shorts #short Critically Selected 2023-09-01 | The Earth appears to be round and spherical when viewed from the vantage point of space, but it is actually a lot closer to an irregular-shaped ellipsoid. Many people in the past have tried to walk around the circumference of the Earth near the equator. But a walk around the planet is not an easy task since it is made up of a combination of both land and water. So, assuming we could somehow walk all around the circumference of the Earth at the equator, how long would that journey even take? And would it be possible for an average person to accomplish such a task? Today, we will be exploring, how long it would take to circumnavigate the Earth on foot!
Cryptocurrency #youtubeshorts #shorts #short Critically Selected 2023-08-31 | Cryptocurrency is a type of digital asset that is an intangible, digital currency that uses a highly sophisticated type of encryption called cryptography to secure and verify transactions as well as to control the creation of new units of currency. It is a form of payment that can be exchanged online for goods and services. We can think of it as virtual casino chips or arcade tokens. It is designed to work as a decentralized medium of exchange. Meaning it is independent of any financial institution or any other central authority. So, how do cryptocurrencies generate value with no government or bank behind it? The concept is simple, just like how people believe and trust in the value of the paper currency, the same thing applies to Cryptocurrencies. If enough people agree that Cryptocurrencies have value, then they just do! Now that we understand this, how did this decentralized system of fully digital currency first come into existence?
The Fermi Paradox #youtubeshorts #shorts #short Critically Selected 2023-08-25 | There are a potentially habitable Earth-like planet orbiting at least 1% of the total stars in the universe giving us a total of 100 quintillion Earth-like planets. So common sense would tell us that there should be plenty of opportunities for intelligent life to develop and exist throughout the universe. Our universe should be teaming with life with spaceships everywhere similar to that of the Star Wars universe. But that isn’t the case. So, where is everybody?If there are millions, if not billions of habitable planets in our galaxy and these other life forms have had relatively more time than us, then where are all the aliens? This is the Fermi Paradox! And unfortunately, we do not have any answers for it. But we do, however, have some possible explanations.
What Are Skyscrapers? Critically Selected 2023-08-24 | As the population density of urban areas has increased, so has the need for buildings that rise rather than spread. As a result, the construction of skyscrapers, high-rises, or tall structures has increased with the advent of advanced engineering capabilities. But what is the definition of a skyscraper?
What Are Black Holes? Critically Selected 2023-08-23 | Black holes are some of the strangest and most fascinating objects in existence. They are extremely dense with such immense gravitational attraction that not even light, which is the fastest entity in our universe, can escape their grasp. This means we cannot really see a black hole since no light can be reflected off its surface. So, how did we first discover them? And how do these mysterious objects even form? Let’s explore some of the mysteries behind black holes!
What Is Dark Energy? | The Expanding Universe Critically Selected 2023-08-22 | Dark energy is the name given to the mysterious force that’s causing the rate of expansion of our universe to accelerate over time, rather than slow down. In this case, dark means unknown rather than literally dark, as is the case with dark matter. Dark energy and dark matter are completely unrelated phenomena. Scientists estimate that dark energy makes up about 68% of the known universe while dark matter makes up about 27%. Dark energy is one of the greatest unsolved mysteries of cosmology. Similar to dark matter, currently we have no clue on what dark energy is. But we do have a few theories on what it could be.
ITER | The World’s Biggest Nuclear Fusion Mega Project #youtubeshorts #shorts #short Critically Selected 2023-08-21 | Ever since the beacon of innovations during the industrial revolution, we have aimed to achieve greater mega projects that factor in our growing population and its energy usage. Around 30 years ago, a group of industrial nations decided to take on a project and develop a new, cleaner, and more sustainable source of energy. This is how ITER or the International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor, the world’s largest nuclear fusion project came into existence. So, let's take a look at what it is and why it is the most significant mega project in the history of our entire civilization.
Higher Consciousness Level 5 | Aliens Beyond Human #youtubeshorts #shorts #short Critically Selected 2023-08-20 | Previously, we discussed the emergence of Galacticity, or a Galactic level of awareness, which is one step above Hypersociality, two steps above Communality of advanced A.I.s, and three steps above the regular Consciousness of the human type. Today, we will be discussing the highest level of awareness possible for a sentient being within the universe known as Universality.The final ‘emergent’ property of intelligence according to the concept of Sentience Quotient is known as Universality. For this level of awareness to occur in sentient beings, they must be able to process data at 10^50 bits/sec-kg, having an SQ value of 50. An alien being capable of handling data this rapidly would have to be considered a "perfectly efficient" thinker according to this scheme. So, in any given mass category, such an entity would possess the greatest intelligence theoretically possible in the universe. This would make beings at the level of Universality incomprehensible for even those at the level of Galacticity capable of comprehending the complexities of an entire Galactic community! As for beings at lower levels of awareness, such as Reactivity, Consciousness, Communality, and Hypersociality, all of them would be virtually indistinguishable for these beings from the dumbest possible brain that can only process one bit of information in a time equal to the age of the universe and a mass equal to the universe itself. Such intelligent beings may be regarded as no less than deities even by the most advanced Galactic standards let alone all the other lower levels of awareness. For these Universal beings, all other forms of sentience would be extremely primitive and backward, lacking the knowledge of the intricate workings of the universe.
Higher Consciousness Level 1 | Aliens Beyond Human #youtubeshorts #shorts #short Critically Selected 2023-08-19 | Previously, we discussed the very first ‘emergent’ property of intelligence known as ‘Reactivity’ under the concept of Sentience Quotient. Today, we are going to be talking about the next ‘emergent’ of intelligence beyond Reactivity, known as ‘Consciousness’. So, let’s dive right into it!As brain structures get more complex with higher levels of data processing, they start to approach higher-order ‘emergent’ properties of intelligence. Consciousness of the human type is the next highest emergent according to this scheme. Human brains have about 1010 neurons with about 103 interconnections each and a bit rate on the order of 103 bits/sec/neuron. However, brains have tremendous redundancy; assuming a redundancy of 1:104 and a body mass of about 100 kilograms, the human organism works out to about 1010 bits/sec-kg, or an SQ value of roughly 10. This seems near the minimum for the emergence of consciousness according to the concept of Sentience Quotient. But of course, we should keep in mind that at each higher level of data processing, fewer data may be processed at that level. Moreover, beings at any one level of awareness should also possess all simpler levels of awareness but with a much higher rate of data processing of the simpler levels.Sentience Quotient (SQ) Link:youtube.com/watch?v=7hA82KTdSBU&list=PLVxAxdw4ctDbnU4FppuPpvnjaHXq0utQA&index=1
Higher Consciousness Level 0 | Aliens Beyond Human #youtubeshorts #shorts #short Critically Selected 2023-08-18 | Last time, we talked about the concept of Sentience Quotient and discussed a way to calculate different levels of sentience within our universe. Today we are going to be discussing the very first and the most primitive emergence of intelligence known as ‘Reactivity’. We also discussed the possibility of different ‘emergents’ that may occur at certain levels of intelligence or SQ values. So, let’s dive right into it!We know from last time that the dumbest possible brain in our universe would have an SQ value of -70, with a mass of the entire universe requiring a time equal to the age of the universe to process just one bit of information. In other words, this kind of brain, although sentient, does not have any real properties to be discussed since it is extremely inefficient to talk about in any meaningful way. Now, since the ‘intelligence’ level of these types of brains are extremely low, no new property is seen to emerge from them. So then, at what level of data processing does the first ‘emergent’ of intelligence appear?
What Is Dark Matter? #youtubeshorts #shorts #short Critically Selected 2023-08-17 | When scientists first started to study the motion of galaxies and measured the amount of visible matter they contain, some things just didn’t add up. They noticed that the gravitational force needed to form large structures like our galaxy was too strong for the visible matter to produce by itself. If the galaxies were dependent only on the gravitational force of the visible matter, they simply wouldn't be able to form. So, all the stars and other materials would just disperse throughout the universe.Scientists figured that since galaxies do exist despite the fact that there isn't enough visible matter to hold them together, there must be some kind of invisible matter all around them that is responsible for this extra gravity needed to form these structures. Since no light is emitted or reflected off this mysterious matter, it was named ‘dark matter’.
Why We Shouldnt Fear Death #youtubeshorts #shorts #short Critically Selected 2023-08-16 | We all have thought about our death at some point in our lives. Regardless of whether we want to admit it, the thought of our impending end causes fear and anxiety in us all. Today we are going to discuss the reasons why we shouldn't be afraid of death. We will be exploring both scientific and philosophical reasons for why we shouldn't be afraid of death.
Underwater Architecture | Living In An Oceanscraper? #youtubeshorts #shorts #short Critically Selected 2023-08-15 | An oceanscraper is an airtight submerged structure that functions as a floating city that is built offshore and can operate independently from land. This futuristic self-sufficient structure will generate its own energy using wave, wind, and solar power. It will also produce its own food through farming, aquaculture, and hydroponic techniques. Relying on the natural buoyancy of their structure, ocean scrapers will be free from the constraints of gravity and therefore in theory be built on a scale that is not possible on land.
Max Tegmarks Level Four Multiverse #short #shorts #youtubeshorts Critically Selected 2023-08-14 | Let’s suppose for a minute that the Platonist paradigm is true and there really does exists a Theory of Everything. However, we simply haven't discovered the correct equations yet. Now, this raises an important question posed by renowned physicist John Archibald Wheeler - why these particular equations and not others? To address this question, we’ll need to explore the idea of mathematical democracy, where universes governed by different equations are equally real. Welcome to Level IV of the multiverse.
Max Tegmarks Level Three Multiverse #short #shorts #youtubeshorts Critically Selected 2023-08-13 | It is believed that the level three multiverse is right here all around us arising from the famous, and controversial, many-worlds interpretation of quantum mechanics, the idea that random quantum processes cause the universe to branch into multiple copies, one for each possible outcome. In the early 20th century, the theory of quantum mechanics revolutionized physics by explaining the atomic realm, which does not abide by the classical rules of Newtonian mechanics.Although, it predicts that one classical reality gradually splits into superpositions of many such realities, observers subjectively experience this splitting merely as a slight randomness, with probabilities in exact agreement with those from the old collapse postulate. This superposition of classical worlds is the level three multiverse.
Neocorticus Extraterrestrials: Evolved Logical Intelligence | Triune Brain Aliens #shorts #short Critically Selected 2023-08-12 | We will dive into the minds of alien beings who possess brains comprised primarily of neocortical material. These aliens would think far differently from humans, even though they share with us a large neocortical component. The ancient drives of aggression, dominance, and impulsive hierarchical organization might be completely foreign to them. So, they may have great difficulty comprehending the significance of our many cultural rituals and our religious and political institutions. To them, our emotionality would appear primitive and even barbaric.Their technology to us would seem to come straight out of the realm of science fiction! This may make these aliens far superior to any other alien race with a different tripartite neurosystem. So, if these aliens share the neocortex, a large part of their brain with us humans, is it possible for us to evolve and be exactly like this someday?
Max Tegmarks Level Two Multiverse #short #shorts #youtubeshorts Critically Selected 2023-08-11 | Now, we saw in the previous video, that inflation generally refuses to stop and keeps creating more space. This idea is taken a step further with the theory of chaotic eternal inflation. According to this model, space as a whole is stretching and will continue doing so forever, but in some regions, it may stop stretching and form distinct bubbles, like gas pockets in a loaf of rising bread. Infinitely many such bubbles emerge. So, an infinite set of these distinct level one multiverses, some perhaps with different spacetime dimensionality and different physical constants constitute a level 2 multiverse. But these bubbles are more than infinitely far away from earth, in the sense that you would never be able to get there even if you traveled at the speed of light forever.
Max Tegmarks Level One Multiverse #short #shorts #youtubeshorts Critically Selected 2023-08-10 | Inflation has radically transformed our understanding of our cosmic origins, giving us infinite space with an infinite number of galaxies, stars, and planets. Now, assuming inflation really happened and made our space infinite. Then there are infinitely many Level One parallel universes. Our visible universe is about 93 billion light-years across. Actually, there are infinitely many other regions the size of our observable universe, where every possible cosmic history is played out. This is the Level One multiverse.
Limbic Extraterrestrial: Evolved Emotional Intelligence | Triune Brain Aliens #shorts #youtubeshorts Critically Selected 2023-08-09 | Aliens with limbic intelligence would be extremely emotional and caring for their own kind. Because of their extreme sensitivity to pain, protecting their families and loved ones from it would be the highest of priorities for these creatures at any cost.
Reptilian Extraterrestrial: Evolved Lizard Intelligence | Triune Brain Aliens #shorts #youtubeshorts Critically Selected 2023-08-08 | The Triune Brain structure is common among extraterrestrial lifeforms in our universe. Under this model, the human brain consists of three overlapping brain structures. The reptilian brain is the earliest of these plug-in brains.This evolved lizard intelligence is known to play a major role in determining aggressive behavior, territoriality, ritualism, and the establishment of social hierarchies. So, the reptilian mind is not characterized by "powerful passions and wrenching contradictions, but rather by a dutiful and stolid acquiescence to whatever behavior its genes and brains dictate."
Higher Consciousness Level 4 | Aliens Beyond Human #short #shorts #youtubeshorts Critically Selected 2023-08-07 | The fifth ‘emergent’ of intelligence known as Galacticity can process data at about 10^40 bits/sec-kg. So, any extraterrestrial being that can process information at this rate would be far superior to even the Hypersocial beings that are capable of internalizing the processes, functions, and interrelationships between many different societies and species of sentient beings. To Galactic beings, we humans along with Communal A.I.s, and Hypersocial beings would just be an insignificant part of a larger galactic community. Perhaps Conscious level beings like us would be no more or less than rocks and vegetation while Communal level A.I.s may be equivalent to no more than an automated abacus for these Galactic beings.
Higher Consciousness Level 3 | Aliens Beyond Human #short #shorts #youtubeshorts Critically Selected 2023-08-06 | We are exploring the next ‘emergent’ property of intelligence beyond Communality and some of its characteristics known as Hypersociality! So, what could possibly happen if we humans were to run into such beings? Well given that these beings could read our 130 million published books worldwide just a little over 5 million times per second, it is safe to assume we would be no different than vegetation and other such creatures to these higher beings. To them, we would be just one species among 100s of others being no better or worse than the rest.
Higher Consciousness Level 2 | Aliens Beyond Human #short #shorts #youtubeshorts Critically Selected 2023-08-06 | Consciousness to us humans seems to be everything that there is. However, there could be higher order ‘emergent’ properties of intelligence in our universe. What would happen if we came into contact with aliens at a higher consciousness level?
Max Tegmarks Level Four Multiverse Critically Selected 2023-08-03 | Previously, we talked about Max Tegmark’s Level 3 Multiverse and explored some of its characteristics. Today, we will be looking at the next and the final level of the multiverse, or the Level 4 Multiverse, as proposed by Tegmark and some of its defining characteristics.Let’s suppose for a minute that the Platonist paradigm is true and there really does exists a Theory of Everything. However, we simply haven't discovered the correct equations yet. Now, this raises an important question posed by renowned physicist John Archibald Wheeler - why these particular equations and not others? To address this question, we’ll need to explore the idea of mathematical democracy, where universes governed by different equations are equally real. Welcome to Level IV of the multiverse.
Superintelligence: Quality Superintelligence Critically Selected 2023-07-19 | Last time, we talked about the concept of Collective Superintelligence as proposed by philosopher Nick Bostrom at the University of Oxford. Today, we will be looking at a different kind of superintelligence known as Quality Superintelligence and some of its defining characteristics!A quality superintelligence according to Bostrom, "is a system that is at least as fast as a human mind but vastly qualitatively smarter." But as with collective intelligence, intelligence quality is also a somewhat murky concept since we lack experience in any variations in intelligence quality beyond what we see in the smartest of human minds. However, to grasp it better, let's start by expanding our reference points beyond human beings. We'll consider our nonhuman animal friends who possess intelligence of lower quality.
Max Tegmarks Level Three Multiverse Critically Selected 2021-11-29 | Last time, we talked about the theory of inflation and how that leads to Max Tegmark’s Level 2 Multiverse. Today, we will be looking at the next level of the multiverse, or the Level 3 Multiverse, as proposed by Tegmark and some of its defining characteristics.Now, so far, we have looked at structures that we can point to in space, at least in theory. But the next level of the Multiverse, the Level 3 Multiverse, gets super weird. It is believed that the level 3 Multiverse is right here all around us arising from the famous, and controversial, many-worlds interpretation of quantum mechanics, the idea that random quantum processes cause the universe to branch into multiple copies, one for each possible outcome. In the early 20th century, the theory of quantum mechanics revolutionized physics by explaining the atomic realm, which does not abide by the classical rules of Newtonian mechanics. Despite the theory's clear triumphs, there is a strong controversy over what it really entails. The theory describes the state of the universe in terms of quantum mechanics, in particular, a mathematical object called a wave function, rather than classical concepts like the locations and velocities of all particles. According to the Schrödinger equation, this state evolves over time in a fashion that mathematicians refer to as “unitary,” meaning that the wave function rotates in an abstract infinite-dimensional space called Hilbert space. Although quantum mechanics is often described as inherently random and uncertain, the wave function evolves in a deterministic way. There is nothing random or uncertain about it.
Superintelligence: Collective Superintelligence Critically Selected 2021-11-20 | Last time, we talked about the concept of Speed Superintelligence as proposed by philosopher Nick Bostrom at the University of Oxford. If you haven’t seen the previous videos on this topic, do check them out, the link is in the description below. Today, we will be looking at a different kind of superintelligence known as Collective Superintelligence and some of its defining characteristics!A collective superintelligence according to Bostrom is a form of superintelligence that is a system achieving superior performance by aggregating large numbers of smaller intelligences. So, he formally defines collective superintelligence as “a system composed of a large number of smaller intellects such that the system’s overall performance across many very general domains vastly outstrips that of any current cognitive system.” Now, Collective superintelligence may be less conceptually clear-cut than speed superintelligence, however, it is more familiar empirically. For example, firms, work teams, academic communities, countries, and even humankind as a whole, can fall under collective superintelligence. Since these loosely defined “systems” are capable of solving classes of intellectual problems by breaking them into parts that can be pursued in parallel and verified independently. Tasks like building a space shuttle or operating a hamburger franchise offer many opportunities for division of labor: different engineers work on different components of the spacecraft, and different staff members operate different restaurants for the smooth operation of the whole franchise.
Max Tegmarks Level Two Multiverse Critically Selected 2021-11-13 | Previously, we talked about the theory of inflation and how that leads to Max Tegmark’s Level 1 Multiverse. Today, we will be looking at the next level of the multiverse, or the Level 2 Multiverse, as proposed by Tegmark and some of its defining characteristics.Now, we saw in the previous video, that inflation generally refuses to stop and keeps creating more space. This idea is taken a step further with the theory of chaotic eternal inflation. The phrase “chaotic eternal” refers to what happens on the very largest of scales. According to this model, space as a whole is stretching and will continue doing so forever, but in some regions, it may stop stretching and form distinct bubbles, like gas pockets in a loaf of rising bread. Infinitely many such bubbles emerge. Each of these is an embryonic Level I multiverse which is infinite in size and filled with matter deposited by the energy field that drove inflation. So, an infinite set of these distinct Level I multiverses, some perhaps with different spacetime dimensionality and different physical constants constitute a Level 2 Multiverse.
Superintelligence: Speed Superintelligence Critically Selected 2021-11-06 | Last time, we talked about the concept of Superintelligence as proposed by philosopher Nick Bostrom at the University of Oxford. As mentioned in the previous video, he uses the term “superintelligence” to refer to intellects that greatly outperform the best current human minds across many very general cognitive domains. Now, this definition can be quite vague since many machines and animals already perform at superhuman levels in narrow domains. For example, calculators can easily outperform any human in arithmetic, while bats outshine us in interpreting sonar signals and so on. But although specialized information processing systems will continue to grow and expand, only with the prospect of machine intellects that have enough general intelligence to substitute for humans could have profound implications for humanity. So, for Bostrom, it is important to separate the notion of superintelligence by distinguishing different bundles of intellectual super-capabilities. He decomposes the term superintelligence into three different forms: speed superintelligence, collective superintelligence, and quality superintelligence. Today, we will be taking a look at what Bostrom means by speed superintelligence and some of its defining characteristics!A speed superintelligence according to Bostrom is an intellect that is just like a human mind but faster. This is the easiest form of superintelligence to understand conceptually. So, he formally defines Speed superintelligence as “a system that can do all that a human intellect can do, but much faster.” Meaning, this system can be multiple orders of magnitude faster than the regular human mind. Now, the human brain’s processing power is difficult to determine precisely, but common estimates range from 1014 instructions per second (IPS) up to 1017 IPS or more. So, speed superintelligence operating on a whole-brain emulation running on fast hardware, operating at a speed of ten thousand times that of a biological brain would be far superior to any human that has ever lived. For example, it would be able to read an entire book in just a few seconds and write a Ph.D. thesis in an afternoon. Now, imagine a speedup factor of a million. A brain emulation with that much processing speed could accomplish an entire millennium of intellectual work in just one working day!
Max Tegmarks Level One Multiverse Critically Selected 2021-10-30 | Last time, we looked at Max Tegmark’s version of the multiverse theory and its 4 levels. We briefly discussed what each of these levels of the multiverse would be like under Tegmark’s interpretation. Today, we will take an in-depth look at what the Level 1 multiverse is all about.Around 1980, Alan Guth discovered some serious problems with the earliest stages of Alexander Friedmann’s version of the Big Bang model. In particular, the horizon problem; which says that if the Big Bang explosion happened everywhere, at an infinite number of points, then why is it the case that the temperature of the cosmic microwave–background radiation is almost identical in different regions of space? And the flatness problem; which simply asks, why is our universe so flat despite it being a highly unlikely outcome according to Friedmann’s equation. To answer these fine-tuning problems, Alan Guth proposed a revolutionary solution that he called inflation. He assumed the existence of an extremely dense point-like substance that was there before the Big Bang that defies all our everyday experiences. Meaning, if 1 gram of this substance expanded into twice the volume, its density would remain the same producing 2 grams of the substance. According to Einstein’s theory of gravity, such a substance could undergo a most remarkable explosion doubling its size at an exponential rate. This repeated doubling of the size automatically causes repeated doubling of the expansion speed. However, this exponential inflation process eventually slowed down to a much more relaxed pace, at least in our visible universe, as the inflating material decayed into ordinary matter gradually decelerated by gravity. Now, it should be noted that inflation generally refuses to stop, forever producing more space, as discovered for specific models by Andrei Linde and Paul Steinhardt. This is the concept of eternal inflation, the discovery of which has radically transformed our understanding of what’s out there in space on the largest scales. Moreover, the observations of Edwin Hubble and the discovery of dark energy gave a huge credibility boost to the theory of inflation further solidifying its place in the scientific literature. In summary, inflation has radically transformed our understanding of our cosmic origins, giving us infinite space with an infinite number of galaxies, stars, and planets.
Superintelligence: How smart can A.I. become? Critically Selected 2021-10-11 | Ever since the invention of computers in the 1940s, machines matching general human intelligence have been greatly anticipated. In other words, a machine that possesses common sense and an effective ability to learn, reason, and plan to meet complex information-processing challenges across a wide range of natural as well as abstract domains, would qualify as having a human-level machine intelligence. Currently, our machines are far inferior to humans in general intelligence. However, according to philosopher Nick Bostrom at the University of Oxford, there are several pathways that could lead to human-level intelligence in machines such as whole brain emulation, biological cognition, artificial intelligence, human-machine interfaces, as well as networks and organizations. Once this happens, it would only be a matter of time until superhuman-level machine intelligence, or simply, superintelligence is unlocked. But what exactly do we mean by ‘superintelligence’? And are there different forms of superintelligence that our A.I.s can attain in the future? Let’s take a look at what Nick Bostrom has to say in this matter!In his book, ‘Superintelligence’ Nick Bostrom defines the term ‘superintelligence’ “to refer to intellects that greatly outperform the best current human minds across many very general cognitive domains.” So, a super-intelligent intellect, would in principle, have the capacity to completely surpass the best human minds in practically every field, including science, philosophy, arts, general wisdom, and even social skills.
The Four Levels Of The Multiverse | Max Tegmark Critically Selected 2021-10-02 | Our observable universe can be defined as the spherical region of space from which light has had time to reach us during the 14 billion years since the Big Bang. It is the part of our physical reality that contains everything that exists which we can in principle observe. But is there anything that lies beyond our observable region or our Hubble volume? Well, given that our universe may be infinite in size with an intrinsic property known as inflation, chances for the existence of the Multiverse are extremely high. So, for physicists like Max Tegmark of MIT, the question is not whether the multiverse exists but rather how many levels it has. He has classified as many as 4 distinct types of Multiverses in his book “Our Mathematical Universe”. So, let’s take a brief look at what these different levels of the Multiverse are like!The first, and the least controversial level of our Multiverse is simply a region of space that is too far away for us to have observed yet. The furthest we can observe in any direction is currently about 46 billion light-years which is the distance that light has been able to travel since the beginning of the Big Bang. But just because we can’t see something, doesn’t necessarily mean that it doesn’t exist. In fact, the cosmic microwave background radiation allows us to perform extremely sensitive tests for whether our universe is finite, and so far, all the evidence seems to be against it. Now, since the flat infinite models fit the observed data, it is reasonable to assume that our universe is infinite, or at least sufficiently large, which makes the level 1 multiverse a trivial consequence of these tests and the cosmological theory of inflation. Furthermore, observations of our galaxy distribution and the microwave background radiation have shown that the arrangement of matter on large scales collapses to dull uniformity with no coherent structures larger than about a billion light-years. If this is true, then there is no reason to believe that our part of the cosmic horizon is the only one with physical stuff or matter in it. So, with an infinite amount of space and matter available, the level 1 multiverse contains an infinite number of regions similar to our own observable universe. This means that there may be an identical copy of you somewhere out there in the multiverse as we speak! But not just 1 identical copy, but infinitely many identical copies of you may exist as there may be an infinite number of Hubble volumes identical to our own in the level 1 Multiverse. In fact, Max Tegmark estimates that if you traveled in a straight line for about 10^10^118 meters, you would come across an identical copy of our observable universe. But if you wanted to meet an identical copy of you, then the distance to that would be relatively less, about 10^10^29 meters away, which is still astronomically huge. So, we can think of observers living in Level 1 parallel universes as experiencing the same effective laws of physics but with different possible histories.
Type Z | Information Mastery Critically Selected 2021-09-22 | Last time, we talked about a Type Y civilization under the Information Mastery Scale. Today, we will be looking at a Type Z civilization and some of its defining characteristics!According to Sagan, a Type Z civilization is one that processes 10^31 unique bits of information. He estimated that an advanced civilization that can harness the information content of at least billions of interconnected Type Q civilizations, would qualify that civilization as a Type Z. So, a civilization of this caliber would be capable of controlling and manipulating things at the Planck length giving it absolute control over its universe! Since the entire universe for this civilization would be at its disposal to manipulate however it chooses, creation or destruction of planets, stars, black holes, galaxies, or even galaxy clusters would all just be a day’s work for this type of civilization. Moreover, all the questions about life and the universe would be known to a Type Z civilization. Nothing would be a mystery to it since every corner of its universe along with all lifeforms within it would have been mapped out. For this reason, a Type Z civilization would have expanded and colonized its entire visible universe! Watch The Information Mastery Scale Playlist from the link below:youtube.com/watch?v=nCJiLhFkMLU&list=PLVxAxdw4ctDaefaRPyG11nfs97dSLYhaz
Type Y | Information Mastery Critically Selected 2021-09-21 | Previously, we talked about a Type X civilization under the Information Mastery Scale. Today, we will be looking at a Type Y civilization and some of its defining characteristics!According to Sagan, a Type Y civilization is one that processes 10^30 unique bits of information. With such an incredibly vast amount of available information and energy content, a Type Y civilization would be nearing the limits of how much progress a civilization can make under this model. For instance, a civilization of this caliber may even control dark energy allowing it to further manipulate its entire universe at will. It would even have control over entropy giving it the freedom of making absolutely any object or person immortal if it wanted to. Perhaps instantaneous transportation of its inhabitants to any place within its universe may also be a possibility for a Type Y civilization using laws of physics that are currently unknown. This would allow such a civilization to colonize a large chunk of its visible universe up to 75 billion light-years across assuming the visible universe to be about 100 billion light-years in diameter.Watch The Information Mastery Scale Playlist from the link below:youtube.com/watch?v=nCJiLhFkMLU&list=PLVxAxdw4ctDaefaRPyG11nfs97dSLYhaz
Type X | Information Mastery Critically Selected 2021-09-20 | Last time, we talked about a Type W civilization under the Information Mastery Scale. Today, we will be looking at a Type X civilization and some of its defining characteristics!According to Sagan, a Type X civilization is one that processes 10^29 unique bits of information. Having this much information and energy content, this civilization would have very little left to uncover in its universe. It would possess knowledge of things such as the origins of life and the ultimate fate of its universe along with all the other technology to manipulate the very fabric of its space-time continuum similar to a Type W. The inhabitants of this civilization may also be very close to cracking the code of dark energy and other hidden mysteries of the universe. With such extensive knowledge and technology, a Type X civilization would have colonized about 50 billion light-years across which would be about half of its visible universe!Watch The Information Mastery Scale Playlist from the link below:youtube.com/watch?v=nCJiLhFkMLU&list=PLVxAxdw4ctDaefaRPyG11nfs97dSLYhaz
Type W | Information Mastery Critically Selected 2021-09-19 | Previously, we talked about a Type V civilization under the Information Mastery Scale. Today, we will be looking at a Type W civilization and some of its defining characteristics!According to Sagan, a Type W civilization is one that processes 10^28 unique bits of information. Given such an immense amount of information and energy content, such a civilization would be capable of many incredible feats. It would be able to exploit exotic or fantastical physical phenomena such as cosmic strings along with dark matter and the like. Understanding and manipulating these cosmic strings may allow such a civilization to twist and bend the fabric of space-time itself! It may also enable it to unlock some of the deepest mysteries and transformational periods of its universe. This would be extremely beneficial since it could allow such a civilization a lot more freedom to expand and colonize its universe than ever before. So, using its knowledge of these fantastical physical phenomena, a Type W civilization’s sphere of influence could be around 25 billion light-years in diameter, assuming of course, that its visible universe is around 100 billion light-years across.Watch The Information Mastery Scale Playlist from the link below:youtube.com/watch?v=nCJiLhFkMLU&list=PLVxAxdw4ctDaefaRPyG11nfs97dSLYhaz
Type V | Information Mastery Critically Selected 2021-09-18 | Last time, we talked about a Type U civilization under the Information Mastery Scale. Today, we will be looking at a Type V civilization and some of its defining characteristics!According to Sagan, a Type V civilization is one that processes 10^27 unique bits of information. A civilization possessing this much information and energy content would have technology that is way beyond even a Type U. For example, the inhabitants of Type V may have mastered all the methods of teleportation which would eliminate the need for any spaceship travel, at least to relatively nearby destinations. Perhaps, they may also have answered all the philosophical questions related to such methods of travel. Of course, given such a vast amount of information content, it is no wonder that a civilization like this may have answered most, if not all, of the fundamental questions about life and the universe.Watch The Information Mastery Scale Playlist from the link below:youtube.com/watch?v=nCJiLhFkMLU&list=PLVxAxdw4ctDaefaRPyG11nfs97dSLYhaz
Type U | Information Mastery Critically Selected 2021-09-17 | Previously, we talked about a Type T civilization under the Information Mastery Scale. Today, we will be looking at a Type U civilization and some of its defining characteristics!According to Sagan, a Type U civilization is one that processes 10^26 unique bits of information. Having such an immense amount of information and energy content available at its fingertips, this type of civilization would have figured out how to open and stabilize wormholes! Perhaps by suppressing quantum fluctuations, a Type U would have discovered or invented some kind of exotic matter, which experiences gravity as a repulsive force rather than attractive, allowing for the stabilization of wormholes. Now, using this, the inhabitants of this civilization may even create jump drives, which could tear open ship-sized wormholes connecting any two points in the universe, allowing near-instantaneous travel. This would allow a civilization of this caliber to colonize and control its entire supercluster! Which means, it would have expanded to over 100,000 galaxies or 200,000,000 light-years in diameter! Now, that would be an incredible feat, to say the least.Watch The Information Mastery Scale Playlist from the link below:youtube.com/watch?v=nCJiLhFkMLU&list=PLVxAxdw4ctDaefaRPyG11nfs97dSLYhaz
Type T | Information Mastery Critically Selected 2021-09-16 | In the last video, we talked about a Type S civilization under the Information Mastery Scale. Today, we will be looking at a Type T civilization and some of its defining characteristics!According to Sagan, a Type T civilization is one that processes 10^25 unique bits of information. With its enormous information and energy content, such a civilization would have fully mastered both warp drives and hyperdrives. But these would be the thing of the past for a civilization of this caliber. It would have moved on to even bigger and better projects!Watch The Information Mastery Scale Playlist from the link below:youtube.com/watch?v=nCJiLhFkMLU&list=PLVxAxdw4ctDaefaRPyG11nfs97dSLYhaz
Type S | Information Mastery Critically Selected 2021-09-15 | Previously, we talked about a Type R civilization under the Information Mastery Scale. Today, we will be looking at a Type S civilization and some of its defining characteristics!According to Sagan, a Type S civilization is one that processes 10^24 unique bits of information. This amount of available information could make it possible for this civilization to unlock perhaps newer ways of space travel. For example, the inhabitants of a Type S may have developed Hyperdrives using their knowledge of higher dimensions within their universe. Now, it should be noted that while warp drives bend or manipulate space to travel, Hyperdrives usually work by stepping completely out of space and into a dimension or area that allows rapid transit from one place to another. So, Hyperdrives can in fact be much faster than warp drives since they could allow the people of such civilizations to find shortcuts in the fabric of their universe and enable travel thousands of times faster than light! Perhaps this is why they may be able to colonize hundreds of nearby galaxies within their universe. But even with this impressive feat, we should keep in mind that although Hyperdrives are capable of faster than light travel, just like warp drives, they still do not permit instantaneous travel and transfers between two points. They also require a measurable passage of time to get to one place from another similar to warp drives. Nonetheless, achieving several times faster than light travel is no small accomplishment!Watch The Information Mastery Scale Playlist from the link below:youtube.com/watch?v=nCJiLhFkMLU&list=PLVxAxdw4ctDaefaRPyG11nfs97dSLYhaz
Type R | Information Mastery Critically Selected 2021-09-14 | Last time, we talked about a Type Q civilization under the Information Mastery Scale. Today, we will be looking at a Type R civilization and some of its defining characteristics!According to Sagan, a Type R civilization is one that processes 10^23 unique bits of information. With its given information and energy content, this is the civilization that would have broken out of its galaxy and begun intergalactic travel. It may have even fully colonized a second nearby galaxy apart from its own. This would be possible because a Type R would have refined its warp drives to the point where they would be capable of traveling hundreds of times faster than the speed of light if not more. But of course, with such vast amounts of information availability, these types of feats would be well within the grasp of a Type R civilization.Watch The Information Mastery Scale Playlist from the link below:youtube.com/watch?v=nCJiLhFkMLU&list=PLVxAxdw4ctDaefaRPyG11nfs97dSLYhaz
Type Q | Information Mastery Critically Selected 2021-09-13 | Previously, we talked about a Type P civilization under the Information Mastery Scale. Today, we will be looking at a Type Q civilization and some of its defining characteristics!According to Sagan, a Type Q civilization is one that processes 10^22 unique bits of information. So, if there were a galactic civilization of a million worlds, and if each of these worlds were characterized by a thousand times the information content of our terrestrial civilization, then that galactic civilization would be of Type Q. In other words, a Type Q civilization could be comparable to the Kardashev Type 3 under the assumption that the information content and the energy content of a civilization have a positive correlation of course.Watch The Information Mastery Scale Playlist from the link below:youtube.com/watch?v=nCJiLhFkMLU&list=PLVxAxdw4ctDaefaRPyG11nfs97dSLYhaz
Type P | Information Mastery Critically Selected 2021-09-12 | Previously, we talked about a Type O civilization under the Information Mastery Scale. Today, we will be looking at a Type P civilization and some of its defining characteristics!According to Sagan, a Type P civilization is one that processes 10^21 unique bits of information. Given this much unique information content at its fingertips, a Type P civilization would possess knowledge and abilities that far surpass those of even a Type O. Not only would a civilization such as this be able to harness all the energy output of stars, but it would even be able to create its own stars using the available resources of its galaxy! To achieve this kind of feat, perhaps it would need to be able to move around celestial bodies, such as black holes. If it could place appropriately sized black holes within brown dwarfs or Jupiter-like planets, it could potentially cause thermonuclear reactions igniting their fires! But this is only one way to do this, perhaps a civilization that has such vast information content available to it would have far better ways of accomplishing this kind of task that would be almost incomprehensible to our civilization today!Watch The Information Mastery Scale Playlist from the link below:youtube.com/watch?v=nCJiLhFkMLU&list=PLVxAxdw4ctDaefaRPyG11nfs97dSLYhaz
Type O | Information Mastery Critically Selected 2021-09-11 | Previously, we talked about a Type N civilization under the Information Mastery Scale. Today, we will be looking at a Type O civilization and some of its defining characteristics!According to Sagan, a Type O civilization is one that processes 10^20 unique bits of information. This civilization’s information and energy content would be far more advanced than even a Type N, allowing it to accomplish many extraordinary feats. For example, it would be able to build Ringworlds in space around stars, which could rotate faster than orbital velocity to create artificial gravity on its inner surface. This would allow the inhabitants of this civilization to thrive in any Stellar System regardless of whether it has any planets or any other celestial bodies! Moreover, building and sustaining space colonies for its inhabitants would also be within the capabilities of a Type O civilization. This may include hollowing out asteroids and other celestial objects to create miniature enclosed worlds, or structures resembling the Starbase Yorktown from the Star Trek universe! But these are not the only qualities of a Type O civilization.Watch The Information Mastery Scale Playlist from the link below:youtube.com/watch?v=nCJiLhFkMLU&list=PLVxAxdw4ctDaefaRPyG11nfs97dSLYhaz
Type N | Information Mastery Critically Selected 2021-09-10 | Last time, we talked about a Type M civilization under the Information Mastery Scale. Today, we will be looking at a Type N civilization and some of its defining characteristics!According to Sagan, a Type N civilization is one that processes 10^19 unique bits of information. Given its superior information content in comparison to a Type M, a Type N wouldn’t just be able to terraform only rotating planets, but also be able to deal with planets that are tidally locked to their parent stars. Its technology would be so superior, that it could even impart rotations on such planets if it wanted to. Moreover, because of its ability to control matter at the subatomic level, a civilization such as this would have complete control over all aspects of any given planet in its galaxy. For example, it would even have control over electrical and magnetic fields of any planet it comes across in its travels. So, technically, a Type N civilization could even bring back ‘dead’ planets by jump-starting their inner cores!Watch The Information Mastery Scale Playlist from the link below:youtube.com/watch?v=nCJiLhFkMLU&list=PLVxAxdw4ctDaefaRPyG11nfs97dSLYhaz
Type M | Information Mastery Critically Selected 2021-09-09 | Last time, we talked about a Type L civilization under the Information Mastery Scale. Today, we will be looking at a Type M civilization and some of its defining characteristics!According to Sagan, a Type M civilization is one that processes 10^18 unique bits of information. A civilization of this caliber wouldn’t only be able to travel to and terraform certain types of planets, like a Type L civilization before it, but it would also be able to terraform any planet within its galaxy regardless of their conditions. For example, terraforming worlds that are too hot, like planet Venus, or too cold like Titan, the moon of Saturn, would be considered routine for inhabitants of Type M. So, as long as a planet has a day/night cycle, the technology of this type of civilization will enable its inhabitants to terraform it with ease.Watch The Information Mastery Scale Playlist from the link below:youtube.com/watch?v=nCJiLhFkMLU&list=PLVxAxdw4ctDaefaRPyG11nfs97dSLYhaz
Type L | Information Mastery Critically Selected 2021-09-08 | Previously, we talked about a Type K civilization under the Information Mastery Scale. Today, we will be looking at a Type L civilization and some of its defining characteristics!According to Sagan, a Type L civilization is one that processes 10^17 unique bits of information. A civilization possessing this much unique information content would be capable of many great feats! Apart from having all the methods of interstellar travel of previous civilizations available to it, a Type L civilization would also be able to delve into projects of terraforming certain types of planets within its galaxy. That is, planets that are reasonably close to its home planet’s conditions in terms of their temperature, pressure, and atmosphere. For example, Mars-like worlds would represent these easily terraformed planets in our case. In addition, since terraforming would require advances in bioengineering, this type of civilization would be able to manipulate any DNA in order to create efficient bioengineered life forms! These could include lifeforms that are hybrid with its existing species, or completely new for its own benefit.Watch The Information Mastery Scale Playlist from the link below:youtube.com/watch?v=nCJiLhFkMLU&list=PLVxAxdw4ctDaefaRPyG11nfs97dSLYhaz
