Qualia Computing: Core Philosophy @/Andr%C3%A9sG%C3%B3mezEmilsson

Andrés Gómez Emilsson | Qualia Computing: Core Philosophy @/Andr%C3%A9sG%C3%B3mezEmilsson | Uploaded November 2016 | Updated October 2024, 1 hour ago.
In this video I outline the core philosophy and objectives of Qualia Computing (qualiacomputing.com). There are three main goals here:

1) Catalogue the entire state-space of consciousness
2) Identify the computational properties of each experience (and its qualia components), and
3) Reverse engineer valence (i.e. to discover the function that maps formal descriptions of states of consciousness to values in the pleasure-pain axis).

While describing the 1st objective I explain that we start by realizing that consciousness is doing something useful (or evolution would not have been able to recruit it for information-processing purposes). I also go on to explain the diffeence between qualia varieties (e.g. phenomenal color, smell, touch, thought, etc.) and qualia values (i.e. the specific points in the state-spaces defined by the varieites, such as "pure phenomenal blue" or the smell of cardamom).

With regards to the 2nd objective, I explain that our minds actually use the specific properties of each qualia variety in order to represent information states and then to solve computational problems. We are only getting started in this project.

And 3rd, I argue that discovering exactly what makes an experience "worth living" in a formal and mathematical way is indeed ethically urgent. With a fundamental understanding of valence we can develop precise interventions to reduce (even prevent altogether) any form of suffering without messing up with our capacity to think and explore the state-space of consciousness (at least the valuable part of it).

I conclude by pointing out that the 1st and 2nd research programs actually interact in non-trivial ways: There is a synergy between them which may lead us to a recursively self-improving intelligence (and do so in a far "safer" way than trying to build an AGI through digital software).

Relevant links:
qualiacomputing.com/about
qualiacomputing.com/2016/03/21/qualia-computing-so-far
qualiacomputing.com/2015/04/19/why-not-computing-qualia
biointelligence-explosion.com

$High Entropy Alloys of Experience ~*Suggestion*: Play a music album you like in the background while listening to this talk.~ How do we find the gems hidden in the state-space of consciousness? In this talk I articulate why it is very likely that there is a huge number of undiscovered states of consciousness that are completely unique, irreducible, and wholistically special. In metallurgy, a high-entropy alloy (HEA) is a mixture of five or more metals in high proportions, often giving rise to a single phase. Some HEAs have been found to have extremely desirable properties from the point of view of material science (such as being the best at both yield-strength and ultimate tensile strength at the same time). Given the huge space of possible mixtures of metals, finding these carefully balanced mixtures with unique emergent properties is both a science and an art. It calls for intelligent strategies to explore the state-space of possible alloys! I suggest that in the realm of consciousness there are also states that would be appropriate to describe as high entropy alloys of experience. I go into how this framework can help us understand unique scents*. We then explore how the receptor affinity profiles of drugs, drug cocktails, and drug schedules can give rise to unique HEA-like states of mind. I then also discuss how memeplexes have various degrees of total complexity, and how this makes some more receptive to dealing with complexity in the world than others. I offer that I really appreciate the HEA-like memeplexes that get expressed in places like EAGlobal, The Science of Consciousness, and Psychedelic Science conferences. I conclude by reflecting on how a productive mindset or mood optimized for a specific intellectual job is likely to be HEA-like because it requires the careful balance between many different facets of the mind. Topics you will master after seeing this talk for even just one time**: High Entropy Alloys, Bronze and Iron Age, Equiatomic Alloys, People Clusters in Parties, Scents*, Sexual Orientation, Gay Fragrances, Memeplexes and Mindsets, Vibe of Groups, Energy Parameter, Frozen Food, Crystallites, Space Groups, The Science of Consciousness, EAGlobal, Psychedelic Science, Search Heuristics, DMT as Competing Clusters of Synchrony, Birthday Cake Flavor, Cellular Automata, Optimal Mood for Productivity. *(HEAs: Le Male by JPG, Bleu de Chanel, Mitsouko by Guerlain. Non-HEAs: Tommy Girl by Tommy Hilfiger, Habit Rouge by Guerlain, Amazing Grace Ballet Rose by Philosophy) **More like “topics barely touched upon” Further readings: Multicomponent and High Entropy Alloys - Professor Brian Cantor - https://youtu.be/L7BfDma85HI?t=2682 Perfumery as an Art Form - https://qualiacomputing.com/2020/02/21/perfumery-as-an-art-form/ Making Amazing Recreational Drug Cocktails - https://qualiacomputing.com/2020/03/08/making-amazing-recreational-drug-cocktails/ Electrum - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Electrum Crystallite - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Crystallite Neural Annealing: Toward a Neural Theory of Everything - https://opentheory.net/2019/11/neural-annealing-toward-a-neural-theory-of-everything/ A Big State-Space of Consciousness - https://qualiacomputing.com/2020/01/18/a-big-state-space-of-consciousness/ Psychedelic Science 2017: Take-aways, impressions, and what’s next - https://qualiacomputing.com/2017/04/26/psychedelic-science-2017-take-aways-impressions-and-whats-next/ Fear And Loathing At Effective Altruism Global 2017 - https://slatestarcodex.com/2017/08/16/fear-and-loathing-at-effective-altruism-global-2017/ Qualia Formalism in the Water Supply: Reflections on The Science of Consciousness 2018 - https://qualiacomputing.com/2018/04/10/qualia-formalism-in-the-water-supply-reflections-on-the-science-of-consciousness-2018/ 5-MeO-DMT vs. N,N-DMT: The 9 Lenses - https://qualiacomputing.com/2020/07/01/5-meo-dmt-vs-nn-dmt-the-9-lenses/ “The Seven Seals of Security” (QRI Sweden) - https://qualiacomputing.com/2020/03/11/qualia-production-presents-the-seven-seals-of-security-and-other-communications-from-qri-sweden/ Heterosexual males and females preferred odours from heterosexual males relative to gay males; gay males preferred odours from other gay males. - https://www.independent.co.uk/news/science/sense-smell-linked-sexual-orientation-study-reveals-490147.html If the goal is to avoid the formation of such phases, simply mixing together five or more elements in near-equiatomic concentrations is unlikely to be a useful approach. Even multi-component alloys that are initially single phase after solidification tend to separate into multiple metallic and intermetallic phases when annealed at intermediate temperatures. - High-entropy alloys - https://www.nature.com/articles/s41578-019-0121-4 Featured image source: @fractjack$

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