Our brain’s simulation of the external world, our conscious experience, is often wrong. Optical illusions demonstrate how our perception of objects can be mistaken. Analogously, magic tricks are cognitive illusions that vividly illustrate how our perception and understanding of events can go awry. Thanks to recent work by neuroscientists and psychologists we know under what…
Science has a certain common core, especially a reliance on empirical methods of assessing hypotheses. Pseudosciences have little in common but their negation: they are not science. They reject meaningful empirical assessment in some way or another. Popper proposed a clear demarcation criterion for Science v Rubbish: Falsifiability. However, his criterion has not stood the…
It is often said that some or all of science and religion conflict with each other, and that one must choose between them. In this talk John Wilkins will look at how science and religion interact, and show that the issues are more complex and subtle than often claimed. What is the relationship between religion…
Nick Beckstead is the author of the influential paper ‘On the overwhelming importance of shaping the far future‘.
Science, Technology & the Future was held on Nov 30 – Dec 1 2013, Melbourne Australia What will the future be like? Right now, the technologies that we use to understand the world are in the process of a major transformation. Almost every field of knowledge is generating vast quantities of data, requiring unprecedented computing…
Few could predict just how fast and dramatic the social, economic and political impacts of computer technology have been in out lifetimes. This Summer, leading scientists, inventors and philosophers will gather in Melbourne to discuss philosophy of science & epistemology. Previous conferences 2010, 2011, 2012 & 2013 each drew over a hundred local, interstate and…
Interview with James Barrat, Author of “Our Final Invention” (Amazon) Artificial Intelligence helps choose what books you buy, what movies you see, and even who you date. It’s in your smart phone, your car, and it has the run of your house. It makes most of the trades on Wall Street, and controls our transportation,…
David Pearce will be speaking at – he is a British utilitarian philosopher who believes and promotes the idea that there exists a strong ethical imperative for humans to work towards the abolition of suffering in all sentient life. His book-length internet manifesto The Hedonistic Imperative outlines how technologies such as genetic engineering, nanotechnology, pharmacology,…
In a wide-ranging conversation, historian and philosopher Richard Carrier explores the profound implications of artificial intelligence, Bayesian reasoning, and ethical communication. By rethinking concepts like the Singularity and technological resurrection, Carrier offers a fresh lens through which to view our rapidly evolving future. Here is the video link. Intelligence Explosion vs. The Singularity Carrier prefers…
Interview conducted in 2012 with Maria Entraigues at the eXtreme Futurist Festival in Los Angeles 2012. Maria Entraigues is the Global Outreach Coordinator for SENS Research Foundation. As the outreach coordinator for the SENS Research Foundation, Entraigues has represented the Foundation internationally at conferences and in the media, and has explained and promoted the Foundation’s…