We had a co-reading fika at Kvarteret this morning, where we just sat and read together for 45 minutes (with a bit of discussion about what we’re reading before and after). I started reading AI och samtalet om de stora frågorna av Amanda Lagerkvist. I went to a lecture by her a few weeks ago, at which time she also kindly gave me a copy of her book.
The book so far is very reminiscent of the lecture, with an introduction to the current state of AI covering things like AGI hopes and fears, some AI enterpreneurs’ and enthusiasts’ sense that they will usher in humanity’s transcendence, and how some of our fears and wishes around AI are based on a misunderstanding of generative models.
It’s in Swedish, but very readable for me - partly, maybe, because this is a topic I’m already very familiar with.
When talking a bit about the book and the prior lecture at the meetup today, another developer working with AI mentioned that the sorts of more theoretical philosophical and humanistic questions around this weren’t really something he’s encountered much of. This surprised me a little at first; attending events here at the university, these topics seem to pop up frequently, to the point of almost becoming somewhat repetitive. Like the community is chewing them over - they can be hard to swallow.
But in reality, it makes sense. In many AI development areas the focus is very much on the practical applications of the tools. We largely care about the useful stuff (or the profitable stuff).
Sometimes I wonder if I should even be spending time or energy on these things, and reading these books, and going to these talks/seminars, and taking these notes, and digesting all this through my stories. Are questions like one of those posed in Lagerkvist’s talk - “What definition of ‘intelligence’ is presupposed in evolution and how does it shape ideals and norms about the human?” - directly relevant to my life and the work I do? Or are they a waste of valuable energy at worst and just a sci-fi thought exercise at best?
I don’t really know, but I don’t think thinking about these things is something I could just turn off, even if I wanted to.
And anyway, I don’t think I want to. I think I’m chewing, too.
This was my first attempt at running a co-reading session (as opposed to a short story discussion or a co-writing session), and it went really well. I have a feeling I’ll end up with many, many more books on my already too-long ’to read’ list each time we do one of these.
As a big bonus, we had a canine participant!
Afterwards, it was sunny and warm enough to take another quick forest walk with Rigel.
Tomorrow I’m going to urban sketching at Gustavianum (I finally get to see it!) and then a paleontology tour at Evolutionsmuseet. I can’t wait! Paleontologist was my first ever dream job when I was seven.