Do you remember where you first learned about Neurons and that the brain is made of them and that they basically are who we are? Was it at school, high school, university? Was it from a parent or a friend? Or maybe from a book?
I'm just curious about everyone's experiences :)
brain
Perhaps the most (in)famous and illustrious American computer scientist and acknowledged principal pioneer of the discipline now known as artificial intelligence (AI), Professor Marvin Minsky of MIT, once pronounced—a belief he still holds—that ‘‘the brain is merely a meat machine.’’ It is significant that the English language distinguishes between ‘‘flesh’’ on the one hand, and ‘‘meat’’ on the other. The latter is dead and may be eaten, thrown in the garbage, fed to pigs, and so on. Flesh, on the other hand, is living matter and, as such, deserves the respect and dignity for life of which, among others, Albert Schweitzer spoke eloquently. The word ‘‘merely’’ in Minsky’s sentence means essentially ‘‘nothing but,’’ that is, also not deserving unusual respect. His statement is a clear reflection of a profound contempt for life that, as I see it, is shared explicitly by important sectors of the AI community, the artificial intelligentsia, as well as many scientists, engineers, and ordinary people. Daniel C. Dennett, an important American philosopher, once said that we must give up our awe of life if we are to make further progress in AI.
#AI #ComputerScience #life #brain #mind
15-Oct-2025
Did lead (#Pb) limit #brain and #language #development in #Neanderthals
and other extinct hominids?
Ancient human relatives were exposed to lead up to two million years ago, according to a new study. However, a #gene #mutation may have protected modern human brains, allowing language to flourish.