This was a news item I missed when I was at the Robotics/AI conference a week or so ago but, IBM has built AI programs that are apparently better than humans at commodities trading.
One could make the argument that, as financial expert systems and computer models of the economy improve, and there are strong incentives in business to fund this sort of research, we will give over more and more control of our economy to software. Ever since Crash of 1987, stock trading programs used by big brokerages have been written to shutdown if they spot negative feedback loops that might trigger a stock market crash. Who knows where this is all headed?
ok this shit is downright scary— I mean corporate bus,iness is scary enough as it is… now even the money is being made by the machines— which leadds to all sorts of paranoiac scripts of future Terminator Movies where Arnold Schwarzenneger comes back from the future as some king of
The article I linked to was interesting to me because it is an example of how difficult it will be for us to unplug these things if they start getting uppity–we would destroy the global economy if we did.
Another thing the article made clear to me is that Bill Joy is wrong: We can’t reliquish research into this stuff because now there’s money in it.
Anyway, when are you going to start posting entries to your own log dude? Why do you think I built the silly thing for you?!?
ok ok I am getting there…