{"id":6820,"date":"2013-06-03T18:16:27","date_gmt":"2013-06-03T08:16:27","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.zenashapter.com\/blog\/?p=6820"},"modified":"2013-06-03T18:16:27","modified_gmt":"2013-06-03T08:16:27","slug":"dont-be-afraid-of-robot-wars-its-just-the-future-billgates","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/zenashapter.com\/blog\/dont-be-afraid-of-robot-wars-its-just-the-future-billgates\/","title":{"rendered":"Don\u2019t Be Afraid Of Robot Wars \u2013 It\u2019s Just The Future! #BillGates"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>A few days ago, I watched Bill Gates on Q&amp;A (a high-brow Aussie talk show). On it, this very witty and down-to-earth man answered questions about wealth, charity, capitalism, the environment and technology. It was the questions about technology that of course got me sitting up in my seat. Here are some of them:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Do you think one day robots doing human tasks, such as fighting wars, will become reality?<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<ul>\n<li>Do you ever think that artificial intelligence will ever surpass the human mind, and if so, how would humanity handle it?<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<ul>\n<li>Information technology is becoming very integrated deeply into our lives and brings new levels of convenience at the cost of privacy. Does it worry you that this technology will be misused in the future in terms of controlling human activity?<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>To hear\u00a0Bill Gates&#8217; full and very intelligent answers, just go to the interview <a title=\"Bill Gates\" href=\"http:\/\/www.abc.net.au\/tv\/qanda\/txt\/s3761763.htm\" target=\"_blank\">here<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>Now, what struck me about these questions was the fear of the future reflected in them. I\u2019m not one to worry about the future \u2013 just read my post on <a title=\"What will kick-start the apocalypse? Your results are in!\" href=\"http:\/\/www.zenashapter.com\/blog\/?p=5337\">what I think will kick-start the apocalypse<\/a>. So I thought I\u2019d add to Bill Gates\u2019 answers!<!--more--><\/p>\n<p>In talking about artificial intelligence, he mentioned that computers are far faster than we are today \u2013 multiplying, perfect memory\u2026 the ability to simulate things. Still, he concluded that:<\/p>\n<blockquote><p>it\u2019ll be a long time before you\u2019re matching the type of broad judgment that humans exercise in many different areas\u2026 Over time, machines are going to get very smart and like all modern things we\u2019ll have to adjust to that.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p>I agree that our broad judgment isn\u2019t a patch on computer memory, but I disagree that computer memory is perfect. If my computer crashes in the middle of my writing a story, as long as I get back into the document fairly quickly, I\u2019ll remember everything I wrote before the crash. The computer won\u2019t!<\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_6826\" style=\"width: 310px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><a href=\"http:\/\/www.zenashapter.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/06\/robotwars1.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-6826\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-6826\" alt=\"Computers ain't all that!\" src=\"http:\/\/www.zenashapter.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/06\/robotwars1-300x173.jpg\" width=\"300\" height=\"173\" \/><\/a><p id=\"caption-attachment-6826\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Computers ain&#8217;t all that!<\/p><\/div>\n<p>Crash or no crash, every time I close down a Word document, the software forgets what I edited during that last session. Whereas I won\u2019t.<\/p>\n<p>As I\u2019m writing and saving a story, I\u2019m also remembering to breath, drink water, keep my back straight. My subconscious is pondering how to resolve that tricky plot point I&#8217;ve reached in another story I&#8217;m writing simultaneously. And I\u2019ll remember to do multiple other tasks too, without writing myself notes. The human memory is far more complex than a computer\u2019s. So don\u2019t worry about those robots or AIs!<\/p>\n<p>When Bill Gates was talking about technology and privacy, he mentioned that in the past we had implicit privacy because people weren\u2019t very good at gathering information. Whereas now the transcript of your divorce trail might be online, and your neighbour or future employer might be able to discover your speeding fine history.<\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_6829\" style=\"width: 310px\" class=\"wp-caption alignleft\"><a href=\"http:\/\/www.zenashapter.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/06\/neighbours.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-6829\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-6829   \" alt=\"&quot;And did you hear about that Johnny over in Smith Street...?&quot;\" src=\"http:\/\/www.zenashapter.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/06\/neighbours-300x246.jpg\" width=\"300\" height=\"246\" \/><\/a><p id=\"caption-attachment-6829\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">&#8220;And did you hear about that Johnny over in Smith Street? Suppose he fancies himself an author, he does&#8230; What is the world coming to?!&#8221;<\/p><\/div>\n<p>Well, I respectfully have to disagree here. People have always been good at gathering information \u2013 just in a slightly different way. Fifty years ago Mrs Jones from two doors down might have gone to your divorce hearing, and she&#8217;d happily recount the whole session for you, verbatim, over a cup of tea \u2013 and she\u2019d come armed with additional information on emphasis and mood too, not to mention potted histories of the judge and lawyers involved. She probably even knew the officer typing the transcript when they were a kid at school. A saved transcript can\u2019t know or show all that.<\/p>\n<p>As for those speeding fines \u2013 well, PC Plod who used to live on the other side of the hill from you fifty years ago knew all about those in his head. He probably told his wife too. And she\u2019s a bit of a gossip. Plus, everyone knows you speed. They see you zipping around town. That\u2019s why they call you Speedy Sue.<\/p>\n<p>No, there\u2019s no hiding yourself from the world, there never has been. Privacy has always been something we\u2019ve had to fight for, and protect. The only reason we don\u2019t have to worry so much about Mrs Jones from down the street anymore is because we don\u2019t know our neighbours as well as we once did. Technology has been evolving since the wheel. But life won\u2019t change as much as you think it will in the future \u2013 only the method by which we experience it.<\/p>\n<p>I say the same thing to writers taking my social media courses \u2013 social media is just an update.<\/p>\n<p>I also say the same thing to writers worried about the future of publishing. Yes, with book sales down, writers are having a tough time right now. But haven\u2019t we always? Yes, commissioning editors are being told they\u2019re <i>not allowed<\/i> to acquire first-time novelists anymore, period, because they\u2019re a risk. But haven\u2019t they always been a risk? Heck, even developed authors can be a risk. That\u2019s no reason to give up! With great risk comes great reward!<\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_6836\" style=\"width: 209px\" class=\"wp-caption alignright\"><a href=\"http:\/\/www.zenashapter.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/06\/DSC_0552.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-6836\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-6836\" alt=\"Readers will always seek out fresh voices.\" src=\"http:\/\/www.zenashapter.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/06\/DSC_0552-199x300.jpg\" width=\"199\" height=\"300\" \/><\/a><p id=\"caption-attachment-6836\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Readers will always seek out fresh voices.<\/p><\/div>\n<p>Readers love their favourite authors. But they also love fresh voices and original ideas. As a first-time novelist, I believe I\u2019ve got both \u2013 so I don\u2019t see myself as a risk. I\u2019m an asset! And I\u2019m in this for the long-run. So I refuse to be afraid. You shouldn\u2019t be afraid either.<\/p>\n<p>Change happens all the time. So whether you\u2019re worried about the future of technology or publishing or both, try not to be \u2013 it\u2019s only the future \ud83d\ude42<\/p>\n<p>Did anyone else watch the Bill Gates interview? If so, what did you think?<\/p>\n<p>Whether you did or didn\u2019t \u2013 are you afraid of the future of technology or publishing? Let me know in the comments below&#8230;!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>A few days ago, I watched Bill Gates on Q&amp;A (a high-brow Aussie talk show). On it, this very witty and down-to-earth man answered questions about wealth, charity, capitalism, the environment and technology. It was the questions about technology that of course got me sitting up in my seat. Here\u2026<\/p>\n<p class=\"continue-reading-button\"> <a class=\"continue-reading-link\" href=\"https:\/\/zenashapter.com\/blog\/dont-be-afraid-of-robot-wars-its-just-the-future-billgates\/\">Continue reading<i class=\"crycon-right-dir\"><\/i><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2},"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[5],"tags":[51,87,129,224,418,494,497,500,530,579,626],"class_list":["post-6820","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-bookish-inspection","tag-artificial-intelligence","tag-bill-gates","tag-computers","tag-first-time-novelists","tag-memory","tag-privacy","tag-publishing","tag-qa","tag-robot-wars","tag-social-media","tag-technology"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/zenashapter.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6820","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/zenashapter.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/zenashapter.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/zenashapter.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/zenashapter.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=6820"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/zenashapter.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6820\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/zenashapter.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=6820"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/zenashapter.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=6820"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/zenashapter.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=6820"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}