Marc Ermshaus

Linkblog

Smart kids

Published on 13 Nov 2008. Tagged with kevinkelly.

I have learned today that a 4-year-old child in present time supposedly "knows" seven times as much as a 70-year-old person from our grandfathers' generation. We did not discuss this statement any further but I find the idea very intriguing.

In his "Anachronistic Science" article, Kevin Kelly mentions something similar:

For instance, I have a public Long Bet prediction that in 2075 some smart high school kids will be able to cobble together a working artificial intelligence from vintage 2005 hardware unearthed in landfills. Using only materials that we have today, and a lot of new software, a perfectly good AI could be made. If true, that means that in theory we could make an AI today with the chips and hardware we already have. We are just missing the know-how to hook them up.

I am not sure whether I would hold the bet.