October 25, 2007
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The Daily News
1 I love synchronicity. The other day I was talking to this lady in Walgreens and she brought up the Stanley Kubrick classic 2001: A Space Odyssey, just small talk. I mentioned to her about Hal, the computer in the film, and how his name was designed in alphabetical steps with the letters IBM.
2 We chatted about how for a film that old, that portion of it was pretty accurate. Computers may just evolve to having feelings someday. That was part of the strangeness of 2001.
3 Well, time has flown...a little more synchronicity for your reading pleasure:
The conversation with the lady in Walgreens happened a couple of days ago. I attended a meeting yesterday and it was coincidentally about Artificial Intel in education. A teacher next to me whispered in my ear, "Sounds like Hal."
Last night in the middle of writing this a commercial came on, a Charmin toilet paper commercial. It's theme song was Thus Spake Zarathustra...and so I began to pay attention.
A long time ago we worried that computers might one day have feelings, but nobody ever really believed it possible, not REALLY. Computers thinking and having feelings.
4 We're already hearing of Robotics, and of robots that exhibit feelings, thoughts, and human emotions, but I know of no robot that has definitely demonstrated human feelings. But they're trying.
5 Yesterday this guy from some Artificial Intelligence company came in and showed us a school program that has virtual teachers teaching students online.
6 They're cartoons that blink, talk, and interact with the students. They find out how much a student knows, and where the student needs help, and then work with the student one-on-one.
7 They can evenTALK to the student, who can answer with a keyboard.
8 Each student gets his or her own learning plan, and gains points based on how well they are moving at their own level. They can log in with their own log in names, so you could have a guy named Gamedude15 instead of the student's real name.
9 In addition, they post the top five ongoing point-gainers, just like an arcade. Since the students gain points on their own individual challenges, the smartest students don't necessarily get the highest points. The students who pay careful attention and don't need things repeated score the most points. You get rewarded for paying attention the first time a concept is introduced.
10 The points accumulate and at various levels the students can change them in for prizes, like a $10 gift card to Barnes and Noble, or a $15 card that could eventually get them an expensive I-Pod.
11 The students can even goof off, and ask the teacher, "Are you a robot? Are you hot?" etc. but the REAL classroom teacher has a record of every session and could check on the student.
12 The virtual teacher could say, "That could hurt my feelings Dave..."
13 You get the drift. The cartoon teachers blink, turn, talk, hesitate with eyes, and all the rest. It has been reported that the students get attached to the virtual teachers because they choose which one they want to work with at the outset.
14 The sales guy said that if they discontinue a teacher that the students could get VERY upset.
15 I don't want to imagine what the virtual teacher is feeling.
16 Daisy, daisy, give me your answer do...
17 Moving on: As the fires in So Cal continue to burn, I'll try to give periodic reports. So far I've heard that UCSD is okay, thanks Trami for the report. They did cancel all classes for the week, so that's some time off for the San Diego crew. UCLA is unscathed, and I thank Maggie for that one. And UC Irvine is all systems go, and I thank John Le for that one.
18 If you're a college student, or if you live down there, please e-mail me and allow me to fill everyone in on how things are going. I'll put your reports into the DN so that it can at least pretend it's a reliable news source.
19 Most of it is of course a buncha boushit, but today I thought I'd give you some real stuff about coincidences and computers with AI and all. Fascinating. But it is looking like time is up on this DN.
20 So okay everybody, hug a robot today.
21 Cartoons need love too.
22 As do computers.
23 Stranger than fiction, let me tellya. I almost want to get off before my own laptop gets fatigued and grouchy. Have a look.
24 It won't be stylish marriage...I can't afford a carriage...
~H~
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