What is your "Great Work"?

[celedhring]

Writing stuff that people will enjoy. Ideally stuff that would make them think, but I'm not sure I have something meaningful to say. So at least I want to entertain them a little bit.

I don't care much for creating a family, which at my age is sort of worrying me.

[Jacob]

You seem to be very defensive. If you are not interested in the thread, don't respond.

You're being pretty unclear though. You asked people what their "great work" was and said you weren't looking for suggestions for yourself, as you have your own ideas. And then you are rejecting people's replies because they're not sufficiently original for you.

It's kind of like you wanted to have a thread about yourself, but dressed it up in asking about other people even though you're not actually interested in what they have to say.

[Valmy]

I'm not a family man by any stretch of the definition, so that leaves me a little freer to pursue my own particular obsession: artificial intelligence.

Aside from the practical limitations of engineering a functioning artificial intelligence, I'm also concerned with the ethics of creating sapient machines.  In particular, just how much freedom should we allow for subjective decisions.  If machines begin making subjective decisions, the pandora's box is that machines could interpret a situation in such a way as to act to a person's, or humanity's, detriment.

If we view AI as a tool, we can set boundaries to prevent that from happening and concentrate on objective reasoning.  If we view an artificial intelligence as a form of life, on the other hand, deliberately limiting its cognitive abilities could be akin to a lobotomy, and the focus should be on training and guidance, with the acceptance that it will never be 100% safe.

We should never have AIs.  Machines exist to serve humanity and relieve people and animals of tedious labor.  They are a means and should never be an ends.

[Lettow77]

When that galactic kingdom comes into being I can only imagine the pride you will feel.

  It will be a soft and out-of-focus land; the illustrious and impetuous cavaliers of before will not rise again. Freebooters and Filibusters will no more spill their erratic gallantry into neighboring environs, but rather our regenerated Dixie will benefit from its long period of torpor and stagnation when once again it is exhumed into parts as yet unknown.

Mono no aware will preoccupy our fatalistic Southland; That culture which was once so vibrant and full of discordant strains will find itself more lethargic under the yoke of a cohesive orthodoxy. Obligation, memory and duty will step in as the heirs of honor, fame and audacity; the feudal state which once was shall in its regenesis draw upon different ideals from its pastiche of idealized Europe. Less and none of the JEB Stuart will remain, save for a love of beauty and a fondness for high society; pride and passion of such twinkling intensity have no place in our Dixie upon the stars.

[DontSayBanana]

We should never have AIs.  Machines exist to serve humanity and relieve people and animals of tedious labor.  They are a means and should never be an ends.

Longitudinal studies.  Generational projects.  Since the ebola thread is gaining so much traction, how about a perfect quarantine with a doctor that never needs to come out the other door?  Until we have a reliable way to roll back death, there will always be a utility that can be filled by a machine not subject to human illnesses or longevity.

[garbon]

You seem to be very defensive. If you are not interested in the thread, don't respond.

You're being pretty unclear though. You asked people what their "great work" was and said you weren't looking for suggestions for yourself, as you have your own ideas. And then you are rejecting people's replies because they're not sufficiently original for you.

It's kind of like you wanted to have a thread about yourself, but dressed it up in asking about other people even though you're not actually interested in what they have to say.

I thought he was pretty clear that he was interested in what are responses beyond raising kids. The problem, of course, is that for some people that is the answer to what their "great work" is - so it doesn't necessarily make sense to ask them to think "beyond" that.

[Eddie Teach]

My great work will have something to do with Klingons and the Persian Empire.

[Jacob]

I thought he was pretty clear that he was interested in what are responses beyond raising kids. The problem, of course, is that for some people that is the answer to what their "great work" is - so it doesn't necessarily make sense to ask them to think "beyond" that.

Okay, fair enough. Maybe Marty should hire you to rewrite his posts for clarity.

[DGuller]

I think just living your normal life, not doing things for a living that detract from the well-being of society (being an investment banker, a political consultant, or a tobacco company lawyer), is enough to contribute to society.

[Barrister]

You seem to be very defensive. If you are not interested in the thread, don't respond.

You're being pretty unclear though. You asked people what their "great work" was and said you weren't looking for suggestions for yourself, as you have your own ideas. And then you are rejecting people's replies because they're not sufficiently original for you.

It's kind of like you wanted to have a thread about yourself, but dressed it up in asking about other people even though you're not actually interested in what they have to say.

I thought he was pretty clear that he was interested in what are responses beyond raising kids. The problem, of course, is that for some people that is the answer to what their "great work" is - so it doesn't necessarily make sense to ask them to think "beyond" that.

It's not just that he wasn't interested, he was completely dismissive of "family" being an answer to his vaguely worded question.

[Jacob]

It's not just that he wasn't interested, he was completely dismissive of "family" being an answer to his vaguely worded question.

Which is kind of silly actually, because even if you're not interested in having children of your own, many people find meaning by building virtual families through their "great work".

[derspiess]

Another Marty vanity thread backfires

[Monoriu]

My great work is not going any great work. 

[garbon]

You seem to be very defensive. If you are not interested in the thread, don't respond.

You're being pretty unclear though. You asked people what their "great work" was and said you weren't looking for suggestions for yourself, as you have your own ideas. And then you are rejecting people's replies because they're not sufficiently original for you.

It's kind of like you wanted to have a thread about yourself, but dressed it up in asking about other people even though you're not actually interested in what they have to say.

I thought he was pretty clear that he was interested in what are responses beyond raising kids. The problem, of course, is that for some people that is the answer to what their "great work" is - so it doesn't necessarily make sense to ask them to think "beyond" that.

It's not just that he wasn't interested, he was completely dismissive of "family" being an answer to his vaguely worded question.

I don't think he was so dismissive of family being an answer - he was just not particularly interested about families and wanted to get answers beyond that.

[CountDeMoney]

It's kind of like you wanted to have a thread about yourself, but dressed it up in asking about other people even though you're not actually interested in what they have to say.

Why, you make it sound like you've seem this sort of thing before.