Category: Uncategorized

Their first task was easy

Their first task was easy

Their first task was easy. Can the digital organisms I wrote, called “figures,” learn to call a good command and avoid a bad one?

My first job was easy. It only took 6 lines of code. Each digital creature, each “figure,” has a certain amount of energy.

Figure.energy = 12,168;

Each time a figure has a turn, (when they execute one command,) the energy level drops.

Energy=energy-1;

When a figure is out of energy, it dies. It is completely deleted from the system, leaving behind it’s children, if it had any.

If (figure.energy

It’s about time I tried using my artificial life as an artificial intelligence

It’s about time I tried using my artificial life as an artificial intelligence

It’s about time I tried using my artificial life as an artificial intelligence. It’s been the goal since day one. Before I could do that, I had to come up with the algorithm in the first place, and then make sure that the figures could actually evolve. To evolve, they need to change, and some of those changes should help them survive and reproduce, passing on their successful tricks to their offspring.

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Ep 198: A rough sketch or two, of you, inside of you.

Ep 198: A rough sketch or two, of you, inside of you.

A rough sketch or two, of you, inside of you.

Inside your brain, there are individual neurons that correspond to specific places on your body. If you figure out which cell goes to what part, you’ll notice that the map in your brain looks like a nightmare sketch of you, drawn by a mad artist who’s only heard of humans by rough description. The body and legs are way too small, the hands are huge, your lips are oversized, and your face is upside-down. Today, Phil and I talk about these parts of the brain, with many side trips and much confusion.

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Ep 197: right brain, left side body; left brain, right side body… why?

Ep 197: right brain, left side body; left brain, right side body… why?

right brain, left side body; left brain, right side body… why?

Our brains have crossed wires. Each cerebral hemisphere controls the opposite side of the body. When I move my left hand, it’s my right brain that’s doing it. Today, Phil and I look at a theory about how and why that’s true for us, and every other animal with a spine.

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Ep 196: How neurons find their home

Ep 196: How neurons find their home

How neurons find their home

Even before birth, billions of brain cells have to figure out what sort of cell to be, where to be, and which other neurons to connect to. Today we talk about the complicated processes that help neurons find their home.

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Ep 195: Baby’s brain before birth

Ep 195: Baby’s brain before birth

Baby’s brain before birth

As we continue our close look at the human brain, we take some time to look at how it grows and develops. The story starts before you are born, when a man and woman love each other very much, and…

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Ep 194: The lowly, yet complex, neuron

Ep 194: The lowly, yet complex, neuron

The lowly, yet complex, neuron

Finally done with natural history, today we start talking about the brain. It is extremely complicated. Even a single brain cell, one neuron, is an intricate little machine. Today we take a look at the neuron, and how it sends signals.

It bloody well works!

It bloody well works!

Written on Wednesday October3, 2018

Small sample sizes and all those caveats.

I’m tossing out the number of figures being born as a threshold. That will pop out of any of them at any time, and it’s just luck. One of them starts reproducing very quickly, and happens to find a window of relatively few mutation’s, and then skate on through to the finish line.

I retested the first five populations, snagged with a threshold of 100 and 100,000, if memory servs me. Looking at the most mutations given to a population, side by side results, first five and latest five.

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I was going to say that’s going nowhere, but looking at my notes just now.

I was going to say that’s going nowhere, but looking at my notes just now.

Written on Tuesday October 2, 2018

It seemed like a good idea. Let evolution solve the mutation problem for me. This is procrastination, as what I really need to do next is update the documentation and archive this version. It’s time to clean up the code and concentrate on making the system run faster. Still, I had a few days, and I’d notice that some populations were much more resistant to mutation than others.

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