Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 17:04 — 12.2MB) | Embed
Beyond the neuron The neuron is not the only type of brain cell. From a celebrity missing body parts, to human cells in a mouse brain, we take a look at your glia. Here’s a video about the brain, that includes the animation I mentioned in the episode, and information on your Glia. A Blueprint …
When I posted the last post I posted, I was smugly certain that I’d be posting another post, (that very day!)all about how success had been achieved. It had been a while since I’d last looked at my figures. I had episode 200 to kick out the door, and some research to do for a …
I’m phrasing it as though they are looking at a light, because that’s what I’m doing—experimenting with implementing vision in an artificial life system. There’s a factoid floating around that evolution cannot explain the eye. It’s based on a phrase written by Darwin. He had said that it is difficult to believe that something as …
Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 22:16 — 15.1MB) | Embed
will robots rule the world? If we were to create an artificial intelligence that’s more intelligent than we are, would it take over and force us into extinction? Can a machine have a mind equal to or even better than our own? Today, we take a look at such questions, along with some side trips …
So, here’s the game, implemented in game.java. A certain number of cycles is chosen, between a minimum amount, 10 at the moment, and a maximum, 50. Then a coin is flipped that determines whether the light is on or off for this round. One port will, when called, set b to 1 if the light …
Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 21:29 — 12.3MB) | Embed
Unconscious learning, your brain, and savant syndrome Today we talk about your brain and unconscious mechanisms of learning. From losing a skill for no apparent reason, to acquiring languages, to unfortunately learning paralysis and pain, to savants who apparently learn without consciously attempting to, we cover some oddities about the way your brain works and …
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 …
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 …
Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 20:59 — 12.2MB) | Embed
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 …
Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 19:21 — 11.4MB) | Embed
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, …