INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY SYMPOSIUM
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corporations, and individuals. As a practical example, I have friends who
are graphic artists who could barely make a living just two or three years
ago and who are now making good six-figure incomes and are in incred–
ible demand to create graphic material for the Web. The Web is empow–
ering all kinds of creations, whether in visual art, music, video, movies,
or knowledge about eighteenth-century painting. Whatever your passion
is, it has tremendous value. And you're only going
to
be able to create
knowledge if you master an area of knowledge to build on; to do that,
you have to have a passion for something. That's what people should
pursue because I think this new technology is very empowering for
almost every kind of interest.
Audience Member:
Ray, you discussed your financial company that is
simulating existing systems that can help you make a lot of money, with
this new bot. But what happens when you start applying these analyses
to non-financial things, such as the Prisoner's Dilemma, where you have
more of a real-life case of sociological interplay and where things are tit
for tat. What is the ultimate bot out there in terms of human inter–
action? Do you think humans will ever look
to
this kind of research
to
~
help them live their lives?
Ray Kurzweil:
The Prisoner's Dilemma is a good example of the value of
communication because if, in fact, the two prisoners can communicate,
then they can make a deal and have the best outcome for both of them,
and it's only a dilemma when they can't communicate. We have many
analogues to the Prisoner's Dilemma in the world from just ten years
ago where people couldn't communicate. You have the Prisoner's
Dilemma in a totalitarian structure where the entire population can't
communicate and all communication goes through a central authority. I
think one of the great aspects of the World Wide Web is that it is
empowering individuals. It is changing the relationship between, for
example, individuals and their doctors, and it's changing many types of
institutions. So, the Prisoner's Dilemma is a good example of the power
of communication, and enhanced communication is one of the power–
ful results of this new technology.
Jacob Weisberg:
I want to thank both of our panelists for really
lucid, and, at least for me, mind-expanding presentations, and also
th.e audience for asking good questions. Please give them, and your–
selves, a hand . .
