From: Smigrodzki, Rafal (SmigrodzkiR@msx.upmc.edu)
Date: Tue Jun 25 2002 - 08:34:19 MDT
James Higgins wrote:
It seems to me that there is a reasonable probability that it may be
impossible for a mind to understand its own inner workings. In other
words a sentient's mind may by beyond the complexity threshold that it
itself can fully comprehend. Thus it may only be possible to comprehend
a mind which is an order of magnitude less intelligent/complex (pick
your own numbers, I'm just using this number as an example). If this
were the case a hard takeoff would be impossible and it would take much,
much longer to make positive progress than generally anticipated. I'd
like to hear some rational thoughts on this matter.
### Good point. I still think that a hard take-off is a likely possibility -
while *a* mind might be unable to comprehend itself, a society of minds
should be able to understand the minds of its components. Also, you do not
need to understand the whole mind to improve on its elements.
Rafal
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