From: Wesley Eddy (weddy@grc.nasa.gov)
Date: Fri Oct 22 2004 - 11:03:58 MDT
On Fri, Oct 22, 2004 at 09:15:36AM -0500, Aikin, Robert wrote:
> To rely on public donations is not much different than a monk holding
> out a bowl (you never know where the next meal is going to come from).
> Unless idealistic individuals in the upper classes can be enlisted to
> support the cause, it might be more productive to create capital through
> some sort of technological innovation. There are more than a few clever
> minds on the SL4 list that could do this.
Indeed, I recall a recent news article about AIs playing online poker:
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/6002298/
Similar projects could serve as both developmental platforms for the
SIAI to test research AND help to finance it. Even though the immediate
result wouldn't be the desired end result, a successful project like
this would demonstrate the competence of the SIAI in the field and
perhaps generate some publicity. I'm personally not an AI expert, and
am hesitant to donate money to an AI research institute that doesn't
appear to have any record of publication and citation in refereed
scientific journals (although that's not neccessarily a bad thing, it
simply makes judging the credibility/viability/productivity of the
institute more difficult).
-Wes
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