Re: answers I'd like from an SI

From: Wei Dai (weidai@weidai.com)
Date: Sat Nov 10 2007 - 17:37:31 MST


Jef Allbright wrote:
> I expect that you would be disappointed and frustrated as the higher
> intelligence would appear to respond in riddles. Pressed further, it
> might respond [cf. Eliezer] that there are no mysterious answers, but
> only mysterious questions, and that when you have composed a proper
> question you will have the answer you seek.

I definitely expect better results than that. At least some of the questions
are clearly not "mysterious". For example we already have a completely
non-mysterious (but imperfect) answer to "How does induction work?" in the
form of Solomonoff Induction. If human beings can discover Solomonoff
Induction, shouldn't an SI be able to do better?

> Note that we can expect a more advanced intelligence to demonstrate
> objectively superior results (relative to a given goal) but this does
> not imply that it could effectively explain it to a lesser
> intelligence.

Take Solomonoff Induction again. Sure you need a certain level of
intelligence to understand it, but not SI-like.

> It could provide the **appearance** of a satisfactory answer.

I realize this is a possibility, and stated it myself as "search for the
string that maximizes intellectual satisfaction for the questioner". However
this is an outcome that I would really like to avoid.

The rest of alternatives that you suggest either represent more mundane
failures of Friendliness or are covered by my response above.
 



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