The word "AI" embedded in circuitry, hovering in a starry sky over an ocean sunrise, viewed through trees.
Artificial Intelligence, Writing Process

Animist AI Manifesto

Everywhere you look, in every nook and niche, from art museums to zookeeping, artificial intelligence is the topic of the day. Should it be used? Under what conditions? Should there be industry standards? Guidelines? Bans? What is the environmental impact? Is it even avoidable anymore? And how can you get reliable information to guide your… Continue reading Animist AI Manifesto

Artificial Intelligence, Axon, Inc.

Telepathy Tech in Science Fiction and Reality, Part I: On Our Way

Science fiction has always had a fraught relationship with telepathy. On the one hand, it's such a fanciful and magical ability that it's oftentimes not thought of as sci-fi at all, or (especially in Golden Age sci-fi) only as some semi-mystical power that only mutants or aliens have (eg Spock in Star Trek, Xenomorphs in… Continue reading Telepathy Tech in Science Fiction and Reality, Part I: On Our Way

Artificial Intelligence, Axon, Inc., nanowrimo, Writing Process

Axon, Inc. Revisions: NaNoWriMo 2021

At this point it's getting a bit embarrassing to admit that I've been working on this book since 2013. It still remains my pet project and the one I'm most anxious to have see the light of day, since it reflects many of my own experiences and hopes and fears -- about my profession (artificial… Continue reading Axon, Inc. Revisions: NaNoWriMo 2021

Artificial Intelligence, Writing Process

Man vs. Machine: John Henry, Science Fiction, and the March of Progress

There are only two kinds of plots in true science fiction:  Science is a Hero, and Science is a Villain. In Science is a Hero, there is some problem or other -- an asteroid is going to hit the Earth, the Galactic Empire is falling, there's a Plague IN SPACE!! -- and the heroic characters… Continue reading Man vs. Machine: John Henry, Science Fiction, and the March of Progress

Artificial Intelligence

The Mind of a Rock: Animism and AI

For thousands of years, Western civilization has been living with a striking paradox. On the one hand, we are clearly physical beings living in a physical universe. And yet, we have these thoughts, feelings, dreams, and perceptions... They seem related to the physical universe, yet fundamentally different in character. We have an ‘inner’ life, which… Continue reading The Mind of a Rock: Animism and AI