Last week I mentioned that the Google search tool was pretty intelligent by suggesting a spelling error.  But is it actually intelligent?  We want to know whether a very smart computer can actually be referred to as intelligent.

But more than that, if a computer becomes as smart as a human, would it develop a consciousness?

And even more than that, would it develop free will?

It turns out the answer to all the questions is most probably yes!  All three!  So in the future it might be impossible to tell apart a human from an AI.  We look into why this is the case with help from Artificial Intelligence (AI) expert Marcus Hutter and philosopher of mind David Chalmers.

Skeptical?  Well this episode contains a test that might convince you, let’s see how you go.

This is a episode is a re-release of the original episode released on June 10.

 

 AI - 2 [15:29m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

As I type, my computer starts suggesting things to me, underlining punctuation errors and showing me new music that I might like.  Even Google replied to one of my searches with a ‘Did you mean artificial intelligence?’ in a kind of spooky/cheeky response.

How does a computer do something that appears to be intelligent when deep down it follows very specific, deterministic rules?  Well it turns out there are many ways to do it, and some are better than others in different situations.  Some Artificial Intelligences (AIs) require training, and some require constant supervision.

We talk to AI expert Marcus Hutter as he explains how to produce an intelligent program, and where does it take us?  Well, an illegal mafia card game of course…

This is a episode is a re-release of the original episode released on June 17.

 

 AI -1 [16:25m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Over our combined university career of 14 years we reckon we’ve read and listened to a lot of interesting stuff. In fact, that’s why we decided to try podcasting. So in this experimental episode of Sound Proof we decided to test each other to come up with random, impromptu, interesting things. We took inspiration from the categories in a trivial pursuit and put each other on the spot in the studio. We decided to release the unedited podcast where we cover the evolution of art to the lucrative nature of Broadway in 10 minutes.

Let us know what you think!

 

 Trivial Pursuit [11:53m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

In a thrilling conclusion to our episode on happiness we approach the issue from a broader perspective. Last week we looked at research which showed us money does buy happiness and suggested how to live a happy life. But… we only looked at economics. This week the ANU’s visiting fellow Richard Eckersley draws on his vast and wide-ranging experience in the natural and social sciences to offer a more holistic view.

And we look at one very large group of people who aren’t getting happier, even in the richest countries: women.  Since the 1970s, men have gotten happier, but women have gotten unhappier.  This is disguised in the research from episode one.  How can it be, after all the progress of the women’s movement, that there has been a decrease in women’s happiness?  We look into some possible explanations as to why the present day young women are less happy than their mothers were.

Finally we examine the role that attitude or outlook plays in happiness, which can be seen in the classic long-term study of high achieving Harvard graduates.

This episode is a remastered version of the original episode released on April 29.

 

 Happiness 02 [18:54m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Does money really buy happiness? The research says… yes! In the first half of our episode on happiness we investigate why money does buy happiness and what else you can do to maximise your well being. We speak to ANU economist and regular ABC Radio National guest, Andrew Leigh and come up with our own recipe for happiness.

But keep listening next week when we delve a little deeper into the issue, with the help of the ANU’s visiting fellow Richard Eckersley.

In the meantime check out Andrew Leigh’s blog for the most interesting stuff happening in economics. Or take a look at the Facebook happiness index to see how Facebook updates can be used to gauge a nation’s happiness.

This episode is a remastered version of the episode released on April 4th.

 

 Happiness 01 [15:06m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Like a lot of people I found Australian history pretty boring at school. First Fleet this, Federation that and Galipoli everything else. So I presumed nothing all that interesting actually happened in Australia until the Olympics in 2000. Of course this isn’t quite true and so we thought we would dedicate some episodes of Sound Proof to telling a few of the fascinating stories from Australian history Mat and I have discovered in our aimless reading over the years.

The first is the story of the Tichborne Claimant, which was massive during the 19^th century, when it rocked Victorian England in what was the trial of the age. It’s about a guy who claimed to be the long lost son of the rather wealthy Lady Tichborne. It’s the story of a butcher from Wagga Wagga who travelled to England to claim the fortune and who was welcomed with open arms by the lady herself, but others weren’t so sure.

It’s got intrigue, coincidence, colourful characters, Mark Twain, scandal and class warfare: all the ingredients for a great story. We asked ANU history student Gemma Nourse to research it and she gives us all the juiciest bits.

To see what Mark Twain wrote about it go to this link.

See if you can tell the difference between the imposter and the real Roger Tichborne.

 

 The Tichborne Claimant [15:32m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download