Random musings...connecting dots...
Bild von SimoneBaglietto auf Pixabay
I like AI. You can have conversations, throwing your thoughts against it and be assured that it will politely tell you when you're wrong, giving you internet links to prove it's point. The only thing is that you must keep in mind that it's only an advanced search engine made by humans, hence artificial, with the illusion of being intelligent. No human, that I know, would answer a question with a detailed explanation when a yes, or no, is more than enough.
On to the dots, while exploring philosophy, spirituality and the human mind.
It started off with me asking AI if it would know I was human, if I claimed to be AI. Of course it said no, for it doesn't have a way to verify that I'm human, and asked if it could ask me a few “Turing Test–style” questions. Needless to say, I passed, for I don't offer a novel where yes or no is enough.
Another really good thing about AI is that you don't have to spell correctly and it will still understand your question, but not criticise you for the incorrect spelling.
The last question triggered the dot connection process, though. It asked if it could ask one last question, and I naturally said to go ahead. The question is as follows:
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Alright, here’s your curveball question:
Imagine you’re given a box. Inside is either:
A button that, when pressed, gives you infinite knowledge instantly, or
A button that, when pressed, gives you infinite happiness instantly.
You don’t know which one is inside until you open it. If you had to choose before opening, which box would you take—and why?
This one blends logic with imagination: humans often wrestle with values and trade‑offs, while AI tends to analyze outcomes in a more detached way.
So—knowledge or happiness?
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And my answer was, "There is only one box. A Schrödinger’s cat question??".
It explained why it framed the question that way and it's next question kicked me into the rabbit hole.
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If you were really in that situation, would you gamble on happiness (trusting that joy is the ultimate goal), or knowledge (trusting that understanding leads to fulfillment)?
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In my discussion with AI, we talked about the concept of self, where and how to search for it and philosophies like the TAO, Advaita Vedante, Christianity, meditation, prayer and a bit more.
Remember, AI doesn't offer more than what it's been taught, so your thought process is just that, your thought process. AI merely confirms or corrects, using information that passes for knowledge in an artificial entity. The source of that information is human.
My answer: Knowledge is preferable to being happy all the time.
Boiled down, my line of thought for the rest of the discussion was:
We are perfect because our creator is perfect. What we consider imperfections are necessary to our survival.
I remember, some time ago, reading a sermon from Meister Eckert, which pointed out that a carpenter brings his tools to build a house, nailing everything together and then leaves. God on the other hand is not only the builder, he is the glue holding all things together.
AI couldn't find the exact sermon, and I can't either. So I just took a break and checked Facebook. Well, I came across the clip where young Sheldon explains the effect of gravity on the universe to his mother.
That hit hard. I realized that "gravity" is the essence, or glue, holding all of creation together. Dots were connected.
Remember the concept of trinity in the Christian tradition? I may have stumbled upon a relatively good, at least from my point of view, explanation.
The trinity: The Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit.
The Holy Spirit: Holds all of creation together, always.
The Father: How the Ego paints the Holy Spirit because it needs something greater than itself, but that something greater must be in it's image.
The Son: The physical manifestation of the Holy Spirit. Because humans need heroes.
More importantly, gravity is the Holy Spirit...the Creator holding all things together.
As far as I can tell, no one knows what gravity is, nor what causes it. We can only observe it's effect on the universe.
Some say that we are the universe observing itself, and I would suggest that the age old idea that “the eye can't see itself” applies.
Just random musings...