http://machinemachine.net/stream/feed en-us http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/tech/rss Sweetcron therourke@gmail.com http://www.livescience.com/20102-copying-mistake-build-man-brain.html A copying error appears to be responsible for critical features of the human brain that distinguish us from our closest primate kin, new research finds. When tested out in mice, researchers found this "error" caused the rodents' brain cells to move into place faster and enabled more connections between brain cells. ]]> Wed, 09 May 2012 08:14:46 -0700 http://www.livescience.com/20102-copying-mistake-build-man-brain.html http://www.newscientist.com/article/dn21334-kopimism-the-worlds-newest-religion-explained.html Isak Gerson is spiritual leader of the world's newest religion, Kopimism, devoted to file-sharing. On 5 January the Church of Kopimism was formally recognised as a religion by the Swedish government. Tell me about this new file-sharing religion, Kopimism. We were founded about 15 months ago and we believe that information is holy and that the act of copying is holy. Why make a religion out of file-sharing? Why not just be an ordinary club without defining yourselves as being a religious community? Because we see ourselves as a religious group, a church seems like a good way of organising… ]]> Sun, 15 Jan 2012 14:32:57 -0700 http://www.newscientist.com/article/dn21334-kopimism-the-worlds-newest-religion-explained.html http://gizmodo.com/5873001/file-sharing-is-now-an-official-religion-in-sweden/file-sharing-is-now-an-official-religion-in-sweden File Sharing Is now an official Religion In Sweden: The Missionary Church of Kopimism http://t.co/Fq8kKFKr #CtrlC #CtrlV #copying #Piracy ]]> Wed, 04 Jan 2012 10:52:39 -0700 http://gizmodo.com/5873001/file-sharing-is-now-an-official-religion-in-sweden/file-sharing-is-now-an-official-religion-in-sweden http://www.loebner.net/Prizef/TuringArticle.html I propose to consider the question, "Can machines think?" This should begin with definitions of the meaning of the terms "machine" and "think." The definitions might be framed so as to reflect so far as possible the normal use of the words, but this attitude is dangerous, If the meaning of the words "machine" and "think" are to be found by examining how they are commonly used it is difficult to escape the conclusion that the meaning and the answer to the question, "Can machines think?" is to be sought in a statistical survey such as a Gallup poll. But… ]]> Mon, 31 Oct 2011 06:53:59 -0700 http://www.loebner.net/Prizef/TuringArticle.html http://www.openculture.com/2010/11/in_praise_of_copying_grab_a_free_copy.html Just a quick fyi: If you head over to the Harvard University Press web site, you can grab a free copy of Marcus Boon’s new book, In Praise of Copying, which makes the case that “copying is an essential part of being human, that the ability to copy is worthy of celebration, and that, without recognizing how integral copying is to being human, we cannot understand ourselves or the world we live in.” Boon is a writer, journalist and Associate Professor in the English Literature department at York University, Toronto. You can download a free copy of his book in… ]]> Wed, 03 Nov 2010 08:26:00 -0700 http://www.openculture.com/2010/11/in_praise_of_copying_grab_a_free_copy.html http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cargo_cult A cargo cult is a type of religious practice that may appear in traditional tribal societies in the wake of interaction with technologically advanced cultures. The cults are focused on obtaining the material wealth (the "cargo") of the advanced culture through magical thinking and religious rituals and practices, believing that the wealth was intended for them by their deities and ancestors. Cargo cults developed primarily in remote parts of New Guinea and other Melanesian and Micronesian societies in the southwest Pacific Ocean, beginning with the first significant arrivals of Westerners in the 19th century. Similar behaviors have, however, also appeared… ]]> Fri, 08 Jan 2010 10:51:00 -0700 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cargo_cult