Path: utzoo!utgpu!jarvis.csri.toronto.edu!rutgers!cs.utexas.edu!uunet!mcvax!ukc!etive!epistemi!edai!cam
From: cam@edai.ed.ac.uk (Chris Malcolm    cam@uk.ac.ed.edai   031 667 1011 x2550)
Newsgroups: comp.ai
Subject: Re: PROBABLE COMPLEXITY QUOTIENT
Keywords: A step towards quantification of chaos?
Message-ID: <440@edai.ed.ac.uk>
Date: 23 Jun 89 18:50:41 GMT
References: <1591@infmx.UUCP>
Reply-To: cam@edai (Chris Malcolm)
Organization: University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh
Lines: 50

In article <1591@infmx.UUCP> briand@infmx.UUCP (brian donat) writes:
>
>Given that the Human Brain is complex, complex to the point that we regard
>it now in the terminology of chaos theory, ...

Chaos theory shows that very complex BEHAVIOUR can derive from very
SIMPLE SYSTEMS. We also always knew that you could get simple behaviour
out of very complex systems, not to mention complex behaviour, without
needing chaotic behaviour. Chaos (in the technical mathematical sense)
has got nothing to do with how complicated a system is.

>	2.   done any mathematical calculations to estimate a probable   
>		complexity figure characteristic for the human brain?

What do you mean by complexity? What your atomic unit of complexity -
the simplest possible thing? And are you concerned with structure, or
behaviour, or potential for variation, which are three quite different
things?

>	4.   identified any of the 'low order' variations which affect
>		outcomes in the human brain? 

Lots of people are working on this. So far they've identified ethyl
alcohol, marihuana, opium, cocaine, tea, coffee, tobacco, mescal, jimson
weed ... 

>	5.   having identified 'low order' variations and having 
>		calculated a probable complexity figure for the human brain,
>		has anyone begun to analyze the best possible ways to 
>		develope a working model which will duplicate any level
>		of the human brain's functionality while achieving the 
>		a similar probable complexity figure? 

Why this constraint? Wouldn't it be neat to duplicate functionality with
a _simpler_ system? For example, aeroplanes didn't really take off until
they stopped trying to flap wings like birds.

>play trivial games such as passing a Turing Machine Test? 

Ah! You have examples of some more complicated games we could try?

>Is a complexity quotient needed to progress with assimilation of
>artificial intelligence? 

Give me some simple examples of complexity quotients in operation - I
don't understand the idea at all. What is divided by what?
-- 
Chris Malcolm    cam@uk.ac.ed.edai   031 667 1011 x2550
Department of Artificial Intelligence, Edinburgh University
5 Forrest Hill, Edinburgh, EH1 2QL, UK