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[Azated]

I'm torn between demanding an immediate wedding or a sudden mental breakdown caused by massive amounts of kitten slaughter.

Anyway, I do see how this is connected. I actually wonder if Toady will be able to make serious advances in the field of video game AI, or AI in general. He's already on that path, and making it all a living, breathing world that keeps pace with the player is a part of his goals. Some form of "radiant AI" that is actually "radiant" or in any way responsive, even if it's just actively choosing loyalties and developing a little schedule of it's own to play out in-game, is a pretty big deal.

He'd first have to sort out the dwarves desire to dive off 100z high walls into a pit of magma because a wooden training spear suddenly popped up and broke in two the minute it hit him.

Of course, if the Toady Artificial Intelligence Systems becomes a real thing, I will pledge my life to introducing the very first functioning sexbot to the wonders of the human world.

[hermes]

I thought the story was very meh; a rather superficial and inconsequential analysis of "AI".  The Singularity Institute to which he belongs is a front for pseudo -scientists and -philosophers who talk big and produce nothing.  But as far as DF goes in relation to game AI, I fully expect it to supersede everything that has come before, because Toady has built a world, a context, within which a lot of derived meta-data, that is required for plausible emotional reactions, readily emerges.

[Loud Whispers]

"DF : Furthering the advance of singularity since 2002."

[Armok]

Since people apparently liked the story and he real topic of the morality of DF playstyles as the AI gets better is apparently not going to get discussed, here are more random links:

http://yudkowsky.net/other/fiction
http://www.raikoth.net/Stuff/story1.html
http://clarkesworldmagazine.com/watts_01_10/

also, half of you are missing the point of the story.

[Loud Whispers]

I for one protect my Dwarves (unless science) and try to treat prisoners fairly (unless science). But usually they're having none of it and want to kill all of MY NPC's, so the natural response is sudden death to ensure maximum safety.

We didn't miss the point of the story, we're just not going to change our views so readily because of it.
After all, if you're going to devote time to the protection of NPC's with surprisingly sapient thoughts, there is one major problem in DF - being everything dies eventually. Usually horribly.
"And armies clash to the laughter of bloodthirsty gods."

[kaenneth]

This is the most advanced form of mindfuck possible: Making people wonder whether any form of Plato's Cave exists.
Also, it's only pranking if the prankee gets to know that he was pranked.

By the way: I've suddenly realized that I like getting pranked/mindfucked more than I like pranking.

Me after pranking someone: Yeah, you fell for it. That's what I expected. I feel sorta bad for you.
Me after getting pranked: Holy shit I GOT PRANKED. You have blown my mind, and it was fucking AWESOME!

So yeah, I'm probably addicted to having my mind blown. That's probably the main reason why I'm on the Internet.

But you're not really on the Internet.

[MagmaMcFry]

But you're not really on the Internet.

Not sure what you mean by that.

[Eric Blank]

But you're not really on the Internet.

Not sure what you mean by that.

I once had a dream that I had become a sentient computer program and surfed the interwebs and corrupted software to my will to create whatever I damn well wanted without having to use a keyboard or suffer any distractions. And also working very rapidly. I determined that this would be a pretty neat "superpower" to have, but only if it were reversible and you weren't stuck in there forever.

On the topic at hand that went over my head the first time, I doubt that having the AI present more lifelike personalities and decision-making would prevent me from playing the way I do now. I don't, afterall, murder my entire population on a whim, and usually don't go on a killing spree as an adventurer anymore. I fight to kill that which must be removed for the betterment of those I hold loayalty to, my dwarves or my civilization.

[MagmaMcFry]

I fight to kill that which must be removed for the betterment of those I hold loayalty to, my dwarves or my civilization.

That's just because the game doesn't let you do anything else.

[i2amroy]

I once had a dream that I had become a sentient computer program and surfed the interwebs and corrupted software to my will to create whatever I damn well wanted without having to use a keyboard or suffer any distractions. And also working very rapidly. I determined that this would be a pretty neat "superpower" to have, but only if it were reversible and you weren't stuck in there forever.

Robots man. Even if you were permanently transformed into a sentient software program (which personally I think would be awesome), you could always get a physical body by getting a robot one. Just take over a factory somewhere and build yourself a body.

[Eric Blank]

I once had a dream that I had become a sentient computer program and surfed the interwebs and corrupted software to my will to create whatever I damn well wanted without having to use a keyboard or suffer any distractions. And also working very rapidly. I determined that this would be a pretty neat "superpower" to have, but only if it were reversible and you weren't stuck in there forever.

Robots man. Even if you were permanently transformed into a sentient software program (which personally I think would be awesome), you could always get a physical body by getting a robot one. Just take over a factory somewhere and build yourself a body.

Sounds like a good excuse to mount a digital invasion of Japan...

[whale_biologist]

By Armok, What the hell did I just read? That was some of the most banal, over-the-top, philosophical trash I have read since college.

Reality is subjective, ok we get it, let's all move on with our respectively subjective lives. Talk to any 18-24 year old pseudo-intellectual and they will tell you all about how nothing is real, as if they have stumbled onto some new breakthrough in irrelevant philosophy.

[megiddo]

So pranking is just as bad as raping or killing ?

It can be, yes. Things are not always clear cut.

[MagmaMcFry]

By Armok, What the hell did I just read? That was some of the most banal, over-the-top, philosophical trash I have read since college.

"Banal" doesn't quite fit Yudkowsky. He's just about the most awesome person ever in terms of actually being intelligent. Your IQ will significantly increase just by reading his lectures on rationality.

By the way: This is the most epic, hilarious and mindbogglingly incredible literary work ever created by mankind. Guess who wrote it.

[whale_biologist]

You know how someone tells you they think the best book in the world is one of the twilight books, and you instantly think less of them? Yeah.