Artificial Intelligence: A Beginner's Guide

Two weeks ago, I read the book Artificial Intelligence: A Beginner's Guide written by Blay Whitby. As the title suggests, it was a very brief introduction to AI, While the book did not dealt too much into techniques regarding AI (neural networks, backward propagation, genetic algorithms, etc), it provided a healthy dose of discussion on the philosophy regarding AI, such as strong and weak AI, why films are usually wrong about AI, and what AI holds for the future. Of course, one cannot discuss AI without the Turing Test and the Ford and Hayes (1998) analogy of flight. Overall, its a proper introduction to anyone without any knowledge of AI (knowledge in this context excludes what you learn in films).

Eric Schmidt with iPhone (Photos)

Eric Schmidt showed off his iPhone when he spoke to the World Economic Forum at the Google Campus yesterday. He took out his iPhone at around 24:30 in this video (thanks to Robert Scoble for this hint), to show his location using Google Maps.

Photos of Eric Schmidt with the iPhone below:

Photo of the Google Campus on the iPhone.

and he even commented, "this is the privilege of being on the Apple Board... and I have to guard this with my life here."

Flickr Photo of the Day: The Writing Is On The Wall – If You Can See It, You Can’t Read It

Kindness is a language which the deaf can hear and the blind can see.
-- Mark Twain (1835-1910)

I passed this sculpture so many times. You have to. It is made of stainless steel and placed in one of the busiest Wellington streets, in the perfect position to capture the colorful lights of the city after daylight, the nightglow of the capital.

The ‘Invisible City’, as it’s called, is the gigantic panel of Braille text that highlights the communication gap between those who can’t see and the rest of us.

The post is designed to remember all the folks, my countrymen and yours, the often invisible part of society, all those who finish schools, who work, play music, do sports, pay taxes, have and raise children, to the benefit of us all.

The Writing Is On The Wall – If You Can See It, You Can’t Read It, originally uploaded by Peter from Wellington

D5 - Historic Moment?

And, you know, I think of most things in life as either a Bob Dylan or a Beatles song, but there’s that one line in that one Beatles song, “you and I have memories longer than the road that stretches out ahead.” And that’s clearly true here.
-- Steve Jobs

Last week, Steve Jobs and Bill Gates shared the same stage at D5 - All Things Digital, a yearly conferences hosted by the Wall Street Journal (WSJ). It has a historic moment, of sorts, for the two technological giants, who had been at odds at some time or another. The interview was laced with many references to the past and present. To name a few: Bill Gates claiming that he is not fake Steve Jobs, and talking about "Steve’s taste", Steve Jobs saying that "PC Guy is Great. Got a big heart." and most surprisingly, quoting the Beatles (Apple vs Apple was not so long ago).

Perhaps, what was most clear that both Bill and Steve had mutual respect for each other, and Om Malik even went as far to say that Steve Jobs appeared kinder and gentler.