Matrioshka Brain - A New Hope

Extra-terrestrial life has fascinated generations of people. Distance between two “local groups” or sets of concentrated galaxies is increasing. It is utterly difficult to visit the numerous galaxies in the observable universe for the simple reason that the universe is expanding. For every grain of sand on every beach on Earth, there are 10,000 stars out there. Probability theory can be applied to overcome the long-standing debates on the exact percentage of those stars that support life. Going with the most conservative probabilities, assuming that after billions of years in existence, 1% of Earth-like planets support life and that on 1% of those planets, the life advances to an intelligent level like it did here on Earth, there are 10 quadrillion intelligent civilizations in the observable universe. Where are these civilizations? Where is everybody? Herein lies a paradox - Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence or SETI is an organization dedicated to its namesake. It is constantly listening for signals from other intelligent life. But it hasn’t picked up one until now.

The Fermi paradox is defined as the apparent contradiction between the lack of evidence and high probability estimates of the existence of extraterrestrial civilizations. The Kardashev Scale groups intelligent civilizations into three broad categories by the amount of energy they use-

1. A Type I Civilization has the ability to use all of the energy on their planet. (Human beings are currently at 0.73 on a scale up to 1)

2. A Type II Civilization can harness all of the energy of their host star

3. A Type III Civilization can control the energy of its whole galaxy

Given that our planet is only 4.5 billion years old in a universe that is pushing 14 billion years, it’s safe to say most aliens are type III. This leads to the hypothesis that interstellar travel in its advanced stage must have facilitated a machinery to connect or colonize the galaxies. Are we next on the itinerary of these type III civilizations? Or has the time come and gone? One theory formed to explain the paradox is that of filters. Filters are essentially barriers that do not allow ecosystems to sustain life. On one hand it could be that we have already passed the ultimate filter, that earlier the external environment factors were far more belligerent than they are now. It could also mean that we are the first to pass this filter, since we haven’t interacted with any other life form. On the other hand, it might as well be the case that we are yet to face the final filter otherwise known as the Apocalypse or more generally a cataclysmic event. Experts say that a lot of these technologically advanced civilizations self-destructed due to resource mismanagement. Some even say that they were wiped out by a type III civilization.

We are at the brink of utmost proficiency in machine intelligence. Consider the fact we’re exploring the solar system with robotic probes and rovers and hope to send humans in the future. Herein lies another paradox- let it be called the A.I. paradox for simplicity’s sake- the same A.I. could save us or destroy us. There exists the notion of unfriendly artificial intelligence- A.I.s that use their superior intelligence to grow themselves and maximize their own utility at the expense of humans, and friendly artificial intelligence which impacts humanity positively. What is the scope of A.I. saving humanity from obsolescence? The most ardent answer adopts a bold approach in fact and fiction, and ignores the simplistic and solipsistic views held for eons.

There are speculations of type III civilizations having formed a Matrioshka brain. Simply put, it is a kind of theoretical megastructure that channels solar energy into unparalleled supercomputing ability. It is an example of a class B stellar engine, making use of almost the entire energy output of its host star. It is similar in principle, but much larger in size and computational capacity, than a so-called Jupiter brain, which is only planetary in scale. The use, one can wonder, of such an engine is far beyond imagination. One idea suggested by Charles Stross, in his novel Accelerando, would be to use it to run perfect simulations or "uploads" of human minds into virtual reality spaces supported by the Matrioshka brain. Stross even went so far as to suggest that a sufficiently godlike species utilizing enough raw processing power could launch attacks upon, and manipulate, the structure of the universe itself.

Our deepest fears are reflected in the emotional conception of oblivion. But once our motivations surpass that, modern science lays out a whole new paradigm of technology. The singularity, David Kelley, co-founder of Wired Magazine, says, is the point at which “all the change in the last million years will be superseded by the change in the next five minutes.” Singularity exponentially accelerates changes. Machine intelligence is simply a passing phase in evolution, the next phase being superintelligence. Aliens who are a trillion times smarter than human beings would probably not notice the human race at all. The E.T. probably observes human beings like human beings observe wild animals in a zoo. Or probably human beings are alone. Either scenario leads to the need of extensive A.I. improvement and research so that we can solve these cosmic mysteries.

Wild is defined as something that lacks sound reasoning or probability. Does the notion of an A.I. Paradox seem wild anymore?

YOUTUBE: Physics of immortality meets pure and infinite happiness!