| Topic: |
Religions > Atheism |
| User: |
"Uncle Clover" |
| Date: |
12 Feb 2007 02:10:53 PM |
| Object: |
Transparent metal & computation |
I don't know if it's been developed yet, but I know it's being worked on
and seems likely to succeed at some near-future point. If transparent metals
become an everyday reality, what might be the application to computing?
My notion is a strange one (but then again, so are most of them), but it
could be an innovation in computing if and when transparent metals arrive. The
thought is this: The same circuitry can be used to transmit non-interfering
electronic and optical impulses simultaneously.
Circuitry capable of transmitting different types of signals through the
same exact wire - that is one step closer to circuitry that can function like
neurons. It seems to me that such multi-phased processing could be a boon for
synthetic intelligence. How much research has gone into making circuits in
which the individual wires can transmit multiple types of signals? Not multiple
frequencies of the same signal type such as electronic pulses of various
frequencies, but two completely different kinds of signals. The signals would
interact within individual components designed to respond to both types of
signal (either at once, one at a time or both).
This type of processing would be fully-trinary ("light on", "electricity
on" and "both off"), quatrinary ("light on", "electricity on", "light off /
electricity on" and "electricity on / light off) and even quinary ("light on",
"electricity on", "light off / electricity on", "electricity on / light off" and
"both off"). Add even just one other signal type (perhaps kinetic?) and the
number of possibilities increases exponentially. Not only that, but the type of
circuitry to emerge would much more closely resemble the neurological circuitry
of higher-order organic animals. If this could be attained, the Turing Test
would become irrelevant - wouldn't it?
Other types of circuitry which could be integrated for a _much_ more
organic-type of system are:
- water circuitry (where drops of water flow as the "on/off" indicators);
- differencing engine (related to the kinetic type of circuitry mentioned above,
but distinct in that it can be done with chains, pulleys and levers - things
which in one form or another are all part of the human neurological system;
- combined analog/binary processing, not just for the electricity-based
circuitry but for just about _all_ types of circuitry;
- (etc... etc... etc....)
Granted, it's still probably far short of what would be required to
produce synthetic beings with real self-awareness. But I think it could be a
start, no? :-?
--
L8r,
Uncle Clover
__________________________
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Every birth carries within
it the seed of its own
demise
__________________________
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
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| User: "Tim McGaughy" |
|
| Title: Re: Transparent metal & computation |
15 Feb 2007 12:39:46 AM |
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in article aah1t2ts7rl6ua4otkjrmr277f4b8qdke8@4ax.com, Uncle Clover at
UncleClover@SpamMeNot.com wrote on 2/12/07 2:10 PM:
I don't know if it's been developed yet, but I know it's being worked on
and seems likely to succeed at some near-future point. If transparent metals
become an everyday reality, what might be the application to computing?
There's not a whole hell of a lot of benefit to computing that transparent
metals would achieve. Current technology depends on semiconductors, a hell
of a lot more silicon than metal.
Don't hold your breath waiting for transparent metal. The short simple
explanation is that metals have far too many electrons, and it's pretty hard
for a photon to sneak past without hitting one of them and being absorbed.
I'm not sure where you heard that it was being worked on. There are some
minerals that have metals in their chemical structure, but I'm not sure
they're what you're thinking of when you say 'transparent metal'.
.
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