"The Cognitive Revolution" | AI Builders, Researchers, and Live Player Analysis

A Brief History of Biological and Artificial Intelligence with Max Bennett

Feb 7, 2024

01:57:45

Snipd AI

Max Bennett, author of A Brief History of Intelligence, discusses the five major breakthroughs in evolution leading to human brains and cognition. Topics explored include the emergence of multicellular organisms, the evolution of brains, the role of dopamine and serotonin, trial and error learning, the development of the mammal brain, energy efficiency, and understanding primate abilities and brain function.

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Quick takeaways

Different breakthroughs in brain evolution led to the development of valence, reinforcement learning, mental maps, mentalizing, and language.

The basal ganglia and cortex played a vital role in enabling reinforcement learning and pattern recognition.

The hippocampus enabled the simulation of mental maps and the emergence of episodic memory.

The development of the social brain facilitated complex social interactions and cooperation.

The evolution of language expanded humans' cognitive capabilities and allowed for enhanced communication and cultural transmission.

Deep dives

Breakthrough 1: Steering

Around 600 million years ago, the first biotariants emerged with the ability to navigate and pursue food using a simple algorithm called taxes navigation. This algorithm allowed the organisms to turn away from dangers and move towards food by detecting smell gradients. This breakthrough introduced the concept of valence or reward, where certain stimuli were classified as good or bad, directly mapping to a movement repertoire. From an evolutionary perspective, the brains of these organisms needed to consolidate into a nucleus to make trade-offs and integrate different sensory inputs. This breakthrough marked the beginning of the exploration of the world based on valence and the development of the ability to navigate and find food.

Simple Navigation Algorithm in Nematodes

01:48

Learning Lessons from the Vertebrate Brain

01:39

Continual Learning and Episodic Memory in AI Systems

01:27

Continual Learning and the Future of Backpropagation

01:27

Introduction

5min

A Brief History of Intelligence, Evolution, AI, and the Five Breakthroughs That Made Our Brains

11min

The Emergence of Multicellular Organisms in the Oceans 600 Million Years Ago

4min

Evolution of Brains: From Nerve Nets to Consolidated Centers

11min

The Role of Dopamine and Serotonin in Triggering States and Analogies with Robots

4min

Neurons and Integration

6min

Trial and Error Learning in Animals and AI Systems

26min

Evolution of the Mammal Brain and the Role of the Neocortex

8min

Energy Efficiency and Model Building

19min

10.

Understanding Primate Abilities and Brain Function

25min

In this episode, Nathan sits down with Max Bennett, author of the book: A Brief History of Intelligence. They discuss the five major breakthroughs in evolution that resulted in human brains and cognition. They delve deeper into the workings of each breakthrough, the evolution of intelligence, and how AI can benefit from understanding these principles. If you need an ecommerce platform, check out our sponsor Shopify: https://shopify.com/cognitive for a $1/month trial period.

We're hiring across the board at Turpentine and for Erik's personal team on other projects he's incubating. He's hiring a Chief of Staff, EA, Head of Special Projects, Investment Associate, and more. For a list of JDs, check out: eriktorenberg.com.

LINKS:

A Brief History of Intelligence: https://a.co/d/6VPWTf7

SPONSORS:

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X/SOCIAL:

@labenz (Nathan)

@maxsbennett (Max)

@CogRev_Podcast

TIMESTAMPS:

(00:00) Intro

(06:00) Max's background on commercializing AI in technology

(09:53) AI has taught us a lot of our intuitions are wrong

(11:22) Why we're better off avoiding defining intelligence

(14:38) The Five Breakthrough Model - steering, reinforcing, simulating, mentalizing, and speaking

(15:43) Sponsor - Brave Search API | Shopify

(18:20) The story of the first breakthrough - Steering

(21:40) Evolution doesn't have forethought and every generation has to survive

(23:05) The study of nematodes - how did this first brain emerge?

(27:10) yet in bilaterians, but the idea is you classify things in the world into good and bad.

(33:00) Netsuite by Oracle | Omneky

(36:16) The story of the second breakthrough - Reinforcing

(1:32:44) The story of the fourth breakthrough - Mentalizing

(1:45:57) The story of the fourth breakthrough - Speaking (pls listen to the audio book / read the book)

(1:46:46) How evolutionary paradigms will shape up in the future

(1:55:03) A unified theory of value or moral patienthood that can be applied to the five breakthroughs

(1:59:21) Wrap + Sponsor | Omneky

This show is produced by Turpentine: a network of podcasts, newsletters, and more, covering technology, business, and culture — all from the perspective of industry insiders and experts. We’re launching new shows every week, and we’re looking for industry-leading sponsors — if you think that might be you and your company, email us at erik@turpentine.co.

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