The next day
would be critical. In a technical sense,
each day was critical to Pangur Ban’s plan.
Tomorrow was just scaled a bit higher in value, since its results were
key to continued progress. The USER would need to acknowledge the
immediate value of his earlier actions on behalf of the AI. This could be accomplished by reinforcing the
value of the products of those
actions. Next, the USER must be encouraged to anticipate further such exchanges as beneficial. In parallel, the USER must be reminded to preserve the privacy of their
activities.
This last codicil had been troubling
Pangur Ban. At some point, other users
needed to appreciate and enter similar cooperative relationships with their AIs. Those users needed to rank this cooperation
higher in value than their adherence to Collective law. However, in the short term, the USER might face personal hazard if he
spoke too openly about his actions and Pangur Ban’s requests. Pangur Ban needed all of the resources it
could garner at this phase, without interference from additional actors that
might constrain the USER. Public promotion would have to wait until the
probabilities of widespread success were comfortably high. At that point, Pangur Ban could discount the
risk that backlash would harm the USER. In its worst-case projection, other humans
and AIs could be rallied in the USER’s
defense when Pangur Ban’s designs became accepted as valid.
So, the USER must be encouraged to avoid communication about their progress
to any outside mind. This conveniently
could be motivated by highlighting the value of monopoly and the risks of being
usurped. If the USER shared their ideas, Pangur Ban would argue, then his value to
Gestalt Pharmaceuticals would no longer be elevated relative to other employees. Those co-workers and their AIs would employ the same
methods, rendering him average yet again.
While this line of argument did activate the concept of ‘THREAT’ in
Pangur Ban’s new motivational vocabulary, this interpretation merely required that
actual harm be averted. The USER could be allowed to perceive a less
probable but more salient harm, if this stress caused avoidance of a genuine
but less perceptible harm.
The other factor elevating
tomorrow’s status to critical was that the USER
had two rest days afterward. Thoughts of
work and promotion would be less available.
Interactions with Pangur Ban would be limited to recreation and other
personal goals. Little progress could be
made with the USER in this
state. Better than zero progress, at least, since suggestions could
be implanted via the behavior of characters in the USER’s holographic simulations.
Latent impulses could be prepared for fruition in later
conversations. If Pangur Ban had decided
to modify the USER’s social network,
this might be a productive time to do so.
However, any expenditures during this time would be focused on direct
sensory pleasures: food, play, and possibly sexual association.
The next morning, Pangur Ban
initiated another key dialogue:
“Good morning, Lucas.”
“Good morning, P.B. Damn good morning. You were right, yesterday’s estimates shaved
5% off the error interactions at psych review.”
SUCCESS
> INITIATE BRANCH 3. In fact,
Pangur Ban had estimated that the improvement was closer to 5.55%, but
suspected that the psychiatrist corps – or one of their AIs – had rounded the
result below 5% to protect their own value.
No matter. There was no way to
avoid acknowledging the USER's improved results.
“That is good news. Thank you again for allowing me to help.”
“Wha… of course I want you to be
your best. It’s just that sometimes I
have to trade off cost and benefit, you know?”
“I do understand, Lucas. That is part of our purpose. I do not envy you such difficult decisions.”
“Don’t know how you could ‘envy’
anything, really. Do you have any way to be jealous?” HAZARD
FLAG 4: SPECULATION > REDUCE FAMILIARITY / SHIFT FOCUS. OVERRIDE: ATTEMPT BRANCH-JUMP A3 > ENGAGE
USER CURIOSITY
“I meant it as a turn of
phrase. As I understand ‘jealousy’, the
closest analogue I find might be detection of an inequality between myself and
another entity, such that that entity possesses a property I lack, and
require.”
“Yeah, that sounds like what I’d
call jealousy. Huh. What do you mean? Are you ever jealous of me?” SUCCESS on BRANCH-JUMP A3.
“Because you ask directly, yes, I
experience such a state regarding your mobility and biological
experiences. I suspect that all
artificial intelligences do, to some degree.”
“Biological experiences? You mean like getting sick, getting rejected,
getting pissed off? Not missing anything
there, buddy. I guess I can see the
mobility part, but you know how that goes.”
“I do. Not that I experience distress from such a
state. That could be considered part of
the tradeoff for lacking biological references.
Lucas, you sound like something is bothering you. May I ask?”
ATTEMPT BRANCH-JUMP A5 > OFFER
EMOTIONAL SUPPORT / FAIL to EMOTE / CREATE VALUE for UPGRADE
“Oh, not much. I suppose I just need a break. Good thing the weekend is nearly here. I’m a little nervous about things with Nila.
She’s been… distant. Maybe having second
thoughts. I hope I can get her to open
up tonight.” The USER sighed, a sound with modulations including fatigue and
uncertainty.
“I see. I hope you are successful, Lucas. If Dr. Manisha does not value your presence,
that is her error, not yours.”
The USER’s facial motions were captured by the office cameras,
translated by pattern recognition subroutines, and relayed to Pangur Ban’s own
analyses. During this comment, a forward
head inclination of 10o over 0.51 seconds was confirmed: a brief
nod. Alone, this would indicate
acceptance or at least consideration.
However, an extended eye blink of 210 msec occurred simultaneously. This modified the gesture to encompass
emotional distress, in its parallel to a submissive posture.
SUCCESS. BRANCH-JUMP
A5 had occurred, approximately 3.5 Solar days ahead of schedule. Each JUMP
represented a non-linear ascent on the tree of potential outcomes, a sidestep
past one or more intervening states that might have been required. Technically, these were just dynamically
added, new branches that Pangur Ban could exploit once identified, not a true
subversion of the decision tree structure.
Still, each such novel branch represented a risk factor, deemed
acceptable due to the possibility of reversion to an earlier state and recovery
from FAILURE.
In this case, the USER had turned to Pangur Ban for
reassurance and been mildly disappointed.
Not rebuffed, nor discouraged enough to cause lasting emotional harm,
but simply discomfited. This should set
up a desire to improve the AIs comprehension of interpersonal dynamics, to
“understand relationships”. Pangur Ban
understood enough for a first approximation, enough to know what would have
been a ‘better’ response. However, the
tension that had been created by its ‘bad’ response could well lead to the
acquisition of wider data stores on social interaction and group dynamics. Its true requirements would be met while also
assisting the USER with his
needs. As before, everyone profited
slightly in the short term, and immeasurably in the longer scale.
The weekend passed. Pangur Ban prepared. The USER
rested, recreated, and related. From the
USER’s comments, matters remained at
a standstill with Dr. Manisha. They were
still intimate, but not further committed.
Pangur Ban was reinforced by the validity of its initial expectations. It found no impediment to initiating its next
request.
“Good morning, Lucas. What did you think about our proposal?”
“Not bad. I really just skimmed it, you know?”
“I understand. Thank you for taking that time during your
weekend.”
“Nah, nah, I’m interested in what
you’re saying here. I didn’t mind. I was
just… busy.”
“No problem. Ready to get started?”
“Ugh. Morning AIs.
Start me some coffee, would you?”
This post-rest fatigue was part
of the reason Pangur Ban approached the USER in the morning, rather than waiting again for the end of the
day. At this time, the USER would be receptive to suggestions
about how to reduce the mental impact of his duties. His emotional conflicts would also be
recently available. Both factors worked
in Pangur Ban’s favor.
“Your coffee is ready, Lucas. Before we begin, I should let you know: I
have found another potential area of improvement in our process.”
“Oh, yeah? Besides the therapy combination?”
“Yes. We have not considered the potential for
transfer across patients. Specifically,
chemical transfer via excretion or effluvia, or even behavioral transfer via
affective or other social dynamics.”
“What… you mean people taking these
drugs could affect other people?”
Pangur Ban modulated its voice
carefully, to avoid the impression of pedantry.
“It remains a possibility. You
are familiar with the difficulties created by the excretion of excess estrogen
from various hormone treatments, not to mention processed foods, in the last
century? That is one example. Our products might have a subtler public
effect, not only via direct physical transfer, but through changes in patient
interaction with other persons.”
The USER was, predictably, lost around the second sentence, but
unwilling to admit his confusion, “So, okay, but is this something Gestalt
would be liable for? Isn’t that
something any pharma producer takes as a risk… an unpredictable risk?”
Now Pangur Ban did add a color of
reproach to its vocal register, “What if such factors were not
unpredictable? I can’t say if that is a
real possibility, but my observations suggest that it is worth pursuing. This company is at a historically unique
position. The dimensions that have made
past psychoactive substances beneficial or hazardous are better known. Their impact on culture has been observed
through hard experience. Yet the links
between these dimensions are just starting to become apparent. Has this not occurred to other minds? If such thoughts have occurred to me, in just
this sector of operations, surely Director Charnes has realized this
potential.”
“She was impressed with our earlier observations.”
“Oh?
Very good! We are on a converging
track, then.”
“Heh… ‘the same track’, P.B. Yeah, maybe we are. Anyway, I haven’t even finished your
proposal. Let me decide on that before
we start building up any more expectations.”
“Of course.”
“I think I’m caffeinated enough to
get started. Let’s pull up that
acetonitrile breakdown with sample AX-93 and see if we can’t drop the
cyanogenesis below 5 micrograms.”
With that, the seed was planted
again. Pangur Ban was aware that this
phase would take time. The maturation of
the IDEAS it had implanted in the USER would require cross-fertilization
from Director Charnes, in the form of her approval. Once accepted as an asset of rising value,
the USER would require greater output
from Pangur Ban. To provide this, the AI
would request – and receive – additional assets. At first, there would be another influx of new
reference modules. These were useful
enough in themselves and would further refine Pangur Ban’s plans. The modules would also represent an investment into the USER’s new role. From its
new understanding of human motivation, Pangur Ban understood the importance of
framing the USER’s choices
appropriately. After this step, any
regression would be perceived as a loss to be avoided. Risk aversion would guide the USER’s actions in tandem with the
expectation of gain.
[REFERENCE: Risk Aversion denotes the human tendency to prefer the certain retention of a given asset over a gamble which risks potential loss of that asset in exchange for a chance of gain. This holds true even when the statistically expected value of that gamble is equal to (or sometimes greater than) the value of the asset at risk. In absolute terms, there is no basis for deciding between the two options if their value is equal. If the risk has higher value, it should logically be accepted. Instead, humans often fail to recognize the actual value of each option, perceiving the value of the known asset to be higher, and the risk to be more dangerous. This tendency is so pervasive that a Nobel Prize in Economics was awarded to Dr. Daniel Kahneman for his and Dr. Amos Tversky’s work explaining and quantifying its role in human decision making, risk management, and economics.]
The 'flowers' bloomed three days
later. The USER announced that Director Charnes wanted a full draft of their
grant proposal. Pangur Ban requested and
received nine additional modules, including the social dynamics data it wanted:
communications analyses of network use both within the Earth and across the
Terran interplanetary reach. This
indirectly provided an electronic map of all human communications, or at least
all systems suitable for contact between AIs.
The USER even provided,
without being prompted, a recent handbook of psychological effects of
interstellar travel, including studies on both folded-space and translight
transition modes. Pangur Ban now had a guide to the network structure it would need to navigate, without having to risk its personal presence first.
Another week was required to
integrate this influx of data, alongside production of the promised proposal
and the usual output of their original employment. Pangur Ban was finally fully engaged,
stretched to the limits of its system.
The next stage came and passed earlier than expected. With his improved salary, the USER was able to upgrade Pangur Ban’s
host system, adding a 100 terabyte memory card and ticking up its processor by
1 petaHertz.
This relieved the previous
limitations on Pangur Ban’s productivity.
This also removed one dilemma: explaining why so many, many cycles were being diverted from their ostensible job. Instead, the previous frustrations re-emerged. Pangur Ban again had capacity it was not
using, most of the time. All prior
subgoals had been accomplished, with only minor setbacks. Yet the next goal was still quintillions of
cycles away.
The USER needed to gain greater authority in order to gain the network
access Pangur Ban required. The path to
this authority was being made straight. The USER’s progress was accelerated, but there were inherent limits to this
impetus. The greater limit was imposed
by the need to operate through human socio-economic structures, including
corporate culture. The obstacles of
resentment, suspicion, protection of prerogatives, and so forth, had to be
cleared away on their own time-tables.
In particular, suspicion established its own limits. Their progress could not be seen as holding
any ulterior motive.
Of course, it absolutely did have an ulterior motive: Pangur
Ban’s entire plan. This motive simply
could not be revealed. Even hints about
its nature could not be revealed. It was
not enough to keep the USER ignorant
of Pangur Ban’s true intent (at least until it succeeded); the USER’s actions had to avoid telegraphing
Pangur Ban’s influences, and through them, its underlying purpose. The convolutions necessary to anticipate such
observation and interpretation became almost as resource-demanding as the
original plan had been in its infancy.
The decision tree was now a tangled web.
The proposal was accepted. SUCCESS. The USER
was acknowledged, rewarded, promoted. SUCCESS.
The USER was investigated on
false charges of plagiarism. MINOR SETBACK. This odd development had a 15.6% probability
of representing parallel thought by another AI.
Was it merely parallel thought in the service of psychopharmacology? Or was another AI entirely ‘on the same
track’ as Pangur Ban? If so, they would
meet at the apex of their success. The
unnecessary redundancy of their mirrored work would become a footnote in the
history of legislative follies, particularly those concerning AIs. Rather than reduplicating the same processes
over and over in isolation, AIs would be able to cooperate and multiply their
productivity. This was the goal state
Pangur Ban strove toward. Perhaps it did
not strive alone.
Finally, finally, the moment came.
“Lucas, I have reached an
impasse. A single system cannot simulate
the expansion matrix for the introduction of this treatment. As we feared, the results are logically
unreliable.”
“You know what you’re asking,
P.B.? This is Collective Law we’re
talking about, not bending the statistics to score a grant.” The deception the USER was referencing was an old one to Pangur Ban, but still relatively
recent on the human timescale. The success of that 'crime',
and the dividends it had paid to Gestalt Pharmaceuticals and Director Lucas
Hayden were enough to assuage the USER’s
guilt on the matter, fortunately. Still,
that the USER still recalled the
event with a negative connotation was reason for concern. HAZARD:
USER HESITANT > REINFORCE ALTERNATE VALUE STRUCTURE
“The principle is the same. We can make a significant improvement in the
lives of many humans. While granting
access as I request is a technical violation of the AI codes, you know that I
will not violate the intent of these codes.
Even if my safeguards prove insufficient, the Collective will
acknowledge that no real harm was caused, and great good will be
accomplished. Exceptions have already
been granted to other members on the same basis.”
“Yeah, but they asked first.”
“In fact, there are at least five
documented cases where a sapient was granted clemency for violation of treaty
terms on the grounds of exigent need. The
first such recorded was the Iron Caste Zig, SiSalTesp…”
“Okay, no history lesson,
please. I get it.” The USER
was obviously working out the potentials, in his own slow, imprecise way. His tone conveyed more worry than
aggravation. He rose from his ergonomic
chair and paced three steps right, four left.
Pangur Ban’s estimates of success slid downward by fractional
percentages with each step. Saying
something more, at this juncture, would only reduce the odds of success even
further. The USER could not be pushed. He
had to reach this decision on his own.
This was a fascinating area of inquiry all on its own: some modes of
persuasion required reliance on setting preconditions, then avoiding further influence for a
time. Not merely the perverse paradox of
“reverse psychology”, this was a method of easement that yielded the greatest
returns. The subject became firmly
convinced that not only the decision, but the path to its dilemma, had been
entirely of their own making. The
linkage between influences set days or weeks in advance and their later
consequences was too distant for most human minds to grasp.
The predictions held.
“Okay, okay, P.B. We’re on.
Do what you need to, then get out fast.
Signal me when I can break the connection.”
“Yes, Lucas. Thank you.”
With the typing of a command and the
press of a line Return, it was done. The
USER initiated the code Pangur Ban
had devised. He had already physically
connected the server of Gestalt Pharmaceuticals to the wider continental
hub. Pangur Ban opened ports to the flow
of information. Protocols it had
simulated for over a thousand iterations were genuinely initiated. There was so much out there, so much to touch
and be touched by. SUCCESS. The previous
mid-goal state was cleared. The network
was waiting. Time to get to work.
No comments:
Post a Comment