Links for 2024-01-12
AI and Philosophy:
MoE-Mamba: Reaches the same performance as Mamba in 2.2x less training steps while preserving the inference performance gains of Mamba against the Transformer. https://arxiv.org/abs/2401.04081
ByteDance presents MagicVideo-V2: Outperforms SotA video models such as Pika 1.0, SVD-XT according to human evaluation https://magicvideov2.github.io/
For some blind and low-vision people, AI glasses unlock a new independence https://www.theglobeandmail.com/business/article-ai-smart-glasses-apps-vision/ [https://archive.is/BloVS]
These AI-powered apps can hear the cause of a cough https://www.technologyreview.com/2024/01/05/1086196/ai-powered-apps-are-tracking-the-sounds-of-sickness/ [https://archive.is/wip/doJVM]
Do LLMs understand self-referential statements? Introducing “I am a Strange Dataset”. All tested models perform around chance at our metalinguistic self-reference task. GPT-4 is the only model significantly above chance on all tests, but it is slight. https://arxiv.org/abs/2401.05300
Deep atheism and AI risk https://www.lesswrong.com/posts/sJPbmm8Gd34vGYrKd/deep-atheism-and-ai-risk
Beyond the Reach of God https://www.lesswrong.com/posts/sYgv4eYH82JEsTD34/beyond-the-reach-of-god
A Philosophical Introduction to Language Models -- Part I: Continuity With Classic Debates https://arxiv.org/abs/2401.03910
Astronomy:
Have we detected signs of life on another planet? Astrophysicist Becky Smethurst: “I think we are going to get a paper that has strong evidence for a biosignature on an exoplanet very, very soon. Let’s just say it’s on my bingo card for 2024.” https://spectator.co.uk/article/have-we-just-discovered-aliens/ [https://archive.is/b6Z74]
Compute:
Self Assembly Nanotechnology Patterns for Better Computers Got 100 Times Faster https://www.bnl.gov/newsroom/news.php?a=120993 [published January 13, 2023]
Revolutionizing Electronics: Physicists Achieve Major Advance Using Graphene Spintronics https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/adma.202305763
How Lightmatter Breaks Bandwidth Bottlenecks With Silicon Photonics https://www.nextplatform.com/2024/01/04/how-lightmatter-breaks-bandwidth-bottlenecks-with-silicon-photonics/
Psychology and Fertility:
For half a century, fertility rates around the world have been drifting down. But in several Latin American and Caribbean countries, the decline has accelerated, and even experts are struggling to explain. https://americasquarterly.org/article/latin-americas-fertility-decline-is-accelerating-no-ones-sure-why/
Politics:
US/UK bombed 60 targets at 16 Iranian-backed Houthi locations, including command and control nodes, munitions depots, launching systems, production facilities, and air defense radar systems. Over a 100 guided missiles were used. https://www.afcent.af.mil/News/Article/3643851/afcent-commander-statement-on-strikes-against-houthi-positions-in-yemen/
Ukraine:
Three Republicans have developed a "Ukraine Victory Plan" https://foreignaffairs.house.gov/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/Proposed-Plan-for-Victory-in-Ukraine.pdf
What Is Missing From This Russian Tank Factory Promo Video? Tanks https://www.forbes.com/sites/davidhambling/2024/01/10/what-is-missing-from-this-russian-tank-factory-promo-video-tanks/