Can Randomly Generated Brains Hold the Secrets of the Universe?

[Blenton]

Basically a twist on the old thousand monkeys on a thousand typewriters eventually writing a great novel.

Suppose you are you because of the arrangements in your brain (neurons etc). Now if we had a machine capable of create a human brain with random neuron arrangements we would probably have a lot of failures, but there would be a finite, and eventual case where we would get a brain identical to yours or mine - that is they know everything you know (btw I'm not delving into existence though). Now equally as likely a brain would be created that knows science beyond our current understanding, possibly even understanding the complete universe.

Now what does this mean? Learning information the way we do it now is the hard way? Possibly that the secrets to understanding the universe are accessible everywhere? The latter statement puzzles me, as say this was all occurring in some closed of room without knowing what exists outside those walls, could derive all physical principles, scientific theories without prior knowing what it is up against ~ what exists outside its 'own universe'.

 

[Sorry!]

The latter statement puzzles me, as say this was all occurring in some closed of room without knowing what exists outside those walls, could derive all physical principles, scientific theories without prior knowing what it is up against ~ what exists outside its 'own universe'.

Better yet, how would YOU know when that neuron arrangment has been made? I'm not doubting that it's possible but how useful would it be? If I did that experiment I would think (if I was disposing of the computers after I got the information off of them) that I would treat the 'special' one that knows EVERYTHING the same way I treated the one before and after it.

 

[negitron]

I think you fail to understand the magnitude of the problem. Consider that the human brain contains on the order of 100 billion neurons, and each neuron can connect to as many as 10,000 others. How many combinations is that?

And that's the simplest case! In fact, each neuron operates at the molecular level and each connection to another neuron is weighted, determining the "strength" of that particular connection. And each synapse has its own configuration of neurotransmitter receptors, adding additional complexity.

I suspect that if you could generate random brains one per second, you'd need more than the age of the universe to hit one identical to yours.

 

[Willowz]

Now equally as likely a brain would be created that knows science beyond our current understanding, possibly even understanding the complete universe.

That brain is not perfect. You should be looking at technological singularity: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Technological_singularity

 

[Blenton]

I think you fail to understand the magnitude of the problem. Consider that the human brain contains on the order of 100 billion neurons, and each neuron can connect to as many as 10,000 others. How many combinations is that?

And that's the simplest case! In fact, each neuron operates at the molecular level and each connection to another neuron is weighted, determining the "strength" of that particular connection. And each synapse has its own configuration of neurotransmitter receptors, adding additional complexity.

I suspect that if you could generate random brains one per second, you'd need more than the age of the universe to hit one identical to yours.

Well I'm completely talking hypothetically, it would be a huge feat to accomplish, but there is a possibility there of this happening ~ who knows aliens may be able to create thousands a second but this is not what i am discussing. Its the fact that there is a finite chance to stumble on a configuration that knows more than we know now without having prior knowledge of the subject.

Better yet, how would YOU know when that neuron arrangment has been made? I'm not doubting that it's possible but how useful would it be? If I did that experiment I would think (if I was disposing of the computers after I got the information off of them) that I would treat the 'special' one that knows EVERYTHING the same way I treated the one before and after it.

Yes you'd probably have no way to know if the information there is real or pure garbage, but i guess you could probably cross reference it to things we know for a fact now or something.