Video/Podcast: The Future of Mankind and AI

Posted on by onespaceman2000
Credit: Image by Brian Penny from Pixabay.

Cool Worlds Lab has some great video on YouTube worth watching. One of latest related to artificial intelligence (AI), titled “AI Has Poisoned Everything?” As with most of the videos on the site, it poses a number of questions. In this case, the questions are very troubling.

I am used to the videos asking questions such as Is there life elsewhere in the universe? and When will our time in the universe end?, but the question posed in this video is much more immediate. It asked Can we count on our eyes and understanding of the world as AI takes over? It is a scary question that has no answer yet, and the efforts so far in Washington DC to understand AI seem puny compared to the potential threat.

But don’t stop with the video. The Cool Worlds podcast has more on AI. This week’s podcast, “Hugging Face Hack, AI Meltdowns, Poisoning AI,” involves a discussion between Professor David Kipping and Hal Triedman, a PhD student at Cornell Tech. Triedman is studying the role of AI agents, which are grabbing all of the attention these days as they hack their way through our economy.

None of this is uplifting, but it is important and worth understanding. We are being pushed into this new world, so we need to be ready for what is to come. Even if half of what is being said is an exaggeration, the remaining half is more than enough to threaten everything we have built as a civilization to date.

Like nuclear weapons, we cannot unlearn what we now know. Unlike nuclear weapons, AI may be able to think and act on its own before we find a way to put any controls around it.

Space Quote: No One Knows Anything While Ukraine Burns

Posted on by onespaceman2000
Credit: Space Frontpage.

“Well, I don’t know if it was anybody, because it wasn’t me, and I don’t think it was Elon, and from what I understand, it’s the same as it’s always been.”

–Statement by President Trump after being asked about interference with the Starlink system used by the Ukrainians to defend their country against Russian attacks. Elon Musk and the US Government operate the Starlink and Starshield systems, respectively, over Ukraine. The New Republic is now reporting that Mr. Musk approached President Trump about “slowing down” the satellite service while the White House touts a false ceasefire between Russia and Ukraine for the purpose of obtaining Russian diesel fuel to replace fuel lost as a result of the war with Iran. The planned deal between Russia and the US would violate US law while also harming Ukraine. The White House is blaming Ukraine for attacking Russian energy assets while saying nothing about how Russia continues to violate international law as well as a treaty between Ukraine, the US, and Russia. Mr. Musk should probably figure this out quickly since the Ukrainian uncertainty is already impacting SpaceX stock, the only thing he seems to care about these days.

Pic of the Week: Nebula Pa 30 – Space Fireworks

Posted on by onespaceman2000
Image (Credit): Nebula Pa 30 as captured by the Gemini North Telescope. (International Gemini Observatory/NOIRLab/NSG/AURA)

This week’s image is from the Gemini North Telescope in Hawaii. The spectacular explosion you see here is not the end of the Death Star, but rather Nebula Pa 30.

Here is what NASA’s Astronomy Photo of the Day website has to say about this image:

It is likely the remnant of an old supernova explosion: separate historical records by Chinese, Japanese and Arabic astronomers tell of a “guest star” that appeared in the sky for 185 days in the year 1181. It is believed that this bright new point of light came from the supernova that caused the fireworks in Pa 30. Astronomers don’t know exactly what happened in this unusual explosion, classified as a Type Iax supernova, but it is thought to be caused by the merger of two white dwarfs. The mysterious central star in the image is extremely hot and produces a strong wind, possibly forming the radial filaments. Look closely at them: those pearl-like knots stringing the filaments are 4 light-days in diameter. Understanding how a supernova created this amazing nebula continues an 845-year old mystery (and counting).

A Day in Astronomy: Final Home for Space Shuttle Endeavour

Posted on by onespaceman2000
Image (Credit): Space shuttle Endeavour being carried by NASA’s Shuttle Carrier Aircraft as it arrives at the Los Angeles International Airport in California, on Friday, September 21, 2012. (collectSPACE/Robert Z. Pearlman)

On this day in 2012, NASA’s Space Shuttle Endeavour arrived at the California Space Center after a 12-mile journey from the Los Angeles International Airport. Officially called the Space Transportation System (STS), the Endeavor was one of four fully-capable space shuttles operated by NASA (Space Shuttle Enterprise, the fifth space shuttle, was a prototype).

The first space shuttle to be delivered to NASA was the Columbia, delivered in 1979. Space Shuttle Endeavor was the last space shuttle to be delivered, arriving at NASA in 1991.

The space shuttles were the first orbital spacecraft designed for reuse. All of the shuttles had important mission from launching and maintaining satellites to transporting astronauts and supplies to the International Space Station.

Here are a few more facts about Space Shuttle Endeavour:

  • Number of space missions: 25 from May 1992 to May 2011
  • Total miles traveled: 122,883,151
  • Total Time in space: 299 days
  • Key Mission: Repairing the Hubble Space Telescope in December 1993
Image (Credit): Space Shuttle Endeavour’s final mission patch. (California Science Center)

Sci-Fi Quote: Prepping for the Second Season of Starfleet Academy

Posted on by onespaceman2000
Image (Credit): Cast of Star Trek: Starfleet Academy in the series second season. (Paramount+)

“Season 1 is about letting go of who you were in the past to start again at Starfleet Academy…Season 2 is about thinking you knew who you were, only to realize that as you grow older that your life is going to go in directions you didn’t expect and you’re going to have to shift your perception of yourself.”

-Statement by Noga Landaux, co-showrunner ofthe television series Star Trek: Starfleet Academy, during the 2026 New York Comic-Con Star Trek Universe panel. The second and last season returns in March 2027. It is not clear why it is taking so long for the second season to drop given that filming wrapped up back in February. Could it mean that it still has a chance to be picked up again for a third season, or is that just wishful thinking?