Ask HN: When I put my computer to sleep, does it dream like I do?

2 points by 64bitbrain 9 years ago | 3 comments

Hello HN,

(Backstory) Yesterday I was asked to inspire a group of elementary students about Computer Science/Physics/Space/Galaxies/ and all the exciting stuff. It was nice to interact with these kids and inspire them.

As I started talking about, AI and what companies like SpaceX and Magic Leap are trying to achieve. One of the students asked me. "When I put my computer to sleep, does it dream like I do?" Now, I didnt wanted to get dive in technical details and spoil the fun. I told her yes, it does dream. That was well aligned with my AI discussion. But, now I can't stop thinking about the technical challenges and complex AI network that could make this happen.

But, If I want to give explain it again, what would be a good way of doing it.

Edit: Explain like in both technical and non-tehnical terms.

Thanks,

gus_massa 9 years ago |

I think that the correct answer is no. Current computers don't dream, they are like in cryogenic suspension, totally frozen. There is no activity. (Actually there is a difference between "sleep" and "hibernation" mode, but neither are dreaming states.)

Nobody know why we sleep. There are a lot of theories that go from unsupported to bushtit.

Anyway, my favorite theory is from Crick and Mitchison. It's probably wrong, but it's so nice that it deserve to be true at lest in an alien specie or something. It would be a sad universe if this theory were totally false. But, being nice is not enough to make it correct :(.

Someone made a special kind of neural network where this kind of "dreams" are useful for learning, but this networks are totally different from the networks in the brain.

More details: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reverse_learning

cjbprime 9 years ago |

I don't think I understand the (technical) question. When your computer goes to sleep, it uses a tiny amount of current to keep the RAM in "self-refresh mode", to stop the RAM decaying, and then turns off the CPU.

Given that the CPU has no power, there is no meaningful analogy to dreaming in any sense.

64bitbrain 9 years ago | |

Agreed. However, if we consider a computer with complex AI capability(Jarvis), can it dream. Dream is kind of a state for us humans, similarly, If Jarvis goes to sleep what we can except, does it projects random thoughts and ideas. Can it dream about all those crazy ideas like humans do. It does kind of open up the possibilities of making a machine think more than he can achieve.