10 Famous Thought Experiments That Just Boggle Your Mind Part 1

I ran into an interesting article in a forum (original in Chinese) that talked about 10 very famous thought experiments in the fields of philosophy, ethics, and psychology. Since I am getting a Doctor degree in Philosophy (hopefully), and also because I strongly believe these type of questions and experiments are very related in the research of artificial intelligence, I thought I'd share these with you together with my thoughts on the subject. Hope you enjoy!

10. The Trolley Problem

The trolley problem is a well known thought experiment in ethics, first introduced by Philippa Foot, a British philosopher. Trolley is the British term for a tram. The problem goes like this:

A trolley is running out of control down a track. In its path are five people who have been tied to the track by a mad philosopher. Fortunately, you could flip a switch, which will lead the trolley down a different track to safety. Unfortunately, there is a single person tied to that track. Should you flip the switch or do nothing?

A common answer takes the utilitarianism approach where flipping the switch becomes the obvious option because saving five lives result in a higher utility than saving just one life. But critics of the utilitarianism believe that flipping the switch constitutes a participation in the moral wrong, making one partially responsible for the death when otherwise the mad philosopher would be the sole culprit. An alternative view believes that inactivity under such a circumstance is also unethical. The bottom line: whatever you do, it is unethical. You are doomed either way.

It is reasonable to guess that your choice might vary if the single person happen to be your kid and the group of five consisted of four complete strangers plus your mother-in-law. In that case, you are simply assigning different utility values to different people (with the possibility of a negative utility). You no longer assume all people are equal. And if the group of five also included two other kids of yours, you simply assign the utility values and do the math and then make the "logical" decision (man, I am so cruel here!). This reminded me of a famous darn question people always get asked: if both your mother and your wife fall into the river and neither one knows how to swim, who should you save first? If you ever are asked this question, here's one answer you could use:

I'll jump into the river and drown myself, and we'll all go to heaven together. Now are you satisfied?

When it comes to artificial intelligence, a lot of times the choice is made based on a utility computation. Maybe the utility is computed using some fancy statistical functions. More advanced algorithms might take into consideration of probability or utility functions derived from past observations. Even more advanced algorithms might allow the agent to dynamically change or evolve the utility functions as time progresses -- a sense of learning. The agent will simply compute the utility values following whatever formulas it comes up with and then choose the option that will result with the highest utility. This is why AI agents or robots are normally considered to be very logical and at the same time very inhuman.It would be a long time before an AI agent would find itself trapped in this moral dilemma. (Remember the big computer in the movie War Games? It eventually figured out that the best winning strategy of playing the game of Tic-tac-toe was to not play the game at all).

So how would you design the AI agent or robot to be able to deal with morality, especially when you are giving it a weapon and grant it the permission to fire the weapon? Even we humans don't have clear clues in situations like in the Trolley Problem. Can we expect or require the agent or robot to do better than us? Unfortunately no one knows the right answer at the present time, we can only learn from our mistakes. Let's hope these mistakes are not disastrous and recoverable.

[Update on 8/2/2019]

Ten years have passed since I first posted this blog article. Today, many "self-driving" cars are already running on our roads (have you noticed those napping drivers in Teslas right next to you?), and there are only more to come with VCs and auto makers pouring money into this field. Now the Trolly Problem is becoming as real as it can be. When a self-driving car is faced with the dilemma of making a choice between killing the person on the left or four persons on the right, or even worse, when it needs to decide if it should sacrifice you, the passenger, in order to save four pedestrians, how would you feel about its logical choice? What if you are not the passenger, but the pedestrian, instead? Don't ask me. I don't have an answer.

Read Part 2: The Gettier Problem


Picture of the Day:

You can go here to see more animated portraits like this one.

BTW: The easiest way to remember my blog address is http://lanny.lannyland.com

Lanny's 2012 New Year Resolutions

First of all, Happy New Year to you all! Wish you all a very productive year ahead of you!!

Well, it's that time of the year again -- time to make a new list of new year resolutions. So what are you putting on your list this year? But before you start, maybe it's a good idea to pause for a minute and think how well you did with your resolutions in the past year.

One thing is for sure, the year of 2011 went by too quickly!! There were many things I wanted to finish but didn't. I am still working on my dissertation and there are still a lot left to be done. I didn't translate as much as I wanted and I also didn't post as many blogs as I had hoped. But the good thing is that I did translate some and I also did post some blogs. =) I also designed the robot I want to build and bought most of the parts. Still need to put them together and write some code to drive that thing. Let's hope that gets completed this year!

There are two very different methods of achieving success. One method is to really lower your expectations. For example, the Mars Rovers were only expected to work for 90 days, and now 6 years later, they are still working. What a great success. The other method is to set really high goals, and then even if you only accomplish a portion of what you set out to do, you would have already accomplished a lot. You'll probably find both methods applied in my new year resolutions.

Anyway, here's the resolution list for this year:

1. I will try my best to go to bed before midnight every day.
Maybe not getting enough sleep every day resulted in low performance and low efficiency. I'll make sure I get 7 hours of sleep each day this year! I also need more sleep because I'll be exercising more this year and I need the sleep to rejuvenate. (Method 2)

2. I will graduate before the world ends.
It has already been 5 years since I started grad school. Time is running out since my advisor's funding, my personal funding, and the world (according to the Mayan calendar) will all end soon. So I am DETERMINED to get my PhD before the world ends!! (Method 1)

3. I still hope I can post two blogs each day.
I actually started many drafts. The key is to complete them and publish! (Method 2)

4. I still plan to translate one page each day.
I actually translated quite a bit last year. Just didn't post them all because I wanted to mix robot related posts with translation related posts. I'll still try to stick to this plan this year! (Method 2)

It's 23 minutes past midnight already. Doh!! I better go to bed now! Wish you all have a great New Year Resolutions List and with you all stick to it!!



Video of the Day:

A great way to strength your lower back. Wish you a very healthy 2012! (And just love this mafia accent!)

The Twelve Stances of Yi-Jin-Jing (The Tendon-Altering Sutra) Part 4

The Twelve Stances of Yi-Jin-Jing (The Tendon-Altering Sutra) Part 3

第七式九鬼拔马刀

接上式，两臂分开成侧平举，手心向上。 然后右臂屈肘，右手至头后，腰略弯，头略左摆，食指中指第一关节夹住左耳垂，食指微提，中指微下压，并轻轻向右牵拉。 同时左肘弯曲，左手背贴背部上移于两肩胛之间，尽力上抬，手指向上，并向左转体；微屈膝，低头看右脚背。 而后身体慢慢恢复原势， ​​头左转向后看（左图）。 定式后约静立半分钟。 反方向再仿一次（右图）。

7^th Stance: Nine Ghosts Drawing the Saber

Continue from the last stance. Open your arms and move to the side at should height with the palms facing up. Then bend the right arm and reach your right hand behind your head. Bend your waist slightly and lean your head to the left slightly. Use the first joint of the index finger and the middle finger to grip the left earlobe. Lift gently with the index finger while pushing down gently with the middle finger and pull gently to the right. At the same time bend the left elbow and place the back of your left hand upward so it is between the two shoulders. Raise your left hand as high as possible. Point the fingers upward and turn your body left. Bend knees slightly and look down at the top of the right foot. Then slowly return body to the original position. Turn your head to the left and look behind your shoulder (see left figure). After completing the stance stand still for about half a minute. Then perform and stance in opposite direction once (see right figure).

第八式三盘落地

接上式，左脚向左跨一步，两脚尖外撇。 两臂侧平举，掌心向下。 而后两腿弯曲成骑马蹲裆势，同时两掌下按，与膝齐平。 然后两臂外旋，两手翻为仰掌，两腿同时缓缓伸直站立，两臂随之慢慢上抬成侧平举。 下按时呼气，意念两掌心，如按浮木﹔上抬时吸气，仿佛两掌心放有重物。 反覆做三至五次。

8^th Stance: Three Bases Dropping to the Ground

Continue from the last stance. Take a step left with the left foot and point the feet outward. Hold your arms out flat at the side of the body at shoulder height with palms facing down. Then squat down into a horse stance and pushing downward with both palms at the same time until they are at knee height. Then rotate both arms outward and turn both palms to face up. Slowly straighten both legs to stand up at the same time and naturally raise both arms so they are flat at the side of the body. Exhale when pushing down and set your mind on the center of the two palms as if you were pushing down floating logs in water. Inhale when raising the palms as if there were heavy objects inside the two palms. Repeat three to five times.

Again our friendly Mr. Bruce Wen happily demonstrates the two stances for you and explains what each  stance is good for. If he is right, then it is recommended that you perform these two stances at a location where a convenient restroom is nearby. Remember, Mr. Wen's version might be slightly different from the version I translated.

The Twelve Stances of Yi-Jin-Jing (The Tendon-Altering Sutra) Part 5


Picture of the Day:

 I wanted to check out Google's new 3D trip planner so I searched for driving directions from Orem, UT to China. It's really interesting that Google Map suggested "Kayak across the Pacific Ocean", and it only estimated 14 days and 5 hours for this feat! I figured that I might have a slight chance of accomplishing that if I can fully master the 12 stances of Tendon-Altering Sutra! LOL!

Seven Weapons - Longevity Sword: Chapter 2 (1)

Chapter 2: Palace of White Jade in Heaven

ONE

Bai Yujing^[1] was not in heaven, but on a horse.

His saddle was almost completely worn out; same goes with his boots and the scabbard of his sword. However, his clothes were brand new.

The scabbard dangled loosely against the saddle as the spring breeze gently stroked his face.

He was very cheerful and very comfortable.

The aged saddle was very comfortable for sitting; the well-worn boots felt very comfortable on his feet; the old scabbard would never cause damage to the sharp edge of his sword; new clothes always put him in high spirits and feel vigorous and energetic.

What he was most cheerful about, however, were not these things, but that pair of eyes.

In the horse-drawn carriage in front of him, a pair of charming eyes had been peeking at him all the time. This was not the first time he saw those eyes. He could still remember the first time when he saw those eyes. It was inside a small inn in a small town.

He had just entered the inn when she walked by and bumped into him.

Her lovely smile was filled with shyness and embarrassment, and her face was as red as the rain-soaked sunset.

He secretly hoped that she would bump into him again, because she was really a very attractive lady while he was really not a hypocritical gentleman.

The second time when he saw her, it was inside a small restaurant. He had just begun his third drink when she walked in. As soon as she recognized him, she hung her head with the sweetest smile.

The sweet smile was still filled with shyness and embarrassment.

At that time he smiled too, because he knew she would not have smiled again and again had she bumped into another person. He also knew that he was not an unattractive man, which he had always been very confident with.

Therefore even though he left first, he did not hurry with his journey.

As expected, her carriage had caught up with him by now, but did this happen by chance or by purpose? He was a rover who enjoyed wandering the world. Along his journeys, he had met all kinds of people.

Among them were red-bearded barbarians who roamed the grasslands outside of the Great Wall and heavily-armored cavalries who galloped the great deserts. There were also ill-tempered outlaws that would slaughter at the slightest argument, as well as young and daring champions of Martial World chivalry.

The endless wandering gradually worn his saddle and scabbard, and his beard grew thick and stiff.

But his life was always fresh and colorful.

He could never foresee in the next part of his journal what things might happen or what kind of people he would meet.

The spring breeze gradually grew chilly, and a misty spring shower suddenly spilled off the spring clouds, moisturizing his new spring outfits.

The carriage ahead of him halted. As he rode closer, he found that the curtains had already been rolled up and that pair of charming eyes gazed at him intently.

The charming eyes, a shy smile, a lovely face untouched by makeup, and a dress as vivid as the violet twilight made up a breathtaking scene.

She pointed at her delicate feet, then at his newly wetted clothes, her slender fingers as pretty as the scallions of the spring season.

He pointed at himself, then at the carriage.

She nodded, and then with a charming smile, opened the door.

The interior of the carriage was cozy and dry. The silky seat covers were as smooth as her skin.

He dismounted his horse and stepped up into the carriage.

The spring shower was tender and intimate – it rained just at the right time.

In spring time, the Heavenly Lord seemed to be very fond of arranging intriguing occasions to bring together fine people in fortuitous encounters.

There was neither the slightest bit of awkwardness, nor unnecessary words, as though it was his destiny to meet her and his destiny to sit in this carriage.

Along a lonesome journey and between a pair of lonesome travelers, no one could object to their cross of paths.

Just when he thought of wiping the rain drops off his face with his sleeve, she handed him a handkerchief of soft, red silk.

He gazed at her, but she hung her head to play with a corner of her dress.

“You’re welcome.”

“My name is Bai, Bai Yujing.”

She let out a charming smile and then chanted gently.

“A palace of white jade in heaven,

Has pavilions five and castles a dozen,

Where the deity stroked my pate and coiled up my hair,

And blessed me longevity as my welfare.”

“You like Li Bai^[2] too?” He smiled as well.

She entangled the corner of her dress to her slender fingers and began to recite in a low, lengthened voice.

“On the mountain of Lao by the east sea,

I once savored the violet twilight carefree,

Where I met the legendary immortal Elder An Qi^[3],

Who shared with me melon-sized fruits of jujube.

Only as a middle-aged man I called on his Majesty,

Failing my aspiration I return home despondently.

My once youthful face had withered in the spring sun,

And the graying of hair in life had inevitably begun.

I crave the golden elixir of eternity,

And to ride the carriage of clouds in serenity.

Up the heavenly terrace I follow the elder in pleasure,

To sweep fallen petals with the celestial at leisure.^[4]”

Her voice had a slight pause at the mentioning of the mountain of Lao.

“Miss Lao?” Bai Yujing guessed.

Her head bowed even lower, and a soft voice replied, “Yuan Zixia^[5].”

Suddenly the sound of galloping hooves echoed as three horses raced past the carriage, and three pair of sharp eyes glanced over the inside of the carriage.

As the horses sprinted forward, the last rider suddenly leapt off his saddle in a back flip and landed on Bai Yujing’s saddle twenty feet away. With a tap of his tiptoe, he hooked the scabbard that hung from the saddle and caught it with his hand.

The three horses suddenly turned around, and with another swift flip, the man returned to his own saddle at ease.

Only moments later, the three riders had disappeared into the hazy mist of shower, no longer to be seen.

“They stole your sword!” Yuan Zixia exclaimed, her beautiful eyes widening.

Bai Yujing only replied with a grin.

“You just watch them taking away your belongings and not do anything about it?” asked Yuan Zixia.

Bai Yujing grinned again.

“I heard that in the Martial World some people hold their sword as dearly as their own lives,” Yuan Zixia bit her lips and said.

“I am not that kind of person,” replied Bai Yujing.

Yuan Zixia sighed softly as if she was slightly disappointed.

Are there young girls who didn’t adore heroes? If you fight others to death for the sake of a sword, they might think of you as a fool, or they might even shed tears for you.

But if you simply watch it happen when others take away your sword, they would undoubtedly be very disappointed.

“Do you know much about the Martial World?” Bai Yujing looked at her and grinned once again.

“Not much. But I like hearing stories and watching with my own eyes.”

“Is that why you left home all by yourself?”

Yuan Zixia nodded and began toying with the corner of her dress once again.

“Fortunately you have not seen much; otherwise you’d for sure be disappointed.”

“Why is that?”

“Things you see are never as beautiful as the stories you hear.”

Yuan Zixia wanted to ask more, but then refrained from the urge.

Right then, sound of galloping hooves suddenly filled the air again. The three riders that had zoomed by them returned.

The leading rider suddenly leaned backward toward the side and extended his arm. In the next instant, he had gently returned the scabbard back to its former place alongside the saddle.

The other two riders bowed slightly with cupped hands[6], and moments later, all three disappeared into the hazy mist yet again.

Yuan Zixia’s eyes widened from the shock and excitement.

“They brought your sword back!”

Bai Yujing grinned.

“You knew they were going to bring it back?” Yuan Zixia blinked.

Bai Yujing grinned again.

“They seemed to be afraid of you!” Yuan Zixia gazed at him, her eyes glowed with enthusiasm.

“Afraid of me?”

“Your…your sword must have killed many people!” Yuan Zixia exclaimed, her voice trembled from excitement.

“Do I look like someone who has killed before?” Bai Yujing asked.

“Not really,” Yuan Zixia had to admit.

“I didn’t think so either.”

“But why are they afraid of you?”

“Maybe they are afraid of you, not me!”

“Me? Why would they be afraid of me?” Yuan Zixia giggled.

“One smile can crumple a city, and a second smile can crumple a kingdom^[7]! Even the sharpest sword is no match for a beauty’s smile,” Bai Yujing exclaimed.

Yuan Zixia’s smile became even sweeter. Eyes winking, she asked, “Are you…are you afraid of me?”

Her eyes seemed to be suddenly radiating with irresistible power, as though she had just posed a challenge for him.

“I guess you wouldn’t take no for an answer!” Bai Yujing heaved a sigh.

“If you are afraid of me, shouldn’t you do as I say?” Yuan Zixia bit her lips again.

“Naturally!” replied Bai Yujing.

“Good! Then I want you to have a drink with me,” Yuan Zixia commanded with a pretty smile blooming on her face.

“You can drink?” Bai Yujing was caught by surprise.

“Do I look like someone who can drink?”

“You do!” Bai Yujing answered with another sigh.

He had no choice but to admit, because he knew very well whether it was drinking or killing, one could never tell who’s good at it just from his or her looks.

---

[1] “Bai Yujing” means palace of white jade, the same words used in the first line of the poem at the beginning of chapter 1.

[2] Li Bai (701-762), a famous poet of the Tang Dynasty, the author of the poem recited here.

[3] An Qi (nicknamed Thousand-Year-Old Elder) was a Taoism philosopher during the Qin (221-207 BC) and Han (202 BC-220 AD) eras. He was said to have become a celestial after taking some potion he had made himself. He was a very important figure in history because he set the example of becoming a celestial from taking magical pills.

[4] Another poem by Li Bai and my pathetic attempt at translating it.

[5] “Zixia” means violet twilight in Chinese. In the original poem in Chinese, the phrase “mountain of Lao” was right next to the phrase “violet twilight”, hence, the wrong guess on Bai Yujing’s part.

[6] A traditional way of greeting in Chinese culture.

[7] Excerpts of a poem describing the beauty of Madam Li, sister of the poet Li Yannian, who later became the imperial concubine of Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty (202 BC-220 AD). The story about the power of a beauty’s smile came from a real historical event. During the ruling of Emperor You of the Western Zhou Dynasty (1100-771BC), the imperial concubine Bao Si never smiled. In order to make his lover smile, Emperor You followed the advice from his minister and lit the war signal fire used to summon warlords to protect the empire from the northern barbarians. The chaos created by the many armies hurrying in did make the imperial concubine smile, but also angered the many warlords, so when the northern barbarians really invaded the capital a few years later, no warlord showed up to protect the capital despite the war signal fire. The emperor and his minister were both killed, which marked the end of the Western Zhou Dynasty.

Now support the translator Lanny by following my blog and leaving comments! :)

Video of the Day:

Jet Li demonstrating on a talk show why Tai-Chi is more than an old-men exercise.

The Twelve Stances of Yi-Jin-Jing (The Tendon-Altering Sutra) Part 3

The Twelve Stances of Yi-Jin-Jing (The Tendon-Altering Sutra) Part 2

第五式倒拽九牛尾

接上式，左手由上经左侧至左胯外侧，掌心向上，手指内屈，右手由背后伸至肩高时屈肘，变成虚握拳，上体与左腿成一条斜线，与地面约成45度。 右脚向右跨一步，同时向右转体90度成右弓步势，右膝关节弯曲，膝盖不超过脚尖，外形动作似用力拉车状。 呼吸自然，意念两手心。 然后身体左转，左脚向前上一步，左手伸向前，右手伸向后，动作相同，方向相反（右图）。

5^th Stance: Pulling Nine Bulls by Their Tails

Continue from the last stance. Move left hand downward past the left side of your body until it reaches the outside of the left hip. Turn palm facing upward and bent the fingers inward slightly. Raise the right hand up from behind your back until the arm is at shoulder height, then bend the elbow and transform palm into a hallow fist. The upper body and the left leg should now be inclined to form a 45 degree angle with the ground. Move right foot one step to the right and at the same time turn your body right 90 degrees and from a front stance toward the right. Bend the right knee but the knee should not exceed the toes of the right foot. The posture resembles pulling hard on a wagon. Maintain natural breathing and focus your mind on the two palms. Then turn your body left and take a step forward with your left foot. Reach the left hand forward and extend the right hand back. The movements are the same just to the opposite direction (see right figure).

 

第六式出爪亮翅

接上式，右腿用力蹬地，向前上一步，落于左脚内侧，成立正姿势。 两臂均回收于腰间，拳心朝上。 然后两拳变掌，同时向前推掌，掌心向前，指尖与肩斋平。 向前推掌要重如推山。 推掌时意想推窗望月，返回时五指微张，慢慢收向两胁，意想海水返潮。 反覆七次。

6^th Stance: White Crane Spreading Wings and Extending Claws

Continue from the last stance. Firmly push the ground with the right leg and then take a step forward so the right foot lands next to the inside of your left foot and you are standing straight (the Attention position in military drills). Retract both arms back next to your waist still holding fists with the palm side facing upward. Then open the fists and shift hands into the palm form. At the same time push your palms forward. The centers of your palms should be facing forward, and the finger tips should be at shoulder height. Push palms forward as though you were pushing a giant mountain. Imagine that you are pushing windows open so you can appreciate the beauty of the moon when pushing palms forward. When retracting the arms, slightly separate the fingers and slowly retract arms back to the sides of your waist. Imagine the tidal waves retracting to the ocean. Repeat seven times.

Now let's see how Mr. Bruce Wen does it and explains it. Remember, it might be slightly different from the version I translated.

The Twelve Stances of Yi-Jin-Jing (The Tendon-Altering Sutra) Part 4


Video of the Day:

I also do this intense abs workout twice a day! It's a good one!