#091 The Magic of Code, History of Computing, and the Future of AI Interfaces [Sam Arbesman #2]

Topics:

(00:00:00) - Intro

(00:03:14) - The magic of code

(00:05:30) - The wonder of early computing

(00:11:13) - The evolution of computing: From analog to digital

(00:18:45) - The personal computer revolution

(00:32:36) - The future of computing: Beyond silicon

(00:36:59) - The importance of computing history

(00:40:53) - AI and human uniqueness

(00:50:46) - The future of AI and computing interfaces

(01:02:13) - The intersection of playfulness and utility in computing

(01:11:17) - Conclusion and final thoughts

Links:

Books: God & Golem, Inc. —mitpress.mit.edu/9780262730065/god--golem-inc

In the Beginning... Was the Command Line —harpercollins.com/products/in-the-beginning-wa…

I, Robot —penguinrandomhouse.com/books/180504/i-robot-by…

The Half-Life of Facts —penguinrandomhouse.com/books/310285/the-half-l…

The Magic of Code —themagicofcode.com

Tubes: A Journey to the Center of the Internet —harpercollins.com/products/tubes-andrew-blum

People:

Eric Jorgenson —ericjorgenson.com

Sam Arbesman —arbesman.net

Podcasts:

The Orthogonal Bet —podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-orthogonal-b…

Companies:

Lux Capital —luxcapital.com tldraw —tldraw.com

Websites / Tools / Platforms:

Arbesman.net —arbesman.net

Internet Archive Spacewar Emulation —archive.org/details/spacewar_202301

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We discuss:

•
Why software can be seen as ACTUAL MAGIC

•
The combination of history and science fiction for more accurate prediction

•
The phases of computing technology, and what might be next after silicon

•
The creative opportunities for the future of software

Quotes from Sam:

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“Software is absolutely magic. It's wizardry. It's sorcery. Nobody gets it.”

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“We actually can use text and code to affect the world around us.”

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“Computing should almost be this humanistic liberal art—it should connect to language and philosophy and art.”

•
“Code is not a substance, but it operates in the world.”

•
“Computers are weird everything machines.”

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“We’re shielded from the vast complexity of computing—until something goes wrong.”

•
“People used to build computers in their garages. Now we can’t even open them.”

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“Unix is like the Epic of Gilgamesh of computing—it’s been around for decades and it’s still foundational.”

•
“AI is powerful, but it’s part of a much longer conversation around tools for thought.”

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“Biology is a wildly different computer than anything we would ever use to compute with.”

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“Science fiction doesn’t always predict well, but it gives us worlds we can aim toward.”

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“I want more weird, playful experimentation in computing—something beyond the chat interface.”

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“Computing history is so young that many of the pioneers are still around to email.”

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“Ultimately, all these tools were developed for people. They’re meant to be in service of humans.”