A Google AI Model Developed an Unexpected Skill

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A Google AI Model Developed an Unexpected Skill

Google CEO Sundar Pichai.

Google CEO Sundar Pichai said there are elements of how artificial intelligence systems learn and behave that still surprise experts.

Concerns about AI developing skills independently of its programmers' wishes have long absorbed scientists, ethicists, and science fiction writers. A recent interview with Google's executives may be adding to those worries.

In an interview on CBS's 60 Minutes on April 16, James Manyika, Google's SVP for technology and society, discussed how one of the company's AI systems taught itself Bengali, even though it wasn't trained to know the language. "We discovered that with very few amounts of prompting in Bengali, it can now translate all of Bengali," he said.

CEO Sundar Pichai confirmed that there are still elements of how AI systems learn and behave that still surprises experts: "There is an aspect of this which we call— all of us in the field call it as a 'black box'. You don't fully understand. And you can't quite tell why it said this." Pichai said the company has "some ideas" why this could be the case, but it needs more research to fully comprehend how it works.

CBS's Scott Pelley then questioned the reasoning for opening to the public a system that its own developers don't fully understand, but Pichai responded: "I don't think we fully understand how a human mind works either."

From Quartz

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AI Addressing Dangerous Solar Storms

Am a long time follower of this very dangerous and inevitable natural event. 

Deep Learning to Address Impact of Solar Storms.

NASA AI model could help world prepare for impact of solar storms

DAGGER artificial intelligence model uses NASA data to produce swift predictions, within 30 minutes of detection.

By Julia Musto    https://www.nasa.gov/feature/goddard/2023/sun/nasa-enabled-ai-predictions-may-give-time-to-prepare-for-solar-storms

NASA said Thursday that a new computer model that combines artificial intelligence and agency satellite data could help prepare for dangerous space weather. 

The model, called DAGGER (Deep Learning Geomagnetic Perturbation), uses the technical tool to analyze spacecraft measurements of the solar wind and forecast where an impending solar storm will strike on Earth – with 30 minutes of advance warning. 

An international team of researchers at the Frontier Development Lab said the model can produce predictions in less than a second, with predictions updating every minute. 

The lab is a partnership that includes NASA, the U.S. Geological Survey and the Department of Energy.

NASA's Solar Dynamics Observatory captured this image of a solar flare on Oct. 2, 2014. The solar flare is the bright flash of light at top. A burst of solar material erupting out into space can be seen just to the right of it.

NASA's Solar Dynamics Observatory captured this image of a solar flare on Oct. 2, 2014. The solar flare is the bright flash of light at top. A burst of solar material erupting out into space can be seen just to the right of it. (Credits: NASA/SDO)

The scientists had used A.I. to look for links between the solar wind and geomagnetic interruptions, applying a method called "deep learning" that trains computers to recognize patterns based on previous examples.

The model was tested against previous geomagnetic storms from August 2011 and March 2015, with DAGGER accurately forecasting the storm's impacts. Previously, models had used A.I. to forecast for specific locations, but NASA said DAGGER is the first to combine A.I. with real measurements to generate frequent and precise predictions worldwide.

"With this AI, it is now possible to make rapid and accurate global predictions and inform decisions in the event of a solar storm, thereby minimizing – or even preventing – devastation to modern society," Vishal Upendran of the Inter-University Center for Astronomy and Astrophysics in India, who is the lead author of a paper about the DAGGER model published in the journal Space Weather, said in a statement.  ... '   (Images at the link)   (plan to look at nature and goals of the model)