If we remove people's non-algorithmic characteristics, we will get a very boring person. - Robert J. Marks II

[On Chaitin's Constant:] Chaiton's work in identifying it is an intellectually stunning piece of mathematics with the clear philosophical and theological implication that our universe is not fully explainable in materialist terms.

The best immortality prospect for the materialist looks to be either deep freezing dead bodies until a cure is found, or computer replication of brains in silicon. One won’t work and the other can’t survive a power outage.

Those who believe in the coming of Strong AI argue that non-algorithmic consciousness will be an emergent property as AI complexity ever increases. In other words, consciousness will just happen, as a sort of natural outgrowth of the code’s increasing complexity. Such unfounded optimism is akin to that of a naive young boy standing in front of a large pile of horse manure. He becomes excited and begins digging into the pile, flinging handfuls of manure over his shoulders. “With all this horse poop,” he says, “there must be a pony in here somewhere!” Strong AI proponents similarly claim, in essence, “With all this computational complexity, there must be some consciousness here somewhere!”