AI’s influence spans decades

© Mark Ollig

In 1956, John McCarthy, a computer scientist, first used the phrase “artificial intelligence” during a conference on “thinking machines” at Dartmouth College in Hanover, NH.

In 1973, a noted scientist, James Lighthill, authored a report called “Artificial Intelligence: A General Survey” for the Science Research Council, a UK agency responsible for publicly funded scientific and engineering research activities.

Lighthill expressed his concerns and evaluated many elements of artificial intelligence. He gave an overall negative assessment of its progress and potential, including criticism of robotics and artificial intelligence language processing research.

Known as “The Lighthill Report,” it initiated much debate among scientists and British government policymakers concerning artificial intelligence’s technical challenges and social implications.

The Science Research Council decreased its funding for artificial intelligence research programs after “The Lighthill Report” was published.

In June 1973, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) sent its proposal to the US Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) to fund artificial intelligence research programs.

“The Artificial Intelligence Laboratory proposes to continue its work on a group of closely interconnected projects, all bearing on questions about how to make computers able to use more sophisticated kinds of knowledge to solve difficult problems,” wrote MIT in its research proposal to DARPA.

DARPA approved funding for MIT’s artificial intelligence research programs.

The United States Department of Defense oversees DARPA and provides financial support for innovative research and development projects with military and strategic significance.

DARPA has been instrumental in many groundbreaking projects, including ARPANET, an early version of the internet we use today.

On Feb. 22, 1978, the US Department of Defense, with the help of DARPA, launched the Navigation Satellite Timing and Ranging (NAVSTAR) satellite system into an earth orbit of 12,625 miles.

This satellite system provided round-the-clock navigational capabilities for US military forces.

NAVSTAR evolved into the Global Positioning System (GPS) used by the public.

In 2019, Microsoft gave OpenAI, an American artificial intelligence research lab based in San Francisco, $1 billion in funding. This year, OpenAI is receiving $10 billion.

Today, Apple’s Siri, Amazon Alexa, and Google Home Hub are examples of virtual assistant technology that uses artificial intelligence to allow users to interact through voice commands, obtain information, and manage connected devices.

AI tools like ChatGPT-4, Microsoft’s Bing AI, and Google with its Bard AI are used in homes, businesses, and schools.

The US Government employs AI in public services, security, addressing societal challenges, and policy-making.

Around 65 years ago, AI became a threat to humans in the 1968 science fiction movie “2001: A Space Odyssey,” where the AI computer HAL battles against the astronauts on the Discovery One spacecraft.

In the new 2023 science fiction movie “The Creator,” an announcement is broadcast from the House Chamber at the US Capitol south wing in Washington DC, saying, “The artificial intelligence created to protect us detonated a nuclear warhead in Los Angeles. This is a fight for our very existence.”

Today, many people are worried that AI could endanger our way of life and even our existence.

AI and its effect on society are regularly discussed in the media among experts, journalists, and policymakers.

On May 30 of this year, the CAIS (Center for AI Safety) website released a statement signed by over 600 AI experts, legal scholars, economists, entrepreneurs, physicists, computer scientists, public figures, and others developing advanced AI applications:

“Mitigating the risk of extinction from AI should be a global priority alongside other societal-scale risks such as pandemics and nuclear war.”

To read this statement and see the list of signers, go to https://www.safe.ai/statement-on-ai-risk.

Granted, some dismiss the idea of AI-induced extinction.

What is important is to acknowledge that experts and prominent, respected individuals are seeking to raise awareness about the potential dangers of approaching advanced artificial intelligence.

They are committed to addressing AI-related concerns and finding methods of operations for their safe use.

In addition, US House and Senate lawmakers are pushing legislation for a commission to study AI and potentially regulate its technology.

The National AI Commission Act aims to create a 20-member commission of individuals with computer science or AI expertise and representatives from civil society, industry, labor, and government.

“This bipartisan bill can advance US innovation and competitiveness while bringing the tech industry to the table to examine how the US can harness AI’s transformative potential,” Jason Oxman, president, and CEO of the Information Technology Industry Council, said.

Some say in the next 35 to 75 years, there is a possibility of an “Advanced General Intelligence” (AGI), also known as an “artificial superintelligence.”

Experts predict AGI will have self-awareness and cognitive abilities equal to or beyond that of humans.

The way we interact with smart devices and use online information is being transformed by artificial intelligence.

As we navigate this expanding AI technological landscape, staying updated on its latest developments is essential in making knowledgeable judgments about its use, advantages, and risks.

John McCarthy

artificial intelligence pioneer,

playing chess at Stanford

using their IBM 7090 computer.

Pocket radio memories

© Mark Ollig

As a boy growing up in Winsted, I often used “the shortcut” when walking from home to downtown.

By taking this route, one can save approximately 25 minutes round trip.

We had to be cautious as the shortcut required us to sneak across the lawns of two homes.

One of the homes had a German Shepherd famous for its loud and intimidating barking, especially when a neighborhood kid was caught trespassing.

Once downtown, I usually stopped at the pharmacy (across the street from the bank) to browse its comics, models, and vinyl records collection.

I would also buy Bazooka Bubble Gum and a few 5th Avenue candy bars.

One day, I was drawn to a new item inside the pharmacy’s glass display case.

It was a pocket-sized AM (amplitude modulation) transistor radio.

I politely asked to see the radio, and Herb, the store owner, carefully took it out of the display case and handed it to me with a smile.

As I studied the pocket radio, I was impressed by its small size and the fact that it used six tiny transistors instead of vacuum tubes.

Measuring 2.5 x 4.1 x 1.4 inches, the front of the radio had an attached thin chrome front plate cover.

This Channel Master pocket-sized transistor radio included a leather case, earphones, and a dynamic loudspeaker.

It was the 1960s, and this electronic device I held seemed futuristic.

I wanted this radio and asked Herb (who also happened to live across the street from me) how much the radio cost.

“Well, Mark, this one is priced at $5.22,” he told me.

I hesitated and said, “Okay. I’ll need to come back.” Herb smiled and assured me the radio would be there when I returned.

While researching today’s column, I found an advertisement in the Feb. 21, 1965 edition of the Minneapolis Sunday Tribune.

The ad on page 15B featured the same Channel Master 6-transistor pocket radio model, priced at $5.22 (equivalent to $50.88 in 2023).

By saving my allowance, doing extra chores around the house (and receiving additional financial help from my father), I soon had enough money to purchase the radio.

Upon entering the pharmacy store, Herb greeted me with a smile. He could tell from my expression that I was there to purchase a radio, which I did, along with a few 9-volt transistor batteries.

My radio stayed with me in my front pocket. I listened to it wherever I went, even when riding my bike through the neighborhood.

Its earphone cord ran down the front of my shirt, plugging into the radio like a lifeline connecting me to the rest of the world.

I liked listening to the radio and hearing the popular songs of the day playing on AM stations like KDWB (channel 63!) and WDGY (WeeGee!).

In addition to listening to the music and disc jockeys talking on the radio, I kept up with my favorite sports teams, such as the Minnesota Twins and Vikings.

I listened to “Honest to Goodness,” a radio program on WCCO (830 kilocycles) that aired on weekday evenings and was hosted by Steve Edstrom and Ray Christensen.

Steve and Ray received postcards from listeners wishing to be called during the program and asked a trivia question. If the listener answered correctly, they would win the jackpot, which started at $8.30.

WCCO also broadcast the late-night program “Hobbs House,” hosted by Franklin Hobbs, which featured the popular opening song “Smoke Rings” by Henry Mancini.

During those snowy winter mornings, I and most students and their parents listened to WCCO radio to hear Roger Erickson announce the school closings and late starting times.

On May 6, 1965, six tornadoes in mid-Minnesota, including the Winsted area, caused everyone to head to their basements and listen to the radio for updates.

From their home phone or a payphone, individuals who witnessed a tornado or found themselves in its path called in to WCCO.

Callers’ voices were broadcast over WCCO radio throughout the evening and past midnight, reporting their location and describing the damage caused by high winds and tornadoes, including downed power lines, trees, and building damage.

WCCO radio announcers Dick Chapman, Charlie Boone, and Chuck Lilligren informed listeners (including this little boy at the time with his pocket radio) about the latest weather updates.

On March 16, 1966, at 10:41 a.m., the Gemini 8 spacecraft, atop a Titan II rocket was launched from Cape Canaveral, FL, into earth orbit.

During this time, I stopped to listen to the faint whispers of low-volume conversational audio over the static between radio frequencies as I slowly adjusted the tuning knob on the transistor radio.

I hoped to intercept any audio radio transmissions skipping off the atmosphere between Mission Control in Houston and the two astronauts aboard the Gemini 8 spacecraft.

One of those Gemini 8 astronauts was Neil Armstrong, who, in 1969, would become the first person to walk on the moon.

Do you have any pocket radio memories?

Epic journeys: Magellan to Voyager

by Mark Ollig

Ferdinand Magellan embarked on a westward voyage across the Atlantic Ocean Sept. 20, 1519, with five ships and 270 crew members, starting from Spain.

He discovered a navigable passage at the southern tip of South America connecting the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans, now known as “the Strait of Magellan.

Magellan died in 1521 during a battle on Mactan Island, near the Philippines.

Juan Sebastián Elcano, a navigator on a Spanish ship from the Magellan expedition, assumed command of the journey.

In 1522, the Nao Victoria, the remaining ship from the Magellan expedition, completed the first trip around the world, arriving in Spain Sept. 6.

In Kitty Hawk, NC, 381 years later, the Wright Flyer, an airplane built by Wilbur and Orville Wright, made aviation history.

On Dec. 17, 1903, Orville piloted the Wright Flyer 120 feet above the ground for 12 seconds. It became the world’s first engine-powered airplane.

Louis Blériot, a French aviator, flew his Blériot XI monoplane, equipped with a 25-horsepower engine, across the English Channel from Calais, France, to Dover, England, July 25, 1909.

On Sept. 23, 1913, Rohland Garros successfully flew his French Morane-Saulnier fixed-wing aircraft across the Mediterranean Sea.

Captain John Alcock and Lt. Arthur Whitten Brown flew 15 hours non-stop on the first transatlantic flight in June 1919.

In July 1923, the US Army Air Service announced its intention to fly airplanes around the world.

The Douglas Aircraft Company built four unique planes known as the World Cruisers.

The planes were named after US cities; Seattle, Chicago, Boston, and New Orleans.

These aircraft had Liberty V-12 engines that could generate up to 423 horsepower.

Their wingspan measured 50 feet and six inches, while their length was 35 feet and nine inches.

Each World Cruiser weighed 4,380 pounds on wheels, but when equipped with pontoons for oceanic travel, their weight rose to 5,180 pounds.

On April 6, 1924, a group of US Army Air Service pilots took off in their World Cruisers, flying westward from Seattle, WA.

The planes flew up the coast of Canada to Alaska, across the Pacific Ocean to Japan, over the Asian continent and the Middle East, crossing Europe, then flying over the Atlantic Ocean via Iceland, Greenland, and then reaching Newfoundland.

Seattle and Boston crashed during the trip; however, all crew members survived.

Arriving in the Northern Hemisphere, the Chicago and New Orleans planes traveled down the East Coast to Washington, DC, westward across the Allegheny Mountain Range to Dayton, OH, and over  Chicago, IL, before heading south towards Dallas, TX.

The planes then crossed the southwest, reaching San Diego, CA.

Traveling up the West Coast, both planes landed from where they started in Seattle, WA, after a 15-day airborne journey covering 26,345 miles, completing the first-ever around-the-world flight Sept. 28, 1924.

While circling the Earth, New Orleans and Chicago maintained an average air speed of 116 mph and reached altitudes of up to two miles.

The front page headline of the Minneapolis Morning Tribune Sept. 29, 1924, announced, “Fliers Complete Globe Trip.” A subheading read, “Only Two of Four Original Planes Finish Schedule.”

On May 21, 1927, Charles Lindbergh completed the first non-stop solo flight from New York City to Paris, France.

The following year, Charles Kingsford Smith and his team flew the first non-stop transpacific flight from the US to Brisbane, Australia, some 9,500 miles, in their Dutch Fokker Trimotor airliner, Southern Cross.

However, the first non-stop flight circling the globe had yet to be achieved.

In 1981, Burt Rutan, an aerospace designer, and his brother Dick Rutan, an aircraft test and fighter pilot, collaborated to build the Model 76 Voyager aircraft.

The 939-pound Voyager utilized every available space to store 7,011 pounds of fuel. It had a wingspan of 111 feet, with a stabilizer wing on the front of the plane’s nose.

Voyager was lightweight, using carbon fiber, tape, and paper coated with epoxy resin.

These materials made the aircraft as light as possible, significantly improving its lift and fuel efficiency.

On Dec. 14, 1986, Dick Rutan and Jeana Yeager (unrelated to Chuck Yeager) departed from Edwards Air Force Base in California aboard the Voyager airplane.

Voyager’s flight aimed to circle the earth non-stop without refueling, which had never been done before.

On Dec. 23, 1986, Voyager completed its non-stop flight around the world with 140 pounds of fuel remaining.

We have traveled beyond our planet using spacecraft to explore the moon and our solar system.

NASA still communicates with the Voyager 1 and Voyager 2 spacecraft, launched in 1977, as they continue to travel through interstellar space.

When talking about space exploration, I can’t help but use a Star Trek analogy.

In the 1994 movie “Star Trek Generations,” retired Captain James T. Kirk is seen on the bridge of the new USS Enterprise-B (NCC-1701-B) starship as it was about to leave Spacedock.

“Captain Kirk, I’d be honored if you’d give the order to get underway,” asked Capt. John Harriman of the USS Enterprise-B.

Kirk briefly paused while looking at the distant, unexplored stars on the main viewer screen before calmly saying, “Take us out.”

Pilot Lt. Lowell Smith and co-pilot Lt. Leslie Arnold
 flying  the Chicago airplane  (Douglas World Cruiser)
around the world in 1924.

Advances in AI may lead to ‘Technological Singularity'

© by Mark Ollig

On Nov. 10, 2010, I wrote a column about robots exhibiting intelligence similar to humans.

At that time, scientists and engineers from NASA and General Motors collaborated to create an advanced and versatile humanoid robot for use in the aerospace and automotive sectors.

NASA was interested in robots that could work side-by-side with humans and further assist in space activities with less danger to astronauts.

Robonaut 2 (R2) is NASA’s humanoid robot with a friendly appearance, a unique eye-vision system, and flexible arms, each capable of lifting 20 pounds. Its hands, fingers, and thumbs are designed to mimic human movements.

On Feb. 24, 2011, the crew of the space shuttle Discovery brought R2 to the International Space Station (ISS), where it is currently used in the Destiny Laboratory.

The word “robot” originated from the Czech term “robotnik,” meaning servant.

Czech writer Karel Čapek first used the word “robot” in 1920 when writing about artificial humanoids in his stage play “Rossum’s Universal Robots.”

“Rossum’s Universal Robots” had its world premiere Jan. 25, 1921, at the Czech National Theater in Prague, Czechia (Czech Republic).

The New York Sunday Newspaper announced Oct. 9, 1922, that “Rossum’s Universal Robots” had been introduced in the US with a live three-act play at the Garrick Theatre in New York.

The story begins at RUR (Rossum’s Universal Robots), a global distribution factory manufacturing humanoid robots to replace human laborers.

Čapek’s play portrays a future where robots become the primary workforce.

In his exploration of the RUR factory, he examines the power dynamics involving the exertion of influence, control, and authority when the robots gain awareness of their forced labor.

In the theatrical play’s opening scene, Helena Glory visits the RUR plant.

Helena assumes the factory’s secretary is human until the manager informs her that the secretary and the rest of the factory workers are robots.

The robots are considered “merely cogs in the labor machine,” generating wealth for the factory owners.

During the next ten years, RUR developed robots with artificial intelligence mimicking the human brain.

As time passes, the robots’ increasing intelligence leads them to realize that their primary function is to work for and be under the control of humans.

It’s probably not surprising, but the robots deemed the situation unacceptable and began “eradicating” the humans.

The robots in Čapek’s play had achieved an intelligence beyond AI (artificial intelligence) and more like AGI (artificial general intelligence).

Future AGI systems will have human-like cognitive abilities, common-sense reasoning, and creativity matching or exceeding human intelligence.

AI mimics human cognitive abilities using training data sets and supervised learning, but it can only perform specific tasks that are already programmed.

While still the stuff of computer science’s future, AGI will go beyond AI abilities, possessing autonomous cognitive capabilities matching or surpassing those of humans in problem-solving and critical thinking.

Not long ago, Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates praised ChatGPT as one of the most groundbreaking technological advancements he has ever seen.

I wrote about ChatGPT, an advanced artificial intelligence (AI) tool. It can have interactive conversations, similar to standard chatbots, but with a significant difference.

ChatGPT’s responses to questions are much more detailed, and its interactive conversations are like those with another person. In addition, it uses sophisticated algorithmic technology to generate its responses, making it an advanced form of AI chat.

As artificial intelligence technology advances, it becomes increasingly integrated into our everyday lives.

Countries like the US, China, Russia, South Korea, Japan, Germany, and Israel are rushing to develop, build, and employ advanced AI technologies.

AI holds immense potential for benefiting humanity. However, responsible and ethical development and oversight are essential to ensure everyone can equally reap its benefits.

The future of artificial general intelligence, AGI, is expected to bring a highly advanced and sophisticated intelligence system. AGI will be able to comprehend, learn, and utilize knowledge and reasoning across various situations, much like human intelligence.

According to experts, if we successfully develop AGI, it could lead to a concept called “Technological Singularity.”

Technological Singularity refers to a scenario where artificial intelligence becomes self-aware and operates independently, surpassing human intellect and capabilities.

While Technological Singularity is still just a theoretical concept, it is understandable future generations will have concerns, anxiety, and fear regarding the possibility of artificial intelligence technology taking control over their lives.

I am reminded of the “Star Trek” 1968 television episode “The Ultimate Computer,” where a super-intelligent computer known as the M-5 takes control of the USS Enterprise and goes on an interstellar rampage destroying starships and ore freighters.

Fortunately, the Enterprise crew managed to “pull the plug” on the M-5.

Technological Singularity will be a paradigm shift when artificial intelligence reaches a stage where it transforms human existence, pushing our abilities beyond our current understanding.

Today’s AI is only the beginning; we have just scratched the surface of what may come.

The Comptometer: revolutionizing office efficiency

© by Mark Ollig

Business offices used this device decades before the arrival of electronic calculators.

The design was both innovative and reliable, resulting in increased bookkeeping efficiency.

The Comptometer is a mechanical calculating machine using vertical and horizontal column rows of push-button keys to perform calculations.

This story begins March 18, 1862, with the birth of Dorr E. Felt in Beloit, WI.

One might think naming a baby boy “Dorr” was unusual, and so did I, until I researched and discovered it was a common name given until the late 1920s.

Dorr F. Kellogg was also born in 1862 in Cayuga, NY.

But I digress.

After completing his education in public schools, Dorr Felt began working in the machinist trade.

By 1882, he became skilled as a mechanical draftsman and developed his inventive abilities while working in Chicago at the Ostrander and Huke machine workshop.

In November 1884, Felt was watching a planer metalworking machine controlling the varying depths of a cut which, he said, set him “to scheming on ideas for a machine to simplify the hard grind of the bookkeeper in his day’s calculation of accounts.”

He concluded that the mechanism consisting of a ratchet feeding and key-driven gear motion could be used to create a unique calculating machine.

The same year, Felt began building his prototype calculator within a wooden case, saying, “I went to the grocer’s and selected a box which seemed to me to be about the right size for the casing. It was a macaroni box, so I have always called it the macaroni box model.”

On Thanksgiving Day in 1884, he continued assembling his calculator machine, using makeshift tools, including a jackknife.

“I procured some meat skewers from the butcher around the corner and some staples from a hardware store for the key guides and an assortment of elastic bands to be used for springs,” Felt recalled.

His prototype, completed in 1885, became known as the “macaroni box.”

In 1886, Felt partnered with Robert Tarrant, a Chicago businessman.

Tarrant provided Felt with $5,000 and a weekly salary of $6 to complete building his fully-functional calculating machine, the Comptometer.

By 1887, the completed Comptometer included a numerical keyboard and a series of mechanical registers and dials.

Its operation involved a user pushing numbered button keys to perform the desired calculations and then pulling a lever to see the resulting number on the bottom row.

The Comptometer’s push-button keys were set up in columns and rows, representing the digits zero to nine.

Each key was connected to a gear corresponding to the value of that digit’s place. Pressing a key engages the gear teeth to add or subtract the corresponding value.

The user could reset all the gears to zero after each calculation through a clearing mechanism which improved the efficiency and speed of the computing process.

Dorr Felt was aware of the mechanical arithmetic machine, the Pascaline, created by French mathematician Blaise Pascal in the mid-17th century.

The Comptometer, similar to the Pascaline, utilized the “nine’s complement” approach to calculate the subtraction of decimal numbers, which involved using labeled keys corresponding to the nine’s complement to subtract numbers.

To find the nine’s complement of 1423, we need to subtract each digit from nine, giving us the nine’s complement of 8576.

I envision my third-grade teacher, Mrs. Seymour, smiling and asking if I still recall my multiplication tables.

On July 19, 1887, Dorr Felt obtained US Patent No. 366,945, titled “Adding Machine.”

He later received US Patent 371,496 on an improved version of his adding machine Oct. 11, 1887.

On Oct. 27, 1888, Scientific American wrote of the Comptometer that the “accuracy and durability of the machine have been thoroughly tested in the actuary [insurance] department of the United States Treasury at Washington, where one is in constant use.”

In January 1889, Dorr Felt and Robert Tarrant established the Felt and Tarrant Manufacturing Company in Chicago with an initial investment of $100,000, equivalent to $3.2 million today.

In 1893, the Comptometer was showcased at the Chicago World’s Fair.

Several Comptometer models were built, including Model F, with dimensions of 6 3/16 inches by 9 7/16 inches by 14 3/8 inches. It weighed approximately 21 pounds and was manufactured from 1915 until 1920.

It was necessary to add oil to the 22 small metal holes near the push-button keys to properly lubricate the calculator’s mechanical parts to keep them running smoothly.

Early Comptometer models included a sheet-metal dust cover printed with the following:

Comptometer (Pronounced like thermometer)

Felt & Tarrant MFG. Co. Chicago, USA.

Adds – Divides – Multiplies – Subtracts.

On Aug. 7, 1930, at age 68, Dorr Eugene Felt, the inventor of the Comptometer, died in Chicago.

On July 4, 1937, the Minneapolis Sunday Tribune had a brief article on the Comptometer, saying, “The original model of the first computing machine invented fifty years ago by the late Dorr E. Felt has been placed in the Smithsonian Institution.”

The Comptometer truly revolutionized office efficiency.

(Below are photos I took of my Comptometer)