Divine purposes and methods: can AI code evolve? (Evolution)

by David Turell , Tuesday, March 02, 2021, 14:51 (1145 days ago) @ David Turell

The answer is human written codes cannot evolve:

https://mindmatters.ai/2021/03/why-software-cannot-just-evolve-a-demonstration/

"A Michigan State University publication headlined a media release declaring: “Evolution of learning is key to better artificial intelligence” (September 19, 2019). Reportedly, researchers used the computer simulation software, Avida, to show the “evolution of learning.” On that view, artificial intelligence arises via neo-Darwinian evolution. Really?

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"Admiring the Avida computer simulation’s results, a program director at the National Science Foundation boasted that the researchers “have evolved associated learning in a computer from the raw ingredients of mutation, inheritance and competitive selection” (September 19, 2019). Note: The paper is open access.

"Left unexamined was the question of whether computer software actually can “evolve” in the way the researchers posit for living organisms, i.e., by undirected mutations and natural selection. To believe that computer programs can “evolve” the ability to learn or any other function requires the assumption that programs can “evolve” at all. Other researchers have shown the defective reasoning and unsupported claims for Avida, which was first touted in 2004 to demonstrate successful neo-Darwinian evolution. The fundamental assumption must be tested: Can software programs undergo undirected mutation to evolve a meaningful new function?

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"I developed a simulation system, InforMutation, to test the effects of undirected mutations using a simple computer program. First, I wrote a program in the venerable old-school BASIC programming language. True, it takes intelligent design to write this program, just as the Avida simulation was designed and written but set that fact aside for now. We’re going to test whether computer programs can be successfully mutated so we’ll assume we start with a working program that does something interesting.

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"What happened? The simulation demonstrated a reality for any kind of computer programming: The program code must follow the syntax and semantic rules of the programming language. If the program code is modified randomly, there is no reason to think the resulting program will still follow those rules.

"When a program fails because of a syntax error, as in this example, the program does not run again — ever. A program that fails because of a semantic error usually produces spurious results and dies just as dead.

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"Claims that Avida has shown how neo-Darwinian-like evolution can produce “learning” are intrinsically false. The digital organisms in Avida could be mutated, still run, and achieve new functions only if outside intelligent designers set up a system for mutations that either (1) never imposes syntax or run-time errors or (2) can impose errors but the organism continues to run and mutate enough to fix the errors. Either of these scenarios could exist only under one of two circumstances: The mutations are carefully directed (not undirected) or the digital organisms and the simulation system are pre-designed to tolerate a wide range of software failures and still run so that “favorable” mutations can accumulate.

"Working with InforMutation exposes the reasons why Avida could not demonstrate neo-Darwinian evolution of “learning” software. Rather, as a product of careful design, the Avida simulation showed the the fundamental elements of intelligent design: Purpose, Plan, Engineering, and Foresight. Only with these elements could randomly-mutated programs survive and run repeatedly so as to accumulate mutations. (my bold)

"A National Science Foundation director is quoted as touting the Avida simulation as “open[ing] the door to creating artificial intelligence systems without the limitations imposed by human design.” That claim is demonstrably false. The Avida simulation is nothing other than a software system tuned specifically by human design — because software exposed to raw, truly undirected, mutations always dies early. If “learning” was observed in the Avida simulation, it resulted from carefully chosen features, functions, and algorithms, not from undirected software evolution."

Comment: This programmer is imitating DNA run by God. Note my bold. Designer foresight is required. No human computer program can self-mutate without human design control.