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‘Black Mirror’ Finds Terror, and Soul, in the Machine

nytimes.com

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Re: ‘Black Mirror’ Finds Terror, and Soul, in the Machine

#61

Post by dharma1 »

wwggggoi wrote: post #57
dharma1 wrote: post #54

I liked the previous episodes and watched a couple of the new episodes. I really wanted to like them but it's like the writers are both trying too hard to capitalise on the obvious "trends" and not really understanding the tech deeply enough at the same time. Self replicating, 3d printing miniature robot drone bees, that fly indefinitely on solar power and handle pollination for a whole country? And yet nothing else…

plausibility isn't the point - the scfi devices used are for reduction-ad-absurdum, to zoom-in on aspects of our current society. Also, in the real world some things develop faster than others. In San Junipero they can perfectly simulate a world and upload people into the cloud (heaven), but they can't cure quadriplegia with stem-cells. That's ok because all science and tech doesn't move at the same pace: some tech g…

I don't disagree with you, but for me you still need to retain some plausibility or it just feels sloppy.

The perfect memory recorder in the previous episodes - that was my favourite one, because we are not very far off from it, yet the implications are profound.

But indefinitely flying, self-replicating nanobees, just because one of the writers read about drones, 3d printers and bees dying out? Feels forced and lazy, even if it's just a prop to a bigger story about bullying on social media

Re: ‘Black Mirror’ Finds Terror, and Soul, in the Machine

#62

Post by vidarh »

sli wrote: post #36
justinpombrio wrote: post #28

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Apparently China plans to role out that kind of rating system by 2020, dubbed a "social credit score": http://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-china-34592186

Unless it's changed significantly recently, this "credit score" is only being used by Alibaba, and is more akin to a regular old karma system like that used on HN or reddit.

The article claims that Alibaba's solution is one of 8 private pilot schemes, and claims there are government planning documents for a much more comprehensive system.

Re: ‘Black Mirror’ Finds Terror, and Soul, in the Machine

#63

Post by rorykoehler »

ben_jones wrote: post #18
m_mueller wrote: post #9

Black Mirror often takes little details that we add in software, like a rating system, and takes them to their extreme and logical conclusion. Its premises are mostly sci-fi, but as thought experiments on how what we do could lead to a severe dystopia, it is superbly engaging. I recommend watching no more than one episode per day - I've been thinking about its topics quite a lot recently. At the least, it's refreshin…

I've watched the first episode and had some existential questions pop up while on a walk today. Isn't that end-all rating system, like you mention, the final form of many companies like Facebook or Instagram? When the value generated on the platform grows beyond its platform to other important parts of society. I think this is only just starting to happen, like Air BnB's usage of Facebook profiles as host validation,…

I have zero faith in rating systems. Absolutely useless 98% of the time. The only time they work is if there are thousands upon thousands of negative reviews with hardly any positives.

Re: ‘Black Mirror’ Finds Terror, and Soul, in the Machine

#64

Post by kingosticks »

dharma1 wrote: post #54

I liked the previous episodes and watched a couple of the new episodes. I really wanted to like them but it's like the writers are both trying too hard to capitalise on the obvious "trends" and not really understanding the tech deeply enough at the same time. Self replicating, 3d printing miniature robot drone bees, that fly indefinitely on solar power and handle pollination for a whole country? And yet nothing else…

I think you've sort of missed the idea. The writer, takes one or two ideas and runs through with them. Developing an entire future world is distracting from that goal.

Edit: have not watched the first one yet, didn't realise Brooker didn't write that one.

Re: ‘Black Mirror’ Finds Terror, and Soul, in the Machine

#65

Post by madaxe_again »

laurieg wrote: post #27

Black Mirror tackles one of the hardest problems about technical: How society changes around it. We spend such a long time talking about the latest cutting edge hardware, new algorithms, new problems that can now be solved, but it's too easy to forget that people are part of this system too. There's a great film from the 60's [1] that talks about the house of the future. It predicts online shopping and other modern a…

And how our technological evolution is way out of step with our societal evolution. Give a cave man a ray gun, he's still a cave man. We still run to the same hierarchy structures that we developed tens of thousands of years ago - the tribes are just bigger.

Re: ‘Black Mirror’ Finds Terror, and Soul, in the Machine

#66

Post by madaxe_again »

m_mueller wrote: post #33
justinpombrio wrote: post #28

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Apparently China plans to role out that kind of rating system by 2020, dubbed a "social credit score": http://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-china-34592186

It's scary how relevant some of Black Mirror's themes actually are. This one in particular is so close, I wonder whether the show's creators used it as a template. Edit: Apparently not, as this information is only publicly available since this September. Zeitgeist at work?

I've known about sesame since last year at least - it's getting more attention now but it was definitely public knowledge when this series would have been at the writing stage.

It's an idea from sci-fi - I can't remember who wrote what, but there was a society where citizens got more or fewer votes depending on their behaviour (edit: Alastair Reynolds? Banks? Feels like it was one of them.), and knew each other's scores, and Tom Disch's 334 is explicitly about scoring people, and one segment is dedicated to "Baz" desperately trying to get his score up by producing a piece of state-loving prose, before narrowly failing and being consigned to life as a faceless "g[ue|o]rilla" soldier - although in that the state scored you, not other people.

Re: ‘Black Mirror’ Finds Terror, and Soul, in the Machine

#67

Post by m_mueller »

Ntrails wrote: post #51
m_mueller wrote: post #9

Black Mirror often takes little details that we add in software, like a rating system, and takes them to their extreme and logical conclusion. Its premises are mostly sci-fi, but as thought experiments on how what we do could lead to a severe dystopia, it is superbly engaging. I recommend watching no more than one episode per day - I've been thinking about its topics quite a lot recently. At the least, it's refreshin…

I was so nervous when I saw they were being done with Netflix and in a massive season of six episodes. I actually don't think there was a truly weak episode in the bunch. Literally my only complaint was the stupid little explanation taglines Netflix shoved in my face meaning I didn't get to go into most of them completely free of expectation. Charlie Brooker man, what a guy.

Ah the taglines... I don't even look at them ;-)

Re: ‘Black Mirror’ Finds Terror, and Soul, in the Machine

#68

Post by rbanffy »

rorykoehler wrote: post #63
ben_jones wrote: post #18

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I've watched the first episode and had some existential questions pop up while on a walk today. Isn't that end-all rating system, like you mention, the final form of many companies like Facebook or Instagram? When the value generated on the platform grows beyond its platform to other important parts of society. I think this is only just starting to happen, like Air BnB's usage of Facebook profiles as host validation,…

I have zero faith in rating systems. Absolutely useless 98% of the time. The only time they work is if there are thousands upon thousands of negative reviews with hardly any positives.

Money is absolutely useless by itself. It's our collective agreement that it has value that gives it value.

Re: ‘Black Mirror’ Finds Terror, and Soul, in the Machine

#69

Post by qq66 »

rorykoehler wrote: post #63
ben_jones wrote: post #18

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I've watched the first episode and had some existential questions pop up while on a walk today. Isn't that end-all rating system, like you mention, the final form of many companies like Facebook or Instagram? When the value generated on the platform grows beyond its platform to other important parts of society. I think this is only just starting to happen, like Air BnB's usage of Facebook profiles as host validation,…

I have zero faith in rating systems. Absolutely useless 98% of the time. The only time they work is if there are thousands upon thousands of negative reviews with hardly any positives.

I have not had a single bad experience with buying from eBay sellers with >99.8% feedback, but multiple bad experiences buying unusual items from <99% sellers that I couldn't find with better sellers. It's worked well for me.

Re: ‘Black Mirror’ Finds Terror, and Soul, in the Machine

#70

Post by rbanffy »

stinos wrote: post #55
danso wrote: post #4

I've only watched 3 of the episodes (Playtest, Shut Up and Dance, and Hated in the Nation)...I've heard the other 3 episodes were better, but the 3 that I have watched seemed subpar compared to the previous 2 seasons. Not terrible as far as overall TV goes, but after the plot thrills were over, they just didn't leave the same queasiness-about-possible-future-dystopia that "White Bear", "White Christmas", "Entire Hist…

> they just didn't leave the same queasiness-about-possible-future-dystopia Actually for me they do. Maybe I'm more sensitive to this than others but I've seen the first two and both left me rather disoriented, alomst detached from reality, the first minutes after watching them. I only reach such a state through brilliant (from my point of view, I guess) film or music, or by using drugs. So: no complaints here :] E.g…

Watching the first one I joked about how a horror movie can be done with only beautiful people with perfect hair talking politely and dressed in pastels.
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