The Opinions of Search Engines

Edge.org’s W. Daniel HillisGroup Questions to discuss and answer

Group Questions: 1. What is Hillis’

thesis?

Is his point arguable or

factual?

What is Semantic Search?

*Are search engines “arbiters of truth?” And, what does he mean by this statement?

Does meaning come from the search engine?

*Or, does meaning and context come from programmers? Us it really possible for computers to have a “model of the world?” If so, should we be worried?

ALARMIST SCARE TACTICS OR

APATHY?*If we shouldn’t be worried about this new method of obtaining results…is this simply apathy or alarmist scare tactics from Hillis?

*What would his motive be to bring this to our attention?

Meaning in the minds of Search

EnginesWhat do you imagine the assumptions are that Hillis says we can longer ignore in a rather foreboding way in his last sentence?