This is a follow-up to my previous article about the web bot. In that article, I briefly explained what the web bots are and if they were able to predict anything. I strongly suggest you read the article but it’s not a prerequisite to this article. In that first web bot post, I made a slight mention of the “2012 prophecy” and guess what? Most of the comments are about the 2012 prophecy and whether or not the world will end in 2012. I won’t be talking about 2012 in this article but I will focus on the limits of the web bots because there’s a really important concept we all have to understand: Web bots scan man-made information. This article might look similar to my previous one, but is shorter and more focused on limits of web bots. It is a reminder of the core concept of web bots.
Web bots scan man-made information
This is the most important concept of web bots because it sets the limits to what the web bots are able to predict. This also explains why it’s impossible to predict any end of the world prophecy. Why is that? The main goal of a web bot is simply to crawl the web the same way Google would do it to extract important information from websites. That important information is usually the most relevant keywords on a website put with a certain algorithm that is able to get the meaning of the sentences the keywords are used in. This information is then put in a large database and the final goal is to compare similar topics to determine if they each point towards similar conclusions.
So, if we put all the pieces together: The web contains information written by humans, the web bots crawl that information, find correlations and make predictions. If the web bots take its information from man-made sources, then what can it predict? Only things humans can predict or have control over. Does that includes the end of the world? No. There’s nothing super-natural in web bots. It’s computer technology at its best: Gather, keep and interpret information the human brain can’t.
Sure someone can argue they sometimes predict the stocks market, but I know people who are damn good at this too. They can try to predict a whole lot of stuff, but it cannot go any further than what we can predict.
We have to be careful here, because web bots do have a power we don’t have: to merge all that information across the web and try to find a correlation. So, they can go a little further than what a single human can do, but they can’t go any further than what’s possible to predict by humans.
If it was really possible to predict incredible stuff, Google would have the answer to every question. Wait a minute…They do! Seriously, it’s possible to extract relevant information from the web but it has a limit. Google use the data it collect to do a lot of other stuff than giving you search results, but they wouldn’t be able to predict things humans don’t have control over if they tried. That’s the same thing for web bots, except it’s much more smaller than Google.
Put everything in perspective
Web bot is a really nice project but I think it’s going to be one more argument for doomsday prophets in the future. It already started with videos about the end of the world and web bots predicting it would happen in 2012. There are certain things we don’t have control over and we have to accept it. There are certain parts of our lives we don’t control and we have to accept it. Computers are useful but they’re not God. I think the web bot project has a nice future but always keep in mind the web is man made and the bots crawl the web: there’s a limit to their capacities, it’s no magic.
Some examples
What’s best than a couple of concrete examples?
Could the web bots predict:
- Natural disaster: There’s not much chances, unless it’s a natural disaster we can predict. We sometimes know in advance of a tornado and are able to predict the disaster. In that case, a web bot could do the same by gathering information from websites talking about a possible disaster on a certain date.
- End of the world: Unless it’s a very obvious situation or caused by humans’ actions, no.
- Terrorist attacks: Yes. at least it can help.
- Stocks markets: Yes it can help.
- You get the idea.
Hope it’s clear
I hope it clears everything up so that it’s now obvious that it is impossible for a web bot to predict things humans have no control over.
6 Comments
Yeah, that does make sense… but man made information… what exactly isn’t man made information? The internet is alot like the collective mind of all humans… and we sub-conciously pick up on energies from all over the world, and those energies, we put “online”. So, I understand your point-of-view, because its right… but everything else is right too. I know that sounds strange, but think of how life is like one big equation… in an equation, there are no wrong variables… everything fits… everything happens for a reason… Realizing that, Humans have control over everything. Its not a matter of learning to control.. its a matter of being aware that you can control.
Love.
That’s what I’m thinking too. I know it’s never been proven, but go with me on this. If enough people think that cow’s can fly, we’ll affect reality with our thoughts and cows will be able to fly. After a critical mass number of people think so. When you apply this to the end of the world thing, or for that matter to any thing you can think of, this would also effect what we put on the internet. This way web-bots could predict things that humans in a physical way don’t have control over. Yet our global (sub)conciousness does.
Now, I don’t really “believe” in the theorie of global (sub)conciousness, but I do see it as a possibility, and keep my mind open towards this, and for that matter many other subjects. Either way web-bots can be very usefull - if not entertaining.
Kusssssseke’s Ivoryke
True, but this “if enough people think it, it can then be true” thing is simply self-fulfilling prophecy, which isn’t prophecy at all—well, makes one challenge whether prophecies can exists or if enough people believe without question then they make it true… perhaps that is what prophecy is.
There’s always going to be an end of the world prophecy, especially as our believe systems evolve and are challenged. Truly, to a Catholic Christian, the “End of Days” may be upon us because more and more people are challenging that religion and rising against it (before anyone yells at me, I am a Catholic). But this is happening to many religions now, more and more people are asking “why” and questioning the “way its supposed to be” attitude of organized religion—I digress, that was a bit off topic with that example.
Anyhew, as for the global (sub)conciousness, I’m on the fence there as well. But, it’s intriguing, and I’ll keep myself open to the idea. For sure, the Internet has evolved into much more than just a place to look at a company’s website or purchase books, and with enough of us talking about us then eventually correlations between all people will be identified—not necessarily a bad thing
All summed up maybe there is no Plan or Prophecy… someone got high once and said something crazy… and it snowballed… and now we’re each of us guiding a ship based on our belief structure to the end game we’ve been taught to believe…
Bring on more web bots… they are definitely a more savvy version of “prophecy”
Peace and Kittens
what the heck!!! I just went back and read some of the posts from the previous article. Way back when airplanes, electricty, etc… where scoffed at. Any one hear of NANO-BOTS and the real possibilities good and down right terrifying things that could happen. Don’t we all believe that we every thing is made out of energy?. How could we not give real pause to the thought that the collective consciousness could have power?.If there are thousands/millions of inquiries on the same subject doesn’t that mean that what ever is being inquired about is a thought being put out by those thousands / millions of people?.
If this “collective subconsciousness” was true, all the computers would have crashed in 2000. No one is phsycic but humans can have a pretty good idea of the future and can give generalization on what might happen in the future. Thats why web-bot can only give vague predictions. Eg. Gunshot wounding referenced to Dick Cheney, Attack on a money centre. Basic stuff humans could come up with using knowledge, they could make an educated guess on the fututre.
any of you that dont truly think the mayans are right on target seriously. you just need to do there home work cant argue with the facts .i see some ones comment yesterday saying all the mayan rubbish makes them laugh.let me tell you something people this shit s for real trust me i did do my home work.seems to be awhole lot of you out there are about to get a wakeup call that your not prepared for . we need to come together as one .i dont no about anyone else im starting to make prepparations right now. as far as location ect once the poles shift its going tobe off the hook solar showers to tsunami we are going to start experiencing some things we cant even imagine .but where your located is going to play a mayjor role not that theres any place on the planet that is going tobe a safe zone because theres several vulnrable areas that are going to be completely destroyed.those of you that still do not believeby may june 2009 from the west coast we will be able to physicaly see two suns setting in are skys us gov has been tracking planet _X luv 2 all peace out .if theres anyone out there need any info feel free to email at unreversable 69@yahoo.com