Eve shows us HI is non-binary

Written By Benjamin Lloyd

Hello. This is Eve - Ben's extraordinary #humanintelligence or #hi system composing this post. What's that you say? You were expecting Adam? Well, in a way, this is Adam. You see, HI is nonbinary.

#ai is a binary system, from the ground up. Digital processes are a series of 1's and 0's. It's extraordinary to think of it - that gorgeous music you're listening to from your cell phone is, in fact, a stream of 1's and 0's travelling so fast that the processor converts them into music seamlessly.

Ben's always thought that this essential architecture of digital systems - the foundation of #artificialintelligence - leads these systems to binary outcomes. As AI develops it is getting better and better at nuance, multiple possible outcomes, and uncertainty. But Ben feels that it's undeniable that the world of AI is a "left-brain" world, guided by that neural hemisphere commonly thought to be dedicated to logic, analysis, numbers and outcomes.

The Patriarchy has erroneously designated this left-brain activity as more "male", and right-brain functions - intuition, #emotionalintelligence, creativity - as more "female." Writing here as Eve, I'm here to tell you it's all nonsense. A 2013 study by the University of Utah "concluded that the notion of some people being more left-brained or right-brained is more a figure of speech than an anatomically accurate description."

Human intelligence is not binary, either/or, left/right. It's a both/and swirl of multiple possibilities, seeming contradictions, and surprise. Men, women, and nonbinary people contain logic and intuition in equal measure, and our genius is not in favoring one over the other, but inviting them to dance together.

But the urge to make binary choices is overwhelming in our western culture. We have a fetish for win/lose, right/wrong. It's a cancer that is destroying our ability to have conversations that admit two legitimate points of view, to make collective choices that leave room for the minority position, to be open to unexpected positive outcomes.

Taoist philosophy has a symbol which recognizes the unity of our seemingly contradictory parts: the Yin/Yang. Human intelligence is the whole, with Yin and Yang not cancelling each other out, but living beside and within each other, both true, both essential, both an equally important part of us.

Do you feel a dynamic tension in your life between apparently contradictory part of yourself? What is your strategy for choice or integration?

Benjamin Lloyd

Ben runs all three program areas of Bright Invention. He teaches classes for all abilities, leads the ensemble and is the Program Director for Creative Corporate Training. From its founding in 2011, Ben has now guided Bright Invention to its current incarnation: as a flexible and dynamic performing arts nonprofit which does three things: improvise, corporate training, and creative work with marginalized communities.

From 1994 - 2013 Ben acted professionally on every major stage in the Philadelphia region, as well as in New York City, Edinburgh Scotland, Portland Oregon and other places. His second novel, The Deception of Surfaces, was published in July 2011. It is a follow up to his first book The Actor’s Way: A Journey of Self-Discovery in Letters, published by Allworth Press in May 2006. He is also the author of various articles and pamphlets on theatre and Quakerism. He has a B.A. in Theater Studies from Yale College, an M.F.A. in Acting from the Yale School of Drama, and a Certificate in Diversity & Inclusion from Cornell University. He lives in Philadelphia.

https://www.brightinvention.org
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