Gooday Gaming Guests - A Commune Think Tank and/or University for 50 and older

Episode Date: December 31, 2024

I have such a thirst for knowledge at almost 57.

All right, those are my boys there. All right, so for my New Year's Eve, instead of doing a system today, I'm always thinking about stuff. So our topic today is a think tank. I'm always fascinated by think tanks. So a think tank is a organization or group of individuals dedicated to researching,

analyzing, complex researching, analyzing, complex social, economic, political, technical, or cultural issues. So the question I had was, is there, what kind of think tanks are out there? Because I've come across people who say, oh yeah, I work for a think tank. So you just go in there and think all day? How does that work?

I find that very fascinating. And even more so, what I was interested in, is there any think tank communes out there or think tank universities? And my other question is, why is it not universities for over 50? Because for me,'m 56 and i just i'm like a sponge of wanting knowledge i would love to go to a a university kind of like you're retired you sell your house and you take that money and you invest in part of a communi or university for older people that would just want to think and learn. So I just finally thought I'd thank. So I started with think tanks, characters of think tanks.

So I throw it into my zippy here. So we'll talk about think tanks for a little while. And then I go on to a couple other questions about it. Focus areas, certain areas, nonprofit, profit, funding sources. So you have to have far. So for a think tank, is it someplace you go to work every day and just go think and then go home? Examples of think tanks. Brookings think tank focuses on economic and social policy.

So when I think of a think tank, of course I think of like science fiction almost and technology, think tank. Thinking about people get together to think about UFOs and stuff like that. RAND, R-A-N-D Corporation, conducts research, defense, healthcare, and technology. That would be the one I would be most interested in. Chatham House specializes, that's UK, specializes in international affairs. Where's my voice today? Pew Research Center, known as a data-driven research

in surveys on public opinion. Goals provide evidence-based recommendations, forced intelligent discussions on pressing think tanks of specific influence and shaping society. Forced intelligent discussions on pressing. Think tanks are specific. Influences shaping society. So my next question to Zippy was, are there any top secret think tanks?

Because of course, you see it again, that's something you would see in a movie or something. Of course there is. Characteristics of top secret or highly secretive think tanks. Government ties. Many are directed to government agencies such as the department of defense cia and organizations uh in the countries uh classified projects they focus on topics like military strength cyber defense uh advanced weaponry espionage technology, secure facilities. These tanks are highly secure buildings, like in the mountains and all that stuff.

And I've noticed lately, actually here in Rhode Island, we just had a huge security breach. And I'm starting to see them everywhere now. I think the Department of something just got hacked again by the Chinese. With AI now and hackers, we're behind the ball. And all of our

firewalls and all that of now, I think we're starting to fail already. We just got really hacked here in Rhode Island. 650,000 people and one of the major it here in Rhode Island. 650,000 people. And one of the major... It's called Rhode Island Bridge. RI Bridge.

So we needed some think tanks yesterday for the next phase of protection. But I don't think we're going to be able to protect at some point. All right, so other examples of secretive or defense-oriented think tanks. DARPA. I've heard of that from the movies. Defense Advanced Research Project Association, which is with the government. RAD Corporation, through the much more work as conducting studies from the U.S.

MIT Lincoln Laboratory. So MIT has something going on. Federal Fund Research and Development. FFRDCs for Aerospace Corporation. Speculation of rumored entities. They might be secretive.

Secrets of impact. These secrets are especially for safeguarding national security and research then I said what about a think pack think tank community so say for me I know god forbid in a few years or hopefully more could be soon I don't know something happens my mother I had considered just kind of selling everything and going to some sort of a community commune or community where i could just learn about stuff and i don't know i'm not sure but i wish that was an option as you get older uh not everyone has a whole family or all kinds of stuff like that a lot of us are just on our own doing our own thing. And we're kind of pretty intelligent

and we could probably contribute in some way. So that's what I was looking at. That's what I was thinking. If it was me, I'd sell my house, take the money, go invest in a commune of a think tank. It would have to be purposeful. Key features of a live-in think tank. Focus on complex problems.

Clear mission. Integrated living and workspace. Offices. So basically I get out of bed and just go to work. So it's basically the same thing. I don't need a big space to do that. But you could learn a lot more. Especially now with AI.

So collaborative culture regular workshops brainstorming yeah so it would be something where i would always be doing but i would have other people around me doing as well and then i could really learn some stuff access to resources this is another one cutting edge technology research so the new stuff would come on your desk you'd be like here figure this out and now with ai you're just more of a hands on part of it although your brain is still used you can use the technology to advance things quicker hostile uh hostile holistic living experience a balance of course any sort of time you live with other people

Who knows what's going to happen There would be interaction with male female Kind of thing Female female male all that Stuff There was a way to minimize that Because I don't have any of that I don't have any sort of relationships

Or anything It makes it a lot easier just to work on stuff and think and do stuff when you don't have all that other nonsense in your way. So that would be a real cool living opportunities, research institutes. So I live in think tank would be the evolutionary model for fostering innovation. So I said the word commune, I spelled it wrong. And it said, you're asking the word commune or communal aspect of a think tank. Commune versus think tank community. A commune is typically a living environment where members share resources, responsibilities, and sometimes decision-making quality, often driven by shared values. Responsibilities And sometimes Decision making Quality

Often driven by Shared values Living Think and community Could cooperate Shared resources Dining area Recreation work

Can you just be living I can see like Buying a big lot of land If I had a lot of money And just build a Think Tank But a commune though But everyone has to get along Buying a big lot of land. If I had a lot of money. And just build a think tank. But a commune though.

But everyone has to get along. That's the hard part. Then there's crime. And there's all the other stuff to go. It's good in theory. But maybe like a small thing. Like ten people. In a small.

Little self made town or something. Start out there and see how it goes if i had a lot of money i would do that kind of like the old west when they made little you know frontiers there same concept it's just still relevant today really uh self-sufficiency growing food energy so nowadays self-sufficiency would be much, much easier. How they grow now on those tall things inside. So basically, it's almost like you were taking 10 people and bringing them to Mars. Yeah, it would be just a small area in the country somewhere.

And I'm sure there's something like that out there. And those other experiments for those people that are trying to train to go to Mars or somewhere where they're in an isolated kind of place. So I would do something like that in a heartbeat. I'm surprised there hasn't been a reality TV about that. Taking about 10-20 people together and

putting them in one of them Mars simulators. Uh, knowledge is getting better. This is, this is important. I find this fascinating. Why is there not higher education for much older, for the much older population? Like a school, like a college where you have to be 60 to go and you could live there, you know, and most people at 60, 50, 60 are retired most of their kids are gone or moved out

why not go back to a living school and just kind of do it all over again why not technically you're physically still able to and people at that age I'm 57 almost 57, 56 but I mean I have so much more fun stuff to do i want to do

uh but yeah that would be cool so college is just for older people i mean you're still going to get all the same things you're going to go to your classes you're going to have a dorm that'd be fun just because you're 70 doesn't mean you can't go sit in a dorm room and study. Right? Why not? And I tell you, the older you get, the more knowledge you already have. And it might streamline going to parties and all that.

Although, who knows? 70 years old, you might start a frat house. Right? Who says you can't? Alright, so wisdom and contact you get to changing demographics and plus mostly men and women

are at that point where their sexual isn't that much of a deal anymore it's not really what they're about that's all in the past you know what I mean at least that's how I feel about myself so it's all about all past. You know what I mean? At least that's how I feel about myself.

So it's all about all the other fun stuff you could do. Going back to school at 60. Pretty fun. Social, a flexible format. It could be flexible. Obviously, you're older. You want to sleep during the day. Your classes would be in the afternoon. You'd have a nap time.

And then you'd have some more. They call it siesta. And then you'd have more classes later in the afternoon. You'd have a nap time. And then you'd have some more. They call it siesta. And then you'd have more classes later in the day. Nothing at night, obviously. Because you want to go back to sleep because you're older. The University of the Third Age. Promising examples. The University of the Third Age.

U3A. A global network offering informal informal self-directed learning for retirees often run by volunteers. Usher Lifelong Learning Institute hosted at universities in the U.S.

providing non-credit courses. So for me it would be any sort of a think tank or anything would be really... I'm not going to go there to learn English or something like that. It's got to be something you're going

to learn something really high-end for technology, I would think. Cyber security, stuff like that. It wouldn't be... I'm going to go learn... Well't know, I can't think of science. Well, no, science would be there. But it would be the high end science.

I'd be going to this university to learn about quantum physics. I'd be skipping all the stuff behind it and just going for the next, what's coming next. It says, as a society increasingly recognizes the value of long-lived living,

hire higher education. I call it hire higher education. Adults have more to offer. And they have less, they have baggage, but it's all kind of behind them now. I believe, so then I get a little bit controversial, but I still believe this too. I believe many in jail are super intelligent, even at the worst crimes. I says, why are many in jail highly intelligent? Sometimes a mental illness is just a product of your intelligence.

And that mental illness got you whatever happened so i found a very untapped population uh some people in jail might have conditions but it's regulated so therefore why is jail not used as a education because you're you're basically in an institute where you can't go anywhere, so you might as well learn. And then you could do some sort of testing and find the ones that are into it and are intelligent enough to do on some next level. So why are rehabilitation and education matters? Programs like the Bard Prison. So anything that you can try to better yourself is good no matter where you are. Mentorship counseling, former inmates who thrive, innovation, prison programs, the last mile, inmates technical skills preparing them for jobs but what I was really concentrating on was those that

I put, I see jail as a pool to find an intellect that can be housed in a jail think tank commune so I'm going to the next level on my commune think tank we're taking all the really intelligent

putting them into one area because they're going to be housed anyway and using them for intelligence the vision of a jail think tank commune imagine a space where incarcerated individuals

selected based on their intelligent profile, collaborate on meaningful projects, contribute to society while working towards own rehabilitation and personal growth. Why would we just be in jail or be anywhere and not, even as like a senior, why just sit home and do nothing when you can contribute somewhere so still on this card topic jail think-tank commune select criteria again it would have to be somebody that's into it not everybody is able to be rehabilitated or even wants to participate in any way. That's pretty obvious. Technology and innovation. Again, create a project, policy research

and they would actually get paid more than just any other kind of a job with inside. Education and mentorship. Incentives. Participation. Of course there'd be incentives. You may never be able to get out, but maybe you get to go to a different, better place than you are.

Benefits of a jail think tank. You'll need better food. It's always nice. Utilizing untapped potential. Rehabilitation to purpose, which is very important. Fostering self-esteem, accountability, personal growth. That's huge.

For anything, for anybody. Reduce recidivism by giving participants tools once they get out. Cost effective. There we go. Using all that free, well, not free,

but very, very cheap, very smart people in a good way. Challenges to address, public perception, logistical hurdles, I'm just doing this as theory, ethical concerns, real life parallels and inspirations.

The Last Mile teaches coding to incarcerated individuals, prison debate programs, art and literature in prison, the narrative of the incarceration. Think Tank reframed incarceration as such for redemption.

It could be a blueprint to turning prisons into hubs of creativity. So I'm still on this, but I want to go further. So I'm talking about really the hardest criminals that are in

for life and even, you know, many that are death sentence. A lot of them are brilliant, I bet. Silence of the Lambs, for example. And it's not real, but that's what I mean. Some very, very, very intelligent people, but they're just flawed. Damaged or broken by

circumstances, trauma trauma or just mental illness why the most extreme cases could contain exponential intelligence trauma of catastrophes overlooked genius without

proper guidance membership or opportunity their intelligence may manifest in destructive ways. Very common. And then if you take somebody, take all the alcohol and drugs and all out of there, and then you just have your mind,

you might have a lot going on there. Think tank commune for the hardest crimes. Think tank for individuals serving life or death sentence. So you're not getting out anyway, so you might as well do something. Recognize the intelligence. Propose beyond punishment.

Transfer encouragement into opportunities. Ethnic work frame. Participating would be voluntary. But if you're gonna if you were to go, most likely it's going to be a much better step up.

But again, if you do something wrong or if you offend or something else while you're in there, then it doesn't work. So that's the whole other part too. I was just doing kind of... My brain was thinking about it this morning. Innovative solutions, good work on problems cyber security environmental yeah it would be things that are really really

high end that we need to because it wouldn't matter if the person can get a high level security because he has nowhere to go nobody to talk to about it. Except for going back to your cell. Or into a. You know what I mean. So. But if he's brilliant. And you can use his mind. Why not use it.

Challenges. Humanizing justice. Good or bad. Cost effect. So I think the cost effect would be. Very minimal. Public perception. Overcoming stigma. Because obviously anybody. would be very minimal. Public perception, overcoming stigma, because obviously anybody

would want someone that's in there doing something else. But if you're still doing your same routine, you're just kind of giving back a little bit. This is my last thing I got. I went just a little bit further. I said, okay, so what about medical experiments

that regular humans at this point can't do I'm not saying anything far fetched Neuroplant from Elon Musk something like that I said Nervo plug but I meant Neuroplant

so that's actually going on so implants technology and population but I meant neuro plant so that's actually coming it's going on so in plants technology and population so if you have a life sentence or your got the death to get to put the death you maybe have another option controlled environment potential rehabilitation scientific scientific contribute, willing participant, obviously. Advancing neuroscience, brain implants like the hypothetical neuro, giving a chance to participate.

Reducing recidivism, I can't really say that word. But I meant for the people that are not going to be able to. Informed consent. Exploit concerns. Unattended consequences. I've got something there. Social and legal. Dual risk. How to approach this ethically.

Voluntarily participate. Transparent oversight. I mean, there's many movies that you've seen where they're given some sort of a... And I'm sure in history there's been millions and millions of people that have gone through something like that, not by choice. And then we'll go into, we're going to end up with the neural link that's what i meant to say neural link which is with elon musk so that's already going on uh only in its trial stages although i think they've done one or two people voluntarily humans and uh final thoughts a tool or an opportunity for redemption the use of metal experiments

I meant things that are coming out nothing too freaky Neuralink is by Elon Musk Neuralink is a company by Elon Musk in 2016 he's been going on with that the brain machine interfaces BMIs key objectives for the Neuralink

treat neurological disorders for paralyzed interfaces, BMIs, key objectives for the Neuralink, treat neurological disorders for paralyzed, which is going to be amazing, augmentating human abilities, which is another thing. I would love to get an implant where I can learn electronics in five seconds. Eventually be able to interact with

EAI, which I think I'll see that in my lifetime. So a little bit further down here, he's saying, he being Zippy, my little buddy here. Neuroplant is a small coin-sized implant known as the link. It's placed in the skull, teen electro-examining into the brain. So you gotta tap into the brain. So there's the weak part to get brain surgery implement communicates wirelessly has developed

has developed a robot capability of performing minimal invasive implant surgery so you have robot that's putting in your head safety accessibility it's really expensive and it's current expensive and again it's current status as of now NeuroPlan has conducted human animal trials demonstrating promising results enabling a monkey to play pong with his brain

human trials are either underway which they are or imminent and I think there's one or two people that have been able to do something with their brain. Then my last thing was how long until a healthy human being like myself or someone that's older that wants to get an upgrade or something to help their health issues. Focus on medical use. Current state of neuroblink and brain implants.

Currently, similar technology available aimed at treating medical. Human trial timeline has already conducted the animals and some humans. Elon Musk has expressed long-term goal for enhancing human cognitive memory and interfacing with ai this allows individual to adopt technology as a cognitive i can't say that word upgrade uh timeline potential timeline for healthy individuals 25 23 25 2025 to 2030 medical medical refinement, human trials, established safety, regulation of bodies like FDA. 2030 to 2040, early adoption of enhancements. Once proven safe and reliable, individuals will be allowed to opt in for enhanced purposes. Early adopters could include researchers,

tech enthusiasts, and other seeking an edge in cognitive abilities. 2024 and beyond. Mainstream ability. So brain implants could become widely available to healthy individuals. This assumes significant advances in affordability, ease of implants, and public

acceptance. So I'm 56, I'll be 57. I'm hoping to go to 2020, maybe 2020, 2050, I don't know. 2020, 40 I might make it. 2020, 30 I should be there. Implants must demonstrate long-term

factors affecting adopting healthy social debates about human enhancements, affordability memory could give the older memory cognitive new learning skills, that's what I'd be interested in

an upgrade so I can learn electronics in five seconds. Seamless interaction with AI would be the next thing. Lots of movies of those. Especially lately. What's the one with the... I can't remember what it was. Oh, Jennifer Lopez and the AI.

That was a fun one. Challenges for older individuals. Biological considerations. Ethic concerns. There's a lot more here. I'm just kind of breezing through it. challenges for older individuals, biological considerations ethic concerns there's a lot more here I'm just kind of breezing through it so final thoughts while it's difficult to pinpoint

an exact timeline a healthy older human could potentially access brain implants for enhancements within the next 15 to 20 years depending on technology, regulation and social factors. This assumes Neuralink and similar projects continue progressing rapidly

and demonstrate safely for the non-medical applications. For now, we are at the cusp of a revolution, but broad access for enhancement purposes remains a long-term vision and on that note everyone have a good safe uh 2025 and i still believe that in 2025 uh we have some kind of the world game changer coming so hold on to your hats 2025 is 2025 is going to be quite the year. All right. So and then tomorrow we'll do something in the morning.

All right. Have a great day.