Quotes from Jeff Hawkins

Knowledge in the brain is distributed. Nothing we know is stored in one place, such as one cell or one column. Nor is anything stored everywhere, like in a hologram. Knowledge of something is distributed in thousands of columns, but these are a small subset of all the columns.

However, if one or more of the neurons are in the predictive state, our theory says, only those neurons spike and the other neurons are inhibited. Thus, when an input arrives that is unexpected, multiple neurons fire at once. If the input is predicted, then only the predictive-state neurons become active. This is a common observation about the neocortex: unexpected inputs cause a lot more activity than expected ones.

At some point in the future, we will accept that any system that learns a model of the world, continuously remembers the states of that model, and recalls the remembered states will be conscious.

You can't simulate a brain without first understanding what it does.

The list of things everyone should know is short. I would include how the brain is composed of the new part and the older parts. I would include how the neocortex learns a model of the world, whereas the older parts of the brain generate our emotions and more primitive behaviors. I would include how the old brain can take control, causing us to act in ways we know we shouldn't. And I would include how all of us are susceptible to false beliefs and how some beliefs are viral.

feedback plays a minor or "modulatory" role in the brain.

With each movement, the neocortex predicts what the next sensation will be.

The choice we face as we think about the future is, should we continue to be driven by our biological past or choose instead to embrace our newly emerged intelligence? We may not be able to do both.

Whatever the difference between brilliant and average brains, we are all creative. And through practice and study we can enhance our skills and talents.

Prediction by analogy -creativity - is so pervasive we normally don't notice it.

Prediction is not just one of the things your brain does. It is the primary function of the neo-cortex, and the foundation of intelligence.

In grade school I was taught that the United States is a melting pot. People from all over the world come here for freedom and to pursue a better life. They arrive with next to nothing, work incredibly hard, learn a new language and new customs, and in a generation they become an integral part of our amazing nation.

You can't imagine how much detail we know about brains. There were 28,000 people who went to the neuroscience conference this year, and every one of them is doing research in brains. A lot of data. But there's no theory. There's a little, wimpy box on top there.

The key to artificial intelligence has always been the representation.

At times in the past, the U.S. did not restrict the number of immigrants.

Although it requires some adjustment by those already here, immigration has made the U.S.A. the most prosperous nation on Earth.

And, you know, the fact is, if you believe in evolution, we all have a common ancestor, and we all have a common ancestry with the plant in the lobby. This is what evolution tells us. And, it's true. It's kind of unbelievable.

If you look at the history of big obstacles in understanding our world, there's usually an intuitive assumption underlying them that's wrong.

You know what, we don't know diddley squat about brains and no one has a clue how these things work, so don't believe what anyone tells you.

Annexation is probably the most valuable tool a city has to ensure orderly growth and development.

You and I are streaming data engines.

we learn by moving. In order to learn a model of a building, we must walk through it, going from room to room. To learn a new tool, we must hold it in our hand, turning it this way and that, looking and attending to different parts with our fingers and eyes. At a basic level, to learn a model of the world requires moving one or more sensors relative to the things in the world.

We are creating powerful technologies that can fundamentally alter our planet, manipulate biology, and soon, create machines that are smarter than we are. But we still possess the primitive behaviors that got us to this point. This combination is the true existential risk that we must address.

Women should have as many children as possible