John_Maxwell_IV comments on Let's reimplement EURISKO! - Less Wrong
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Not exactly, Thom. Roughly, for FAI you need precise self-modification. For precise self-modification, you need a precise theory of the intelligence doing the self-modification. To get to FAI you have to walk the road that leads to precise theories of intelligence - something like our present-day probability theory and decision theory, but more powerful and general and addressing issues these present theories don't.
Eurisko is the road of self-modification done in an imprecise way, ad-hoc, throwing together whatever works until it gets smart enough to FOOM. This is a path that leads to shattered planets, if it were followed far enough. No, I'm not saying that Eurisko in particular is far enough, I'm saying that it's a first step along that path, not the FAI path.
Do you suppose that developing a FAI will require at least some experience trying whatever works? I don't know of any major computer programs that were written entirely before they were first compiled...
Edit: I see SoullessAutomaton has written a very similar comment.