The Creativity Code: How AI is learning to write, paint and think

The Creativity Code: How AI is learning to write, paint and think
Marcus du Sautoy

As a species, we have an extraordinary ability to create works of art that elevate, expand and transform what it means to be human. The novels of Henry James can communicate the inner world of one human being to another. The music of Wagner or Schubert takes us on an emotional rollercoaster ride as we give ourselves up to their sublime sounds.These are the expressions of what Marcus du Sautoy calls ‘the creativity code’. Yet some believe that the new developments in AI and machine learning are so sophisticated that they can learn what it means to be human – that they can crack the code.• Technology has always allowed us to extend our understanding of being human. But will the new tools of AI allow to us to create in different ways?• Could recent developments in AI and machine learning also mean that it is no longer just human beings who can create art?• And creativity, like consciousness, is one of those words that is hard to pin down: what is it that we are challenging these machines to do?In The Creativity Code, Marcus du Sautoy examines what these new developments might mean, for both the creative arts and his own subject, mathematics. From the Turing test to AlphaGo, are there limits to what algorithms can achieve, or might they be able to perfectly mimic human creativity? And what’s more, could they help Marcus to see more deeply into the complex mathematical problems with which he so often wrestles?

Copyright (#u72b86391-1493-544a-b3e3-d400fef132cc)

4th Estate

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First published in Great Britain by 4th Estate in 2019

Copyright © Marcus du Sautoy 2019

Marcus du Sautoy asserts the moral right to be identified as the author of this work.

All reasonable efforts have been made by the author and the publisher to trace the copyright holders of the images and material quoted in this book. In the event that the author or publisher are contacted by any of the untraceable copyright holders after the publication of this book, the author and the publisher will endeavour to rectify the position accordingly.

Diagrams redrawn by Martin Brown

Cover image © Hands of God and Adam, detail from The Creation of Adam, from the Sistine Ceiling, 1511 (fresco) (pre restoration), Buonarroti, Michelangelo (1475-1564) / Vatican Museums and Galleries, Vatican City / Bridgeman Images

Author photo © Oxford University Images/Joby Sessions

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Source ISBN: 9780008288150

Ebook Edition © March 2019 ISBN: 9780008288167

Version: 2019-01-28

Dedication (#u72b86391-1493-544a-b3e3-d400fef132cc)

To Shani,for all her love and support,creativity and intelligence

CONTENTS

Cover (#u4523cef0-1363-5732-b4e4-eec0b07a9b1b)

Title Page (#u956d94ca-fc3e-5914-9175-5c18be58d494)

Copyright

Dedication

1 The Lovelace Test (#u53696ddf-5765-5a89-8f99-b4605abb022b)

2 Creating Creativity (#u52db45a9-4ee2-52a6-82d0-a1166dccdd75)

3 Ready, Steady, Go (#ud21f1ff7-8fbc-5b47-8766-b0ef5fc3579c)

4 Algorithms, the Secret to Modern Life (#ufa44cb7c-63db-51ee-ba4a-32a4004846d5)

5 From Top Down to Bottom Up (#uab504d4a-ddb3-5f7a-a950-ee8b0f00d8d3)

6 Algorithmic Evolution (#litres_trial_promo)

7 Painting by Numbers (#litres_trial_promo)

8 Learning from the Masters (#litres_trial_promo)

9 The Art of Mathematics (#litres_trial_promo)

10 The Mathematician’s Telescope (#litres_trial_promo)

11 Music: The Process of Sounding Mathematics (#litres_trial_promo)

12 The Songwriting Formula (#litres_trial_promo)

13 DeepMathematics (#litres_trial_promo)

14 Language Games (#litres_trial_promo)

15 Let AI Tell You a Story (#litres_trial_promo)

16 Why We Create: A Meeting of Minds (#litres_trial_promo)

Footnote (#litres_trial_promo)

Illustrations (#litres_trial_promo)

Further Reading (#litres_trial_promo)

Index (#litres_trial_promo)

Acknowledgements (#litres_trial_promo)

By the same author (#litres_trial_promo)

About the Publisher (#litres_trial_promo)