>[...] with a probable origin in a speculative question in the 1960s by Edward Fredkin at an AI conference about some early NN research [...]

RIP Edward Fredkin, who recently passed away on June 13, 9 days ago.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edward_Fredkin

>Edward Fredkin (born October 2, 1934, died June 13, 2023) was a distinguished career professor at Carnegie Mellon University (CMU), and an early pioneer of digital physics.

>Fredkin's primary contributions include work on reversible computing and cellular automata. While Konrad Zuse's book, Calculating Space (1969), mentioned the importance of reversible computation, the Fredkin gate represented the essential breakthrough. In recent work, he uses the term digital philosophy (DP).

>During his career, Fredkin has been a professor of computer science at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, a Fairchild Distinguished Scholar at Caltech, and Research Professor of Physics at Boston University.

Ed Fredkin - Reversible Computing (Keynote from the CCC's Workshop on Reversible Computing)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ROv1HX-gdas

Fredkin tells a great story about making Stephen Wolfram's eyes pop out of his head by showing him how to transform his own rule into a reversible rule.

Reversible Computing

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reversible_computing

Fredkin Gate

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fredkin_gate

Digital Physics

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Digital_physics

Conservative Logic, by Edward Fredkin and Tommaso Toffoli

https://web.archive.org/web/20061017232512/http://www.digita...

Digital Philosophy

https://web.archive.org/web/20170729191558/http://www.digita...

Google Scholar: Edward Fredkin

https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=5QMmygwAAAAJ&hl=en

Rudy Rucker writes about his CAM-6 in the CelLab manual:

Cellular Automata Laboratory: Fourmilab home: Origins of CelLab: Classical Era: Von Neumann to Gosper

http://www.fourmilab.ch/cellab/manual/chap5.html

>Computer science is still so new that many of the people at the cutting edge have come from other fields. Though Toffoli holds degrees in physics and computer science, Bennett's Ph.D. is in physical chemistry. And twenty-nine year old Margolus is still a graduate student in physics, his dissertation delayed by the work of inventing, with Toffoli, the CAM-6 Cellular Automaton Machine.

>After watching the CAM in operation at Margolus's office, I am sure the thing will be a hit. Just as the Moog synthesizer changed the sound of music, cellular automata will change the look of video.

>I tell this to Toffoli and Margolus, and they look unconcerned. What they care most deeply about is science, about Edward Fredkin's vision of explaining the world in terms of cellular automata and information mechanics. Margolus talks about computer hackers, and how a successful program is called “a good hack.” As the unbelievably bizarre cellular automata images flash by on his screen, Margolus leans back in his chair and smiles slyly. And then he tells me his conception of the world we live in.

>“The universe is a good hack.”

[...]

ON THE SOUL: Ed Fredkin, Unpublished Manuscript

http://www.digitalphilosophy.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/07/...

>The John Cocke Theory of Dreams was told to me, on the phone, late one night back in
the early 1960’s. John’s complete description was contained in a very short conversation
approximately as follows:

>“Hey Ed. You know about optimal encoding, right?”

>“Yup.”

>“Say the way we remember things is using a lossy optimal encoding scheme; you’d get
efficient use of memory, huh?”

>“Uh huh.”
“Well the decoding could take into account recent memories and sensory inputs, like
sounds being heard, right?”

>“Sure!”

>“Well, if when you’re asleep, the decoder is decoding random bits (digital noise) mixed
in with a few sensory inputs and taking into account recent memories and stuff like that,
the output of the decoder would be a dream; huh?”

>I was stunned.