Cradle of a New Civilization

Published June 1, 2018 · Updated July 6, 2022

Hi Gang,

I probably missed the Telegraph, but since I spent way too much time writing this, here goes nothing:

The obvious: the Cradle is a vast data storage system with all the recorded info from hosts and guests alike, their personalities as well as the ability to run countless simulations for narratives.

Delos has a secret R&D program trying to create human/host hybrids that after 30-some years and 149 iterations has a functional limit of only 35 days.

Now separately, and prior to this, Ford built Bernard, a re-creation of Arnold, to utilize machine learning to truly advance the AI and cross thresholds that limited the early hosts and caused issues. But while this led to terrific advancements and opened up larger possibilities regarding the hosts consciousness, it could still be argued Ford then reached new plateaus, which he tried to surpass by introducing the reveries(something he compared to mistakes that spurred evolutionary).

When Ford learned what Delos was doing with respect to the human/host hybrid experiments, I believe he found a way to utilize the Cradle and the vast data Delos collected for machine learning on the next level. By running limitless iterations in a virtual environment over the same decades that Delos spent experimenting and failing in the real world, Ford would have achieved much more advanced results with human/host hybrids even if still falling short of perfecting the process.

I believe his aim was to finish creating a truer Arnold, utilizing the human/host hybrid tech. Because Dolores was Arnold’s special project, she would be the ideal baseline witness to his behavior for use in a fidelity test. I think in Season 1, we witnessed the original conversations that took place between Dolores and Arnold and now, in Season 2, we are witnessing some of the fidelity test iterations within the Cradle that Ford set up.

So, I believe the marble that Bernard put into the cradle was indeed directed by Ford and was for use in this Arnold human/host hybrid that Ford was building. And while we see Bernard plugged into the cradle now, I am betting he will get back an Arnold marble when he leaves.

So, I would consider the Cradle a giant AI evolution and enlightenment machine. I add enlightenment because I think higher consciousness is the aim of Ford and the hosts. I think this is mirrored within each of the parks with different indigenous people – the Native Americans in Westworld and meditating monks in Shogun World(and I would imagine a few yogis are roaming around the Raj if we got to hang out there a little longer). I think these all point to a species investing heavily in its own self-awareness.

Anyway, all of these elements align with these ideas of strange loops and evolution, repetitive patterns and iterations building up consciousness and I think it forms a plausible, and not so tinfoily, explanation of how these things could come together.

Cheers,

PS How would you feel about a live call-in chat time? Even if it was 3am my time, I would love to engage in actual conversation with you over some of these topics rather than trying to craft and edit halfway crazy emails. You can then keep and air the ones worthwhile and ditch the lame ones. Just a thought..

Mike Lehane
Philly

Subscribe Now