Minority Report

Minority Report – content summary

  1. Brain damage of three children leads to clairvoyance in these children.
  2. Together with IT it becomes the PreCrime system.
  3. It’s about to be launched nationwide – last checks.
  4. The PreCogs are never mistaken, but they disagree on a case by case basis.
  5. This is filed as a report – minority decisions.
  6. Chief John Anderton himself is predicted as a murderer.
  7. John hopes to find a minority report in Agatha (PreCog).
  8. At the scene, John realizes his murder has been arranged.
  9. The last prognosis of the system was wrong.
  10. Dir. Burgess does not shoot John, but himself.

 

Prediction in ancient times

People want and need security. Now, according to Michio Kaku, humanity has reached a level of consciousness (III) in which it is able to recognize and plan for the future. But that’s exactly what makes uncertainty. We plan and it will be different. In antiquity, the problem was solved by giving credence to prophets (John the Baptist, Mohammad) or establishing an oracle. In the Middle Ages it was then clairvoyants (Nostradamus, Johanna of Orleans). Very often instruments such as astrology, tarot cards (Aleister Crowley) or the Chinese I Ching were developed. Just recently, in 2012, when the Mayan calendar ended, the end of the world was once again predicted. With the exception of a small esoteric minority today hardly anyone believes in such prophecies – the uncertainty remains.

Prediction by religion

Religions have adopted this theme in different ways. Everything in Islam is predetermined by Allah anyway – so no free will. In Christianity, people can decide about their otherworldly fate. A godly, sinless life leads to eternal bliss. Asian philosophies know karma. In this cycle of dying and rebirth, the present life decides the comfort or the suffering in the next life. Although the religious futures were not always rosy, they certainly provided security. If you live that way, then you will become that.

Prediction through science

It was not until the 15th century, with the advent of science, that other causes than occultism could be imagined. For hail and storm were then just not more witches responsible. Especially in the weather forecast, we have reached a level of safety today that already gives the impression that we are designing the weather ourselves. Responsible for this is an intensive examination of nature and its representation in mathematical, statistical models. Prognostic is an important discipline in times of big data analysis. Even so, it is not possible to predict the future definitely. However, if you can settle for probabilities and scenarios, you have a good instrument at hand. Election, weather, climate, marketing, etc. Forecasts are getting better and better depending on the amount of data and its quality. Due to chaotic effects, almost infinite computing capacities would be required for definitive calculations of the future. So the uncertainty remains.

Prediction by science fiction

Likewise, art has taken on the theme of the future at all times. While George Orwell draws a dystopian future with “1984,” Thomas More creates with Utopia a desirable, but not yet possible, form of society. As a result, cineastics has worked on the future with many apocalyptic works. The first science fiction films showed a utopian, desirable future. Recent works tend more and more to dystopia. The cartoon WALL-E shows a human destroyed and abandoned earth. Films like “The Hunger Games”, “Blade Runner” or “Idiocracy” play in a dystopian context. So also the “Minority Report”.

Prediction by Lucid Dreaming

In 2054, a drug was developed that resulted in brain damage as a side effect in newborns. Including three children Arthur, Deshill and Agatha. They have one thing in common – they can predict the future. Particularly strong, emotional reactions were evident in future murders. Director Burgess and dr. Iris Hineman have built the system “Precrime” from these three and a corresponding computer technology. Since one year the system runs “error-free”. In Washington DC, there are no more murders. The three children are interconnected as “PreCogs” in the so-called temple. They lie in a pool of conductive fluid and are artificially nourished. You must not sleep or be too awake. They are kept in a “Lucid Dreaming” status via targeted dopamine and serotonin intakes. Your administrator: “They give people hope that there is the Divine – some already idolize them”. The system is now to be introduced in all states.

Prediction and free will

The federal prosecutor, however, still has concerns and has the system of his employee detective Danny widower final check. For the first time, the two opponents widower and the PreCop chief John Anderton meet each other. Immediately, the ethical, moral theme of predetermination is in the foreground. According to widower: “People can always decide differently, they have the choice”. So also possible innocents were imprisoned. None of the identified killers ever really committed an act. To the contrary, Anderton runs a wooden ball over a train, which was then intuitively caught by widower. Anderton: “Why did you capture her – she would have fallen down”. Widower: “I could have dropped her too”. Anderton: “But they do not have”. Looks for now as if the PreCogs were working properly.

Prediction and probability

During the investigation, there is a new predicted murder in which Chief John Anderton himself is said to be the killer. He will murder Leo Crown. The background to this is provided by his own story. John lost his son to a child murderer. So that never happens again, he has dedicated his life to the PreCrime. Who would be better suited than he. However, what remained secret until then and John did not know was that the PreCogs were not always in their prognostic. Therefore, there was case by case a minority decision. This was then saved in a Minority Report.

Freedom of choice or determinism

John is now on the run, gets new eyes and kidnaps Agatha. But to his disappointment, there is no Minority Report on his case. So he and Agatha come to his crime scene. There, lying on the bed, John finds many pictures of his son lying on the bed. It was clear to him that Leo must be the murderer of his son. Agatha has stopped him from murder by saying, “You have the choice – get away from here”. It turns out that the scene was arranged – a proof org.

Even a perfect system makes mistakes

Then John senses, in himself, the error in the system: “I have arrested innocent”. Ultimately, it turns out that PreCrime does not work absolutely reliably. The bugs, the Minority Reports, were kept secret by Burgess. There is a final case for the PreCogs. They predict the murder of Burgess to John Anderton. Again, the system was wrong insofar as Burgess takes her own life. PreCime has been discontinued.

Minority Report

According to Michio Kaku, there are four levels of consciousness (0 to 3). People are on the third and have cognitive abilities (see picture). Language, walking, logic and vision are probably responsible. So humans have managed to develop artifacts – from simple devices (wheel) to highly integrated microcomputers and the Internet. Ultimately, it’s digital systems (AI) that bring tremendous performance improvements in forecasting. Incomparable with the systems of the past. Man develops a precognition. It could be the transition to a next higher level of consciousness. From human to transhuman. We would then live in multi-realities, outsource the mind and program the matter.

We can still change the future – it’s our decision

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