Love Life and Health Advice

Computer Scientists have come up with many different forms of technology that have wowed their audience. Now they are coming up with computerized robots that can even pass the Turing test and mimic human interaction. This technological advancement raises many philosophical and ethical questions. What does this mean? Where does this take us? How does this impact our future in robotics and computerization?

All these questions come to mind when considering the news of different technologies introduced every day. We hear of robots that smell, eat, drink and become thirsty. We even hear of robots that can mimic human speech and have conversations.

When Eliza was invented in 1966 (a computer program that fooled many into thinking she was a person) many people wrote about her and how she had passed the Turing test. Does this mean computers can think, many ask?

The answer to that question is no. The Turing test is no longer considered an accurate way to judge if a machine can match human intelligence because a machine can be set up in such a way to make it appear it is interacting with the human when it is simply programmed to act that way.

In the book Hamlet on the Holodeck, Mr. Murray states “It is an important moment in human history to be able to make machines that exhibit emergence. It is a sign that we have reached a new threshold in our ability to represent complex systems – systems of any kind, whether thermodynamics, war strategies, or human behavior.”

But is this an important moment in human history, or does it mean we are about to meet our competitor?

If robots that have the ability to eat, drink, smell, interact, and converse, (robots that are so much like a human, that they are a virtual human) are brought into the household, and controlled by humans to do what the human wants, who is to say that one day the robot won’t possess the power to override the program that controls it.

We are introduced to movies about robots often, such as I Robot, the Matrix, Bicentennial Man, Terminator, and many more. There are many stories of how people think; if we bring these technologically advanced appliances into our homes, it will virtually destroy our own freedom. We praise our rights and freedoms, yet we want to bring something into the world that could jeopardize that.

As Murray states “Our solace until recently has been to celebrate our place in nature, our separateness from the increasingly mechanical world around us.” Now, in the new millennium and throughout the 90s, that contentment is being tested. I feel that with the creation of these different devices comes trouble.

Although, as McLuhan says, we are always looking for new and better pieces of technology; is robotics really the correct route to take? However, man is selfish, and will continue to be selfish. Man desires to have power, and if a machine is what he thinks will give him more power, nothing will stop him.




For questions or comments please e-mail Lisa at lisa.knapp@gmail.com

Politics Factzone: The truth about Kim Jong Il Kim Jong Il, the leader of the free world, has decided to move on to more fertile grounds, leaving with us just the memories of 8-color rainbows, singing Korean women and couple of nuclear weapons. But who was this man whose next ambition would have been to get the next Nobel Peace prize? Here are just a few facts you should know about. more Top 5 Conspiracy Theories Related to John F. Kennedy's Assassination 26.Aug 2011 Since just after the assassination of John F. Kennedy, conspiracy theories abou...read ISRAEL KEEPING GHADDAFI AFLOAT 10.Mar 2011 ...read Glen Beck Is NOT the Anti-Christ! 10.Mar 2011 Hurtful and fiery rhetoric is now media’s default setting! This slippery and m...read Recipe for A REVOLUTION! (10 easy steps - try not to get burned!) 28.Feb 2011 Rebellion is cooking in the air. People are mad as hell, and not going to take...read THE ASSANGE CASE. CIA INTERFERED WITH SWEDISH LEGAL PROCESSES EXTREME RIGHT POLITICS A DANGER TO EUROPEAN UNITY THE AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY. OUT OF TOUCH, OUT OF FOCUS, OUT OF CREDIBILITY AND HOPEFULLY, OUT OF THE DOOR Opinion World governments charged with criminal negligence (in response to Megaupload case) EARTH (thecheers.org) - Federal authorities of the universe have charged the governments of all the countries in the world as well as the operators actually in power in these countries with operating a criminal enterprise, the Galaxy warriors announced Today. more The Great OSCARS 2011 – or so it would seem 5.Mar 2011 So, how exciting......a morning off, the Academy Awards. I wish I could say the...read Top 7 Expensive Bordellos. Prostitution: Shakedown, Tier Down, and Priced Out 31.Jan 2011 According to a report of the Washington DC-based US Department of State, The Ph...read The Great Secret and Reason for the JFK Assassination 11.Oct 2010 The great question is why the great secret? On June 4 1963, President Kennedy s...read Don't Do it! The 3 Worst Times to Get Tattoos 4.Oct 2010 As a general rule, tattoos gotten after 2 am are a bad idea. But in a bigger pi...read

Travel Travel Warning 13 September 2010 - DO NOT TRAVEL TO IRAN 13.Sep 2010 TRAVELWISE has been watching the situation in Iran for some months in relation ...read more TRAVELWISE TRAVEL ADVISORY 5th June 2010. DO NOT TRAVEL TO ISRAEL. 5.Jun 2010 Given the recent incident whereby the Israeli intelligence agency, Mossad, used...read TRAVELWISE. 16 APRIL 2010. EUROPEAN TRAVEL ALTERNATIVES 16.Apr 2010 Travelwise issues the following advice in relation to cancelled flights to, fro...read TRAVELWISE 6 APRIL 2010. AUSTRALIAN AIR TRAVEL. THE BEST WAYS TO TRAVEL BY AIR IN AUSTRALIA. 5.Apr 2010 Regular readers might have seen and read the various advisory and no-fly notice...read TRAVELWISE 2 APRIL 2010. QANTAS. 2.Apr 2010 Some concerns have been raised in relation to some of the maintenance practices...read Sport No Payoff From the Playoffs $16.50 will Get Anyone in the Hall Mr McGwire Stupid Athlete Tricks Technology Think Big! Think the World's Largest International Trade Show Top 9 cool laptop accessories for laptop geeks Twittering: I'm not that interesting Cheers Jesus' Answering Machine Brown Couch or twelve midgets in the town square How To Be Happy Drugged Out Saturday Nights Muslim Decapitation: Bad, or Simply Misunderstood?