Smart seems to be one of those words that is in fashion at the moment - its getting attached to everything. Drinks, microwave ovens, cars - its everywhere. Even little plastic cards can be smart cards
Smart seems to be one of those words that is in fashion at the moment - its getting attached to everything. Drinks, microwave ovens, cars - its everywhere. Even little plastic cards can be smart cards. But what if, rather than just being marketing hype, you could actually sit down for a deep and meaningful with your fridge? What if Microsoft Words irritating paperclip actually asked how you were, and seemed to know what you meant? Would you still uninstall it as quickly? And what if it started pleading with you during the process? My mind is going Dave, I can feel it...
Sounds ridiculous, sure enough, but researchers in a variety of fields are more and more confident in predicting the creation of truly intelligent machines sometime this century. What that means, of course, is up for rather a lot of debate. As is whether its a good idea to start producing things with more in common with you, me, or the cat, than with the toaster. And these are the easy questions - should the new machines we create have rights of any sort, or are they slaves? What do we do if our creations surpass our own abilities, both as individuals and as a species? Are we selling ourselves into obsolescence, or is there something intrinsic to the human experience that will be precious, even in the company of giants? All of these are big questions, and have been bandied around by science fiction writers, philosophers, engineers, and programmers alike for some 150 years. So just how far have they gotten? And what does the future hold?