Extraterrestrial life and artificial intelligence have long been staples of science fiction. But is there any reason to think we might someday encounter such beings in reality? Read on to learn about the emerging fields of AI research and astrobiology, and discover why science fiction may soon become science fact.
AI: Can machines have minds?<\/h2>\n\n<\/p>\n![\"\u201cArtificial](\"http:\/\/animalpeopleforum.org\/beyondhuman\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/01\/Artificial-Intelligence-1-by-Francesco-Romoli-e1464494516574.jpg\")
<\/a>\u201cArtificial Intelligence #1,\u2033 \u00a9 Francesco Romoli<\/a> \/ cropped from original<\/figcaption><\/figure>\nThanks to incredible advances in computer science over the last several decades, machines and programs capable of simple cognitive tasks are now commonplace in daily life. However, such devices generally work by using preprogrammed knowledge or sets of rules to simulate intelligence, rather than by actually thinking on their own. For this reason, they are sometimes described as “weak AI.”<\/p>\n![\""The](\"http:\/\/animalpeopleforum.org\/beyondhuman\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/05\/AlanTuring-Bletchley-272x300.jpg\")
https:\/\/animalpeopleforum.org\/beyondhuman\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/05\/AlanTuring-Bletchley.jpg<\/a> 391w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 133px) 100vw, 133px\" \/><\/a> Sculpture of Alan Turing, who proposed a test to measure a computer’s intelligence<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n“Strong AI,” machines with minds of their own, capable of independent thought and learning, are another matter. Simply defining a “mind,” let alone detecting or creating one, remains a highly elusive task for scientists. Nonetheless, there are many computer scientists who believe that strong AI is possible, and have devoted entire careers to producing it.<\/p>\n
One of the first to seriously consider strong AI was Alan Turing (1912-1954), one of the founding fathers of computer science. Turing did not believe we could ever truly know whether AIs had minds, but thought they could be programmed to behave as if they did. He devised a test to measure a machine’s intelligence, based on whether or not it could pass for human. To pass the Turing Test, an AI must successfully convince a human interviewer, through typed conversation, that it too is human.<\/p>\n
\nSee if you can tell a human from an AI! Introduce yourself in the textbox below. Someone will respond shortly. Your job is to determine, through conversation, what type of being they are.<\/p>\n
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<\/a>Thanks to incredible advances in computer science over the last several decades, machines and programs capable of simple cognitive tasks are now commonplace in daily life. However, such devices generally work by using preprogrammed knowledge or sets of rules to simulate intelligence, rather than by actually thinking on their own. For this reason, they are sometimes described as “weak AI.”<\/p>\n “Strong AI,” machines with minds of their own, capable of independent thought and learning, are another matter. Simply defining a “mind,” let alone detecting or creating one, remains a highly elusive task for scientists. Nonetheless, there are many computer scientists who believe that strong AI is possible, and have devoted entire careers to producing it.<\/p>\n One of the first to seriously consider strong AI was Alan Turing (1912-1954), one of the founding fathers of computer science. Turing did not believe we could ever truly know whether AIs had minds, but thought they could be programmed to behave as if they did. He devised a test to measure a machine’s intelligence, based on whether or not it could pass for human. To pass the Turing Test, an AI must successfully convince a human interviewer, through typed conversation, that it too is human.<\/p>\n See if you can tell a human from an AI! Introduce yourself in the textbox below. Someone will respond shortly. Your job is to determine, through conversation, what type of being they are.<\/p>\n