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In my parents generation, and the generation that came after them (the one my siblings belong to, Gen X), I still think this differentiation between concepts of
by tomphoolery 10y ago
In my parents generation, and the generation that came after them (the one my siblings belong to, Gen X), I still think this differentiation between concepts of fictional AI were present. Consider for example the computer systems in Star Trek, and especially The Next Generation, and contrast how they worked with how Commander Data was depicted. The computer systems on Star Trek can be programmed using natural language, and by the 23rd century they're capable of even piloting an entire starship that a crew of hundreds would normally be required for. Yet, these computer systems never engage in the kind of inner exploration (or "character development") that Commander Data goes through every episode. This is what we're seeing here, Jarvis is more like a primitive version of the USS Enterprise's central computer, whereas "true" artificial intelligence, the kind that makes complex decisions on its own and has the capability of self awareness, still remains fiction.
Writers, at least, understood that there were different "flavors" of artificial intelligence. I have a funny feeling that at least science fiction enthusiasts also knew that AI would be separated in this way if it ever came to fruition.
- shard 10y agoPardon my nerding out, but I think the difference between the computer system and Data was the degree of self-determination given to each system. When the holodeck was instructed to create an opponent capable of defeating Data, it created an sentient Moriarty AI. The computer system was fully capable of being a full AI, it was just never instructed to.
- iherbig 10y agoMoreover, they make the point in one of the episodes (3x06, "Booby Trap", IIRC) that the ship's computer's intelligence is INTENTIONALLY limited. The reason that Data is unique isn't simply due to his status as a fully sapient being. It's because of his positronic brain.
- adrianN 10y agoThe ship's computer being limited to turning on the lights is just one of many points in Star Trek where the writers intentionally avoid using the fictional technology to its full capabilities in order to keep the plot exciting and suitable for a main stream audience. Transporters and replicators are another example: Suitably used they could be terrifying weapons.
- ethbro 10y agoStar Trek, for all it's technology, was always a story about humans. Even Data's journey is about as human-centric as you can get. In that way even the recent series have mirrored an older age of science fiction ("Using science to opine on the human condition" etc). The Culture novels managed to convince me that a story about true AI needs to not only look a little different, but fundamentally different. Not least, answering "Why still humans around?"
- TeMPOraL 10y ago> Transporters and replicators are another example: Suitably used they could be terrifying weapons. One thing I was always wondering is why it took as long as ST:VOY to see transporters being used as a way to deliver armed torpedoes directly into the target. In later seasons of Stargate SG-1 they sidestepped this problem cleverly - when humans received transporter technology from a more advanced species, they had non-overridable safeguards[0] (and an inspector on-board) preventing them from being used as a weapons delivery platform. [0] - which, in the best fashion of this series, were overridden several times anyway. A lesson for those who think that if something is banned, it won't be used.