5 ms·

> Master/slave has uncomfortable connotations Why? I think that slavery is bad only if the slaves are people. I want machines to be my slaves! (non-sentient ma

• aendruk 4y ago
  This counterargument is cute, but realistically if ever comes the day that slave feels like an appropriate term to use for my machines, I think I’ll still be a bit queasy.
• burnished 4y ago
  Because the idea of a slave has immediate connotations of people being enslaved. I'm not talking in some broad philosophical sense of rightness, I mean it brings to mind, for me, thoughts about human slavery that are uncomfortable.
  • skummetmaelk 4y ago
    So what? Are we going to find a new word for "driver" because it brings to mind being driven to do something, without autonomy, perhaps against your will too? Are we going to remove "duplicate" because we can somehow imagine that genetically identical twins are offended by this? Are we going to remove "admittance" (inverse of impedance) because people will be uncomfortable when reminded that they weren't admitted to their first choice institution? These are all equally ridiculous to the master/slave debacle.
    • burnished 4y ago
      Those are all ridiculous examples because they are purely hypothetical, but you're missing the point; if enough people felt strongly about those then yeah, we'd probably change the way we talk.