This essay will address the question of whether computers can think, possess intelligence or mental states. It will proceed from two angles. Firstly it is required to define what constitutes “thinking.” An investigation into this debate however demonstrate that the very definition of thought is contested ground. Secondly, it is required for a reflection on what form artificial intelligence should take, be it a notion of “simulated intelligence,” the weak AI hypothesis, or “actual thinking,” the strong AI hypothesis. (Russell, Norvig p 1020) The first angle informs us of the theoretical pursuit of what it means for something to think, whereas the second seeks to probe how it could demonstrated that thinking is occurring. As a result we have two fissures: on one hand, a disagreement of what constitutes thinking and on the other a question of the methodological approaches to AI. However, this essay will argue that both proponents of the possibility of AI and its detractors, are guilty of an anthropomorphic conception of thought. This is the idea that implicit in the question of whether computers can think, we are really asking whether they can think like us. As a result this debate can be characterised being concerned with narrow human understanding of the concept of thought. This I will argue that this flaw characterises the various philosophical theories of artificial intelligence.
On one hand functionalists, such as Fodor and Putnam, argue that “the psychology of a system depends” not on the physical architecture of a system, neurons in the mind brain or the wires in a computer, but instead how it is “put together.” (Fodor 1981 p 114) As they characterise mental states as functional states – inputs of stimuli and outputs of behav...
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...he Philosophy of Mind' in The Blackwell Guide to the Philosophy of Computing. Floridi, Ludiano. (Ed.) Blackwell, pp 135-153
Russell, Stuart J. and Norvig, Peter. (2010) Artificial Intelligence: A Modern Approach (3rd ed.) Upper Saddle River. New Jersey: Prentice Hall.
Searle, John. (1980) 'Minds, Brains and Programs'. Behavioral and Brain Sciences, 3 (3) , pp 417-457
Searle, John. (1984) Minds, Brains and Science. Harvard: Harvard University Press.
Snell, M.B. (2008) 'Do you have free will?' in California Alumni Magazine. March/April.
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It is necessary to look at the development of artificial intelligence in order to put this idea into context. The concept of intelligent and aware constructs began to emerge in the 1950s and 60s as several scientists in many fields came together to discuss the possibilities of advanced computer research. The first major step was a scientific conference at Dartmouth College in 1956. Here, the general concepts and possible paths of research for a.i. were fleshed out. As described in Artificial Intelligence: A Modern Approach, this conference was “the birth of artificial intelligence.” This was mostly a theoretical stage yet attending experts predicted that with a huge investment, working technology could be available in a generation (16). After being officially established, a.i. research and discovery exploded. Computer programs, a brand new idea, were already conquering algebra problems and speech recognition. Some could even reproduce English (18). It was clear that artificial intelligence research was going to be at the fo...
Andy Clark strongly argues for the theory that computers have the potential for being intelligent beings in his work “Mindware: Meat Machines.” The support Clark uses to defend his claims states the similar comparison of humans and machines using an array of symbols to perform functions. The main argument of his work can be interpreted as follows:
In the first three chapters of Kinds of Minds, Dennett introduces a variety of perspectives on what the mind is. From Cartesianism to Functionalism, Dennett outlines the evolution of thought about thought and the mind and explains his own perspective along the way. Cartesianism, as proposed by Descartes, proposes that the mind is who we are and characterizes the mind as a non physical substance that was completely separate from, and in control of, the physical body. In the strictest sense, Functionalism can be defined from Alan Turing’s perspective that a mind can be defined by what it can do. So from the Turing test, if an AI can fool a human into thinking it is also human, it must be at least as intelligent as the human. Using a plethora of anecdotes and examples, Dennett makes his position clear as he denounces Cartesianism and advocates for a functionalist based perspective in his own evolving definition of the mind.
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Artificial intelligence(AI) is refer to as computer algorithms that show functions that represent intelligence or duplicate certain components and elements of intelligence (Novella, 2017). Computers are good at crunching numbers, running algorithms, recognizing patterns, and searching and matching data. Artificial intelligence is also defined as the stimulation of human intelligence, functioned or processed by machines, especially computer system (Rouse, 2016). These processes involved learning which means the acquisition of information and the rules for using the information, reasoning whereby using the rules to achieve approximate conclusions, and lastly is self-correction. AI has applications in almost every way we use computers in society (Smith, 2006).
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Putnam, Hilary. (1975). “The Nature of Mental States.” Mind Language and Reality: Philosophical Papers, Vol. 2. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
In order to see how artificial intelligence plays a role on today’s society, I believe it is important to dispel any misconceptions about what artificial intelligence is. Artificial intelligence has been defined many different ways, but the commonality between all of them is that artificial intelligence theory and development of computer systems that are able to perform tasks that would normally require a human intelligence such as decision making, visual recognition, or speech recognition. However, human intelligence is a very ambiguous term. I believe there are three main attributes an artificial intelligence system has that makes it representative of human intelligence (Source 1). The first is problem solving, the ability to look ahead several steps in the decision making process and being able to choose the best solution (Source 1). The second is the representation of knowledge (Source 1). While knowledge is usually gained through experience or education, intelligent agents could very well possibly have a different form of knowledge. Access to the internet, the la...
The traditional notion that seeks to compare human minds, with all its intricacies and biochemical functions, to that of artificially programmed digital computers, is self-defeating and it should be discredited in dialogs regarding the theory of artificial intelligence. This traditional notion is akin to comparing, in crude terms, cars and aeroplanes or ice cream and cream cheese. Human mental states are caused by various behaviours of elements in the brain, and these behaviours in are adjudged by the biochemical composition of our brains, which are responsible for our thoughts and functions. When we discuss mental states of systems it is important to distinguish between human brains and that of any natural or artificial organisms which is said to have central processing systems (i.e. brains of chimpanzees, microchips etc.). Although various similarities may exist between those systems in terms of functions and behaviourism, the intrinsic intentionality within those systems differ extensively. Although it may not be possible to prove that whether or not mental states exist at all in systems other than our own, in this paper I will strive to present arguments that a machine that computes and responds to inputs does indeed have a state of mind, but one that does not necessarily result in a form of mentality. This paper will discuss how the states and intentionality of digital computers are different from the states of human brains and yet they are indeed states of a mind resulting from various functions in their central processing systems.
Artificial Intelligence is the scientific theory to advance the scientific understanding of the mechanisms underlying thought and intelligent behavior and their embodiment in machines. This is going to hold the key in the future. It has always fa...
Artificial Intelligence “is the ability of a human-made machine to emulate or simulate human methods for the deductive and inductive acquisition and application of knowledge and reason” (Bock, 182). The early years of artificial intelligence were seen through robots as they exemplified the advances and potential, while today AI has been integrated society through technology. The beginning of the thought of artificial intelligence happened concurrently with the rise of computers and the dotcom boom. For many, the utilization of computers in the world was the most advanced role they could ever see machines taking. However, life has drastically changed from the 1950s. This essay will explore the history of artificial intelligence, discuss the