”I think, therefore I am . . . a robot? by Zygbot
An insightful article in today’s Chicago Tribune suggests that while the field of robotics has advanced considerably beyond expectations over the last 40 years, science and technology have a long ways to go before achieving the level of robustness and utility that many still dream of achieving in a robot. We should make no mistakes, robotic intelligence can do a lot today: “robots guided by their own computer ‘brains’ now can land jumbo jets, steer cars through city traffic, search human DNA for cancer genes, play soccer and explore craters on Mars.”
However, the gold standard for many robot enthusiasts remains the same—to build machines that can match the level of human intelligence. This goal however remains “an enormously difficult—perhaps impossible—challenge.” Well-known robotics expert and futurist, Hans Moravec, has given expression to this viewpoint in a recent article in Scientific American magazine: “By 2040, I believe, we will finally achieve the original goal of robotics and a thematic mainstay of science fiction: a freely moving machine with the intellectual capabilities of a human being.”
A similar ideal is also shared by Rodney Brooks, noted roboticist at Massachusetts Institute of Technology: “One day we will create a human-level artificial intelligence. But how and when we will get there — and what will happen after we do — are now the subjects of fierce debate.”
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