As I was reading Brian Christian's article, "Mind vs. Machine", I was intrigued by the Most Human Human award that he discusses. It seems strange to have to prove to a panel of judges that you are human and not a computer. However, it seems perfectly normal for machines to go through the Turing Test to see if the panel of judges can tell the difference. Christian was told to be himself and he would be able to prove that he was human. I wonder if I would be able to prove that I was human if I were to be tested the same way. I think it would be odd to hear that I sound like a computer when I type, but technology is so advanced today, that they have the ability to sound like a human through Internet correspondence. There are multiple bots on the Internet that can instant message with AOL users and sound like a human, with the exception of the advertisements they sometimes send. In middle school my friends and I would instant message them, hoping to prove that they were not real people. Although the bots never admitted it, it was obvious that they were not human. However, many bots have been programmed to pick up on our slang and style of speaking that it is possible for us to momentarily forget that they are in fact machines.
I think that it is a significant accomplishment for a machine to win the Most Human Computer award, but after Christian wins the Most Human Human award, he makes a very valid point that, "It seemed strange to treat the award as meaningless or trivial, but did winning really represent something about me as a person?". The Most Human Computer award proved that the machine had impressed the judges and seemed least machine-like out of all of its competitors, but the Most Human Human simply determined who seemed least like a machine. What if someone had sounded like a machine to the judges? Would they feel less like a human?
You make an interesting claim that the Most Human Human award is more of an award for the person that is least like a machine. It's an interesting thought to think that we have to prove to other humans that we indeed are human. Everyone is different and furthermore we all communicate different. It seems maybe the Turing Test doesn't allow for that and generalizes all humans as universally the same in the way we communicate.
ReplyDeleteI also thought that the Mind vs. Machine article was very intriguing. I wondered whether we reached that point when our humanity is questioned. It is interesting whether the article is a warning against AI or against human beings who move away from their true nature.
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