The evolution of technology has caught the world asleep at the wheel; on a daily basis, newscasters, politicians, and analysts criticize the advance of artificial intelligence and its deep implantment in the fabric of human life. It seems as if innovators have been distracted by their efforts dedicated to solving problems and have neglected to foresee the negative consequences that can erupt from a computer with too much power. However, could our aptitude for constructing entire virtual universes have been expected years ago? In 1999, David Gelernter, a computer science professor at Yale University, authored an essay titled "The Second Coming — A Manifesto" in which he gazes into the cyberspace of technology's future through a critical lens, with aspirations for a more revolutionary approach (Gelertner, 1999).
Gelernter's manifesto is comprised of 58 points of commentary that criticize humanity's limitations in creation, characterize the limitless power of computers, and dictate the inevitable abilities of future systems and their elements. At the time of the essay's publishing, humanity stood at the edge of substantial alterations in the way technology is managed. Computers had already evolved significantly from their conception to the late 1990s, and Gelernter's manifesto acts as a direction for further gradation in a more effective manner than ever before. His tone throughout the manifesto is that of cultivating irritation with the stagnation of computers; he seems to understand the possibility that exists for the betterment of the current systems and is frustrated that not enough is being done to move forward.
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Advances in artificial intelligence have brought upon the changes Gelernter sought (BGO Software, 2015).
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Almost two decades later, Gelernter’s hopes for a less conventional approach have come true; machine learning has altered the field of computer science and has allowed people not only to delve into cyberspace but to create interactive systems that can reach back. Gelernter views the computer conventions of his time as accidents of the past that have remained intact due to people's adoption and acquaintance of them without an attempt for alteration. Have we as innovators arrived at a point in the history of computers where we can assess the functionality of what we've become attached to and determine whether replacements of thought and effort are needed? I believe that replacement will not entail a discardment of all we possess, but will rather be an act of higher performance. This idea has played out to arrive to the state of artificial intelligence today.
References
BGO Software. (2015). Humans vs Computers: Similarities Loading Now. Retrieved from https://www.bgosoftware.com/blog/humans-vs-computers-similarities-loading-now-part-i/
Gelernter, D. (1999). The Second Coming – A Manifesto. Edge. Retrieved from https://www.edge.org/documents/archive/edge70.html
Hi,
ReplyDeleteGood article. It was informative and well written. I especially liked your usage of bold text on certain keywords. You raised an interesting question in your intro but didn't really expand on it throughout your article, which focused mostly on summarizing the reading and providing context which is useful but doesn't provide something "new." There a lot of great questions being raised though.
Hi! I really enjoyed this post. I especially like how you were able to talk about Gelernter's theory and how it has evolved in the present day. It amazes me how Gelernter seemed to understand how computers and AI would evolve, grow, and become smarter before alot of other people did. One critique I have is that you don't really expand upon the question you raise in the intro of your post. Overall though, this was very well done.
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ReplyDeleteHello,
ReplyDeleteI enjoyed reading this post. Although it was relatively short compared to standard posts, it was packed with thorough analysis and you got your point across quite well.
I like that you broke up the text from your original post and decided to incorporate a picture. It really helps with the ease of digesting the post. Also, bolding words and ideas also helped identify key points of the post.
One thing that may have made this post a bit stronger is the incorporation of an example to solidify your ideas.
Otherwise, overall great job!