AI Meets Social Media

AI is becoming more advanced and closer to equaling our intelligence every day, and although we barley notice it social media and in development robots are becoming smarter also.  As Mark Zuckerberg explained in one of the articles, Facebook is a version of AI because of its vast possibilities of recognizing patterns and interacting with the users.  I do not use Facebook as much as I use to, but I never really thought of it as AI until now.  Zuckerberg says how Facebook adapts to the users by understanding their news feed, the people they’re friends with or the kind of videos they mainly watch.  Facebook is basically studying you.  It makes me a bit uncomfortable as I think about it, but at the same time its pretty cool.  A learning social media that can adjust its app for your convenience.  Not only does Facebook do this, but also all the other main apps like Instagram and Twitter.  They do the exact same thing for example; both can give suggestions on whom to follow based on your group of friends.  Facebook’s advancements are learning our habits, interest, friend groups and even asks us to post how we are feeling.  The article on Facebook positions it as “robots and software becoming smart enough to better themselves and learn new skills” this greatly aligns with post humanism.  Right now in our eyes Facebook is just a connection for all humans, but in the bigger picture AI has all our information and is learning about us like a computer in a chess game.  Vernor Vinge’s inflection point meaning a time when machines will dominate and outthink humans – is like he said inevitable.  I do not genuinely believe we are there yet, but do believe its coming and there will be a day where AI will be like us. In a recent article (http://www.engadget.com/2016/02/23/boston-dynamics-presents-the-next-generation-atlas-robot/) Boston Dynamics have developed the “next generation” Atlas robot, AI capable of doing simple tasks like carrying packages, opening doors, and ability to be mobile.  This just shows how much closer we’re getting to AI robots walking among us.  I highly suggest watching the video in the link.

Apple vs The FBI

So throughout the week there has been much debate over Apple’s battle with the FBI.  I read an article call “Apple vs The FBI” which explained Apple’s position in much detail.  Right now the whole world is looking at Apple’s decision.  They are winning a lot of the publics support, as iPhone’s is one of the most popular products in the world.  I could not be more supportive of Apple’s decision to protect our privacy from the FBI.  If I was in Tim Cook’s position I’d be taking the exact steps he is taking because as an iPhone user I do not want the government to be able to access information in my phone so easily.  I want be able to be comfortable using my phone with my own privacy.  If the FBI gets their way I would think our right to privacy will be getting violated since the government is trying to get apple to create a software making it easier to hack into our phones.  If Apple gives in our privacy will have been taken away from us.  Although, a software update to the phones would help the FBI’s San Bernardino murder case very much, but with Apple denying their request they would be violating the All Writs Act of 1789 which states “that federal courts can issue all writs necessary or appropriate in aid of their respective jurisdictions and agreeable to the usages and principles of law.” (http://www.newyorker.com/news/amy-davidson/a-dangerous-all-writ-precedent-in-the-apple-case) In a way they are right, Apple is refusing to help out, but the federal courts have not yet issued necessary aid to the FBI. It talked about how Google and Facebook are one of their biggest competitors and as it stated in the article, “Their model is to lure as many people as possible onto their respective platforms, then sell those people’s attention, demographic data, and behavioral profiles to advertisers” basically showing Apple taking a stand for the people unlike Google and Facebook.  In a way this is great publicity for Apple as the world is all looking at them, they must take advantage of this opportunity to be the good guys of the industry.

AI Weapons Takeover?

After reading the article, Ethics of Artificial Intelligence my opinion about AI weapons is that it violates Martens Clause (1977) to a certain point because some of these weapons can have human input programmed into it so that its not the only one making the decisions.  But when it’s the actual AI weapons making all the calls on what is a threat and whom to kill that’s when its violating Martens Clause when there is no human control involved and its being run by itself.  Meaningful human control over an AI weapon is key because who knows if the AI can have a malfunction or a glitch and take an innocent life.  Meaningful human control to me is when the controllers or humans make the final call to kill a threat or have the ability to stop the AI machine.   These four conversations I read about mostly focused on helping the readers or the public to understand more about AI weapons and technology that its not just used for destruction, but to help us in our lives.  That is why in the article they state, “…AI research in the public sphere.  This balance is badly needed.”  meaning the world does not understand AI technology and that we are just afraid of the stuff that could happen in those futuristic movies on AI technology taking over the world.  As we slowly advance in the AI field jobs affected by this new tech would follow under line workers, call center workers, sorters, translators, fast food employees, etc.  These jobs are simple enough for advanced technology to take over because its just repetition and does not require much skill to be.  Reading the article about the movie “Terminator” (http://www.retrojunk.com/article/show/2348/the-terminator) made me realize this is the kind of future the public sees Artificial Intelligence weapons going into.  Ethics of Artificial Intelligence is trying to set us straight on how the take over of advanced technology is just fiction and is unlikely it will happen.  Movies like Terminator make us afraid of technology we do not understand and leads us to assume AI will take over our lives.

2001: A Space Odyssey

This movie indeed left me speechless and a little bit confused on what I just watched.  Going from monkeys on earth to humans on the moon and then astronauts around Jupiter, it was like a whole timeline on fast forward.  I was kind of uninterested in the beginning of the movie, but as it progressed it became more suspenseful.  It relates to a discussion I had in my English class on artificial intelligence. Our origins as primates to human showed me how evolved our kind is becoming and how we can go from fighting like barbaric monkeys to having artificial intelligence, “Hal 9000”, do our every command.  But I don’t think it stops there because like what Hal did, it turned against the human crew symbolizing post humanism maybe?  What if that’s what is next after humans our own technology taking the place as the dominant species.  The movie was not just centered on the Hal 9000, although that was one of the most exciting scenes, the black block representing another intelligent life seemed like it tried controlling the evolution of humans.  Perhaps that’s why the movie was on a fast timeline going from primates on Earth, to our moon travels, then a development of a whole spaceship.  That alien intelligent life sped up our evolution process, so possibly what if they’re like us trying to create another form of intelligence.

Post Humanism

After reading the first chapter of NK Hayles Posthuman I was honestly left confused and not sure what I read.  Although to answer the question how does Macy Conferences on Cybernetics view human beings, I would say Macy views human beings as slowly becoming robotic and sees our minds as just storages of information that can be transferred to computers or other technology.  Macy talks about how our bodies can be converted to machines.  Kind of crazy if you ask me, because how is that even humanly possible.  I would say Hayles defines humanism as an evolving process where our nature as humans is constantly changing and technology is beginning to be a huge part of our lives.  I see humanism as what makes us difference than any other organism or thing on the planet such as our ability to talk or think.  Hayles defines posthuman as a post humanist denying their human identity or computer perfecting someone else’s identity.  Post humanism is kind of like technology or robots taking over our world, but they actually think they’re one of us kind of like artificial intelligence.  Humanism is more defined on what makes you human, what is special about you as to post humanism goes a step farther on what is the next dominant force on top besides humans.  As far as me being post human would be my phone controlling my everyday life, for example, it tells me when to wake, feeding my knowledge and keeps me connected to our peers.  While reading chapter one a came upon the quote, “If my nightmare is a culture inhabited by posthumans who regard their bodies as fashion accessories rather than the ground of being, my dream is a version of the posthuman that…. Recognizes and celebrates finitude as a condition of human being, and that understands human life is embedded in a material world of great complexity, one on which we depend for our continued survival.” NK Hayles I think is saying post humanism has both the ability to be destruction or a success.  We can either be transferred into machines and have our bodies be used as an accessory or we improve how we live as humans instead of constantly focusing on creating artificial intelligence that could wipe us out.