In my brief experience in robotics, I have had the opportunity to explore first hand the copious amounts of programming and hardware design that are involved in creating a working robot. Part of my research is designing programs that allow the robot to learn and understand information instead of blindly reacting to data. For example, in the video located on the side, the robot uses many algorithms to deduce the number the user is thinking of. This kind of programming is called artificial intelligence. As computers and technology advances, we have to ask ourselves both ethical and logical questions about the implementation of artificial intelligence and its impact on society.

Artificial intelligence (A.I.) is what makes a “Smart” machine “Smart”. For example, some basic forms of artificial intelligence are “Smart” TVs, videogame consoles, and phones. These electrical devices can recognize the user and offer options that cater to that specific user; the machine can recognize who is operating the device and produce menu options that that user chooses most frequently or is likely to choose based on their history. Another form of A.I. are “bots” in video games. Bots are “computer-controlled player that takes the role of a human player (GameSpot, 2015)”. They’re used for practicing or filling empty spaces on incomplete teams. The bot has to react appropriately to the environment, other bots, and human players while accomplishing the objective. For example, in simple fighting games a bot will have to navigate the arena while fighting or cooperating with the human player(s) (and possibly other bots) and dodging items that could possibly kill them. Though the first few games were simple like the card game War (click this link to view a sample War game I wrote for my Algorithmic Design class; If you do not have a program that can run Java, you can view the code with Notepad or Word), the evolution of gaming has produced games which contain other worlds and universes.

In short, A.I., like all technology, has a goal of making our lives easier (and more entertaining). Progress in artificial intelligence will save us time and, in the end, money. Take simple learning games. Learning games will emphasize aspects that students struggle with and display advanced content in areas that the student is great at in a fun environment. This will allow the student to learn more quickly and efficiently. If we can increase the efficiency and accuracy of learning with video games, just imagine what we can do with robots.

Right now at Google, there are scientists, engineers, and mathematicians working together to create cars that can interact with society and, therefore, drive on their own without human guidance. The basic process in which the car interacts with society is that it scans the world around it, interprets where it is and what it is “seeing”, and then executes actions based on that analysis (Harris, 2014). Though, artificial intelligence is already in used in the automotive industry (On Star, profile settings, etc.) this would be a huge leap in A.I. history. Driving would be so much safer without humans making decisions and not paying attention. Though accurate driving will come at a cost: just one computer malfunction could cost lives.

One of the major disadvantages to artificial intelligence are malfunctions. When they are integrated into our society, it will be near impossible to operate without them and even small errors in computing can lead to drastic consequences. For example, what if Google’s “Smart” car misinterprets a stop light by thinking it’s green instead of red. Or even worse, what happens when a stop light with A.I. malfunctions and sends incorrect signals to all of the “Smart” cars in the vicinity. Having multiple A.I.s communicate with each other will have tragic consequences as the errors in the programming algorithms compile.

More important than systems failure and calculation errors, and perhaps more terrifying, are errors in judgment. What if the future fire department, completely staffed by robots, responds to a fire and has a choice: save the child or save the adult. Any person would instantly know to save the child, even if the adult has a higher chance of survival. This brings into light many ethical issues involving artificial intelligence. Just watch any movie focused around robots, the ending is always the same; the robots attempt to take over the world. Which makes sense, right? If they can learn and make decisions, why would they decide that they’re the superior “species” or that we can be trusted with our own lives?

Furthermore, can we trust our own species? There are a lot of maleficent people in the world who might use this advancement of technology for evil. For example, a terrorist organization might use an army of robots to do their extremist activities. How are we to stop an army of robots? Tomahawks are a type of projectile missiles that are the result of the evolution of artificial intelligence. They can track a target through GPS and by direct analysis of it's surroundings. Suppose the wrong person got a hold of them; they could target anyone from anywhere and the hit would be accurate and guaranteed.

The continuing progress of artificial intelligence can be extremely rewarding. As a race, we can increase our knowledge base while creating time to explore other interests by applying A.I. into multiple areas of our lives like driving and teaching. However, we should be aware of the costs associated with such development because, if we’re not careful, those risks could ethically outweigh the benefits. As we grow and evolve as a species, we must take the time to carefully evaluate the implementations of technology and take precautions so that the technology we develop does, indeed, make our lives easier, not take them away.

Bibliography

GameSpot. (2015). Bots. (C. I. Inc., Producer) Retrieved 3 13, 2015, from Giant Bomb: http://www.giantbomb.com/bots/3015-597/

Harris, M. (2014, 19 November). The Unknown Start-upThat Built Google's First Self Driving Car. (IEEE (Institute of Electronics and Electrical Engineers)) Retrieved 3 13, 2015, from http://spectrum.ieee.org/robotics/artificial-intelligence/the-unknown-startup-that-built-googles-first-selfdriving-car