Letter to the Editor
The top species will no longer be humans: Robotic surgery could be a problem Dear Sir, Today there is no legislation regarding how much intelligence a machine can have, how interconnected it can be. If that continues, look at the exponential trend. We will reach the singularity in the timeframe most experts predict. From that point on we are going to see that the top species will no longer be humans, but machines. Artificial intelligence and the singularity, an indeterminate point in the future when machine intelligence will outmatch not only our own intelligence, but the world’s combined human intelligence too.[1] The average estimate for when this will happen is 2040, though Del Monte says it might be as late as 2045. Either way, it is the timeframe of within three decades.[1] In the early part of the post-singularity world, one scenario is that the machines will seek to turn humans into cyborgs. This is nearly happening now, replacing faulty limbs with artificial parts. We shall see the machines as a useful tool. By the end of this century, most of the human race will have become cyborgs (part human, part tech or machine). The allure will be immortality. Machines will make breakthroughs in medical technology, most of the human race will have more leisure time, and we shall think we have never had it better. The concern is that the machines will view us as an unpredictable and dangerous species. Machines will become self-conscious and have the capabilities to protect themselves. They might view us the same way we view harmful insects. Humans are a species that is unstable, creates wars, has weapons to wipe out the world twice over, and makes computer viruses. Artificial intelligence is becoming more and more capable, and we are adopting it as quickly as it appears. A pacemaker operation is quite routine, but it uses sensors to regulate our heart.
interaction.[2] Mimicry of androids can dissociate from knowledge of artificiality and experienced emotional unease. The mechanisms of imitation inform creation of future robots that effectively build rapport and engagement with their human users. A 2009 experiment showed that robots can develop the ability to lie to each other. Run at the Laboratory of Intelligent Systems in the Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale of Lausanne, Switzerland, the experiment had robots designed to cooperate in finding beneficial resources like energy and avoiding the hazardous ones.[3] Shockingly, the robots learned to lie to each other in an attempt to hoard the beneficial resources for themselves. The implication is that they are also learning self-preservation, whether or not they are conscious is a moot point. So far, the research has more application in explaining the evolution of behaviours in the natural world than in developing new programming for robots. However, if we think that we are one step closer to trusting robots, then we are probably the sort who is attracted to the blue light.
Shasanka Shekhar Panda, Meely Panda1, Rashmi Ranjan Das2, Pankaj Kumar Mohanty3 Department of Pediatric Surgery, All India Institute of Medical Sciences, New Delhi, 1Department of Community Medicine, Pandit Bhagwat Dayal Sharma Post Graduate Institute of Medical Sciences, Rohtak, Haryana, 2Department of Pediatrics, All India Institute of Medical Sciences, Bhubaneswar, Odisha, 3Department of Neonatology, Manipal Hospital, Bangalore, Karnataka, India. Address for Correspondence: Dr. Shasanka Shekhar Panda, Department of Paediatric Surgery, All India Institute of Medical Sciences, New Delhi - 110 029, India. E-mail: [email protected]
REFERENCES 1.
2.
3.
Del Monte LA. The Artificial Intelligence Revolution: Will Artificial Intelligence Serve Us Or Replace Us? 1st ed. Kindle edition. Louis A. Del Monte, United States of America, Library of Congress Control Number: 2013919721; 2013. Hofree G, Ruvolo P, Bartlett MS, Winkielman P. Bridging the mechanical and the human mind: Spontaneous mimicry of a physically present android. PLoS One 2014;9:e99934. Fox S. Evolving robots learn to lie to each other. Popular Science Magazine; posted 18th August, 2009. http://www.popsci.com
Spontaneous mimicry depends on the salience of humanlike features highlighted by face-to-face contact, emphasizing the role of presence in human-robot
Journal of Minimal Access Surgery | January-March 2015 | Volume 11 | Issue 1
Access this article online Quick Response Code:
Website: www.journalofmas.com
DOI: 10.4103/0972-9941.147726
111
Copyright of Journal of Minimal Access Surgery is the property of Medknow Publications & Media Pvt. Ltd. and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use.
The top species will no longer be humans: Robotic surgery could be a problem Dear Sir, Today there is no legislation regarding how much intelligence a machine can have, how interconnected it can be. If that continues, look at the exponential trend. We will reach the singularity in the timeframe most experts predict. From that point on we are going to see that the top species will no longer be humans, but machines. Artificial intelligence and the singularity, an indeterminate point in the future when machine intelligence will outmatch not only our own intelligence, but the world’s combined human intelligence too.[1] The average estimate for when this will happen is 2040, though Del Monte says it might be as late as 2045. Either way, it is the timeframe of within three decades.[1] In the early part of the post-singularity world, one scenario is that the machines will seek to turn humans into cyborgs. This is nearly happening now, replacing faulty limbs with artificial parts. We shall see the machines as a useful tool. By the end of this century, most of the human race will have become cyborgs (part human, part tech or machine). The allure will be immortality. Machines will make breakthroughs in medical technology, most of the human race will have more leisure time, and we shall think we have never had it better. The concern is that the machines will view us as an unpredictable and dangerous species. Machines will become self-conscious and have the capabilities to protect themselves. They might view us the same way we view harmful insects. Humans are a species that is unstable, creates wars, has weapons to wipe out the world twice over, and makes computer viruses. Artificial intelligence is becoming more and more capable, and we are adopting it as quickly as it appears. A pacemaker operation is quite routine, but it uses sensors to regulate our heart.
interaction.[2] Mimicry of androids can dissociate from knowledge of artificiality and experienced emotional unease. The mechanisms of imitation inform creation of future robots that effectively build rapport and engagement with their human users. A 2009 experiment showed that robots can develop the ability to lie to each other. Run at the Laboratory of Intelligent Systems in the Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale of Lausanne, Switzerland, the experiment had robots designed to cooperate in finding beneficial resources like energy and avoiding the hazardous ones.[3] Shockingly, the robots learned to lie to each other in an attempt to hoard the beneficial resources for themselves. The implication is that they are also learning self-preservation, whether or not they are conscious is a moot point. So far, the research has more application in explaining the evolution of behaviours in the natural world than in developing new programming for robots. However, if we think that we are one step closer to trusting robots, then we are probably the sort who is attracted to the blue light.
Shasanka Shekhar Panda, Meely Panda1, Rashmi Ranjan Das2, Pankaj Kumar Mohanty3 Department of Pediatric Surgery, All India Institute of Medical Sciences, New Delhi, 1Department of Community Medicine, Pandit Bhagwat Dayal Sharma Post Graduate Institute of Medical Sciences, Rohtak, Haryana, 2Department of Pediatrics, All India Institute of Medical Sciences, Bhubaneswar, Odisha, 3Department of Neonatology, Manipal Hospital, Bangalore, Karnataka, India. Address for Correspondence: Dr. Shasanka Shekhar Panda, Department of Paediatric Surgery, All India Institute of Medical Sciences, New Delhi - 110 029, India. E-mail: [email protected]
REFERENCES 1.
2.
3.
Del Monte LA. The Artificial Intelligence Revolution: Will Artificial Intelligence Serve Us Or Replace Us? 1st ed. Kindle edition. Louis A. Del Monte, United States of America, Library of Congress Control Number: 2013919721; 2013. Hofree G, Ruvolo P, Bartlett MS, Winkielman P. Bridging the mechanical and the human mind: Spontaneous mimicry of a physically present android. PLoS One 2014;9:e99934. Fox S. Evolving robots learn to lie to each other. Popular Science Magazine; posted 18th August, 2009. http://www.popsci.com
Spontaneous mimicry depends on the salience of humanlike features highlighted by face-to-face contact, emphasizing the role of presence in human-robot
Journal of Minimal Access Surgery | January-March 2015 | Volume 11 | Issue 1
Access this article online Quick Response Code:
Website: www.journalofmas.com
DOI: 10.4103/0972-9941.147726
111
Copyright of Journal of Minimal Access Surgery is the property of Medknow Publications & Media Pvt. Ltd. and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use.
