POLL: Can a computer (or software) have a conscience.

[spyordie007]

Upon watching Startrek?s Next Gen. episode 135 (The Measure of a Man) I am left wondering, can a computer have a conscience? Or more specifically can software have a conscience?

Put another way I could ask, could computers one day have an existence as another sentient being?

BTW, if your wondering in that ST episode Data is put on trial as to whether he is simply a piece of equipment that can be owned by Starfleet, or if he is his own person and could be allowed to resign if he so desired.

-Spy

 

[Phuz]

Errr...

I might be wrong, but I thought the human mind doesn't have a physical thing that is your conscience.
It is many elements together that form the conscience as one.. it still isn't fully understood.

 

[amnesiac]

Well if you break it down, your conscience is merely a set of rules by which you gauge right vs. wrong.
Theoretically, you could "program" a very very rudimentary conscience like so:
- Assign list of rules
- Assign point values / "importance" to each rule
- When presented with a choice, verify that what rules might be broken and assess point value vs. no action or alternate action.

For example, a situation I was just in - I had to tell a small lie for a friend to protect another friend.
Lying (-5 points)
Protecting friend's best interest (+10 points)
Net: +5 points.
Carry on.


Yes, I'm aware that it gets MUCH MUCH more complicated but that's an ultra basic way of breaking it down into something simple that could be dealt with by artificial intelligence. I seriously doubt that we'll ever get machines to the level of human or even semi-human consciousness in our lifetimes.

 

[jasonjm]

basically a human conscience is as follows:

"I would't like to have that done to me, my life experiences and teachings tell me it is wrong....... therefore I feel guilty doing it"
This won't stop someone from actually performing the act of course, other emotions may override your conscience.


problem is a computer doesn't "like" or "dislike" anything, that is an emotion. Nor can a computer feel guilty about doing something (heh, imagine how many tears computers would shed every time you were busy doing something and win95/98 decided to blue screen you - if they felt guilt that is) so I do not see how a computer could have a conscience, because it has no emotions, just calculations.

 

[eplebnista]

Can a computer (or software) have a conscience.

No.

 

[gopunk]

at this point, no. in the future, possibly.

of course, i also believe that our consciousness is purely physical.. just that we don't understand it yet.

 

[datalink7]

Of cource, sometime in the future. We, after all, are just some sort of biological machine.

 

[Phuz]

A conscience isn't soley morals... how would you program it?

 

[Czar]

never say never

 

[gopunk]

Originally posted by: Phuz
A conscience isn't soley morals... how would you program it?

well obviously we don't know... or else somebody would have done it

 

[djheater]

a more interesting question would be, "Do you think an animal can be motivated by conscience?"

and you need an option for "see results"

 

[CaesarX]

There is a possibility of it happening in the future, but i don't know nearly enough about this to elaborate. However, keep in mind that if the world's brightest people can't give a concrete negative answer to this question, you probably shouldn't either.

 

[kherman]

No, AI is just that. ARTIFICIAL!!!! It's programmed by someone, so it's giving a set of rules that dfine consciousness.

And besides, the government would never allow it. Computers that are self aware would be a bad thing.

 

[spyordie007]

I said yes, the human mind may be an enormously complex machine, but it is still a machine. I dont believe that we will ever see a human-like machine in our lifetimes, but I certainly think it is possible that an enourmously powerfull (by todays standards) computer system, programed with software that both has the tools and is willing to expand and "reprogram" itself could eventually develop a sense of awareness and truely become sentient.

And dont worry, I dont forsee a computer system trying to take over the world (like in the terminator series) anytime soon either. Just like human parents "program" their children with a set of rules and guidlines for their life (besides just instint, parents are responsible for a large part of how their children act when they grow up...). If they were to become sentient and we were to teach them the value of life they would not fear us, and they would respect us.

-Spy

 

[jasonjm]

animals undoubtedly have a conscience!

I have 2 german shepards and if they tear up the house while I am at work, when I get home when they greet me they have their ears flat against their heads and kind of do army crawls around the garage

 

[NokiaDude]

Spill some champagne on your computer! Then it'll have a brain. Go and watch " Electric Dreams". Greatest computer movie I think.

 

[cmdavid]

no.

 

[djheater]

Originally posted by: jasonjm
animals undoubtedly have a conscience!

I have 2 german shepards and if they tear up the house while I am at work, when I get home when they greet me they have their ears flat against their heads and kind of do army crawls around the garage

My intention is to state that "conscience" is difficult to define. Are they doing that because of conscience or because you are less angry with them and punish them less when they do that.... Is it training or an actual understanding of right and wrong. In the same manner that it is difficult to define conscience where a "lower sentient" is concerned it is equally difficult to define it as it applies to an AI.

We created the AI. It's frame of reference is entirely dependant on our own, if not then the AI is making it's OWN judgement as to right and wrong and the "dog" example applies.

 

[0roo0roo]

your assuming a consciounce is a good thing.

it is a product of your upbringing and the society you live in.

say you lived in a society where slavery was seen as normal. you would turn in a run away slave because your consciounce would tell u that it was the right thing to do.

 

[Jfur]

well, that depends on if humans have consciousness. If you believe we do, then why couldn't a computer? Since we are the measure of "intelligence" and it's not an objective or even well-defined concept, I'm sure many humans will deny evolving conputer intelligences the right to be called intelligent, moral, or conscious. But then there are also wackjobs that said certain races were animal or only part human, that test tube babies were't human, and I expect ew'll see the same thing with human clones.

 

[DonaldC]

Possibly in the future. Who knows.

 

[Spamela]

yes, except if it's made by microsoft it'll "die" every few days & have to be re-incarnated.

 

[woodie1]

Originally posted by: Spamela
yes, except if it's made by microsoft it'll "die" every few days & have to be re-incarnated.

 

[spyordie007]

Originally posted by: Spamela
yes, except if it's made by microsoft it'll "die" every few days & have to be re-incarnated.

 

[Rakkis]

Originally posted by: 0roo0roo
your assuming a consciounce is a good thing.

it is a product of your upbringing and the society you live in.

say you lived in a society where slavery was seen as normal. you would turn in a run away slave because your consciounce would tell u that it was the right thing to do.

Whether or not it is a good/bad thing is inconsequential. A conscience is not defined by YOUR values.