X-Message-Number: 16955
From: "Robert Moore" <>
References: <>
Subject: Off topic: Love
Date: Tue, 10 Jul 2001 22:26:19 -0700

I'm with you Ed:  Love is programmed into us by evolutionary forces and
motivates us to reproduce and nuture our DNA and related DNA.  We are
controlled by our instincts to a very high degree.  Love feels special
because it needs to feel special to motivate us.

To get a robot to show human-like love, I speculate that you would need
program similar reactions, impulses, urges, and feedback loops to what we
humans have, and so the robot would "feel" similar to what we feel.

> My wife and I recently saw the movie 'AI' and came out with opposing
feelings
> on the following premise:  I believe that the 'love chip' implanted in the
11
> year-looking robot is no different qualitatively than the evolutionary
'love
> chip', based on hormones, or whatever, that we humans have had since the
dawn
> of humanity.  My wife, however, feels that robots as such can never
> experience  or feel true love,  that any so-called love chip would be like
> rote, or pure mimicry of love, not the real thing. Hence, love cannot be
> programmed.  (Incidentally, I am sure that the vast majority of people
would
> side more with my wife's premise than my own, but hey, thats ok, its what
> makes life discussions exciting!)
>
> Therefore, I would be deeply interested in your responses to both sides of
> the argument.
>
> On another note, my wife is aware of the 'melding' of robotics (AI) and
> humans, and to paraphrase Kurzweil, that within 30+ years (or take how
many
> years in the future you desire) , the merging of AI (robotic technology)
and
> organic intelligence will eventually make 'us' indistinguishable from
'them'.
>  Her response is that such entities can never be truly human, nor  true
> progenitors of humankind as they would lack a soul.  Furthermore, as in a
> love chip, a 'soul chip' would be an oxymoron.  However smart, cute, even
> 'passionate' we can fabricate artificial intelligences, no matter how
> intellectually augmented they become, humans alone would hold the monopoly
on
> real passion, real spirit, and the sole proprietor of a soul, or the
essence
> of humanity.
>
> Obviously, no one  can respond with assurety either way on these
metaphysical
> subjects, but regardless, I am interested in the opinions of others in
this
> fine newsgroup.
>
> Thanks,
>
> Dr. Ed Reifman

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