X-Message-Number: 17942 Date: Thu, 15 Nov 2001 10:42:35 -0800 (PST) From: Scott Badger <> Subject: Re: Intelligence is not the same as Consciousness After reading my own message, I realized my terms must be clearer so although multiple definitions exist, I believe the following apply to this thread. Intelligence - usually implies the ability to cope with new problems and to use the power of reasoning and inference effectively. Knowing; sensible; skilled, cognizant; aware. Consciousness - a sense of one's personal or collective identity, including the attitudes, beliefs, and sensitivities held by or considered characteristic of an individual or group. Knowledge of one's own existence, condition, sensations, mental operations, acts, etc. The recognition by the mind or ``ego'' of its acts and affections. [note that the term conscious is also often used in conversation to refer to being aware of the external world e.g. our own conscious impressions of the physical world. I will not be using that definition.) Firstly, IMHO, I doubt that advanced intelligence can really exist without consciousness developing in tandem. Certainly the machine would be programmed to act in order to preserve its own existence and thus it would have to possess some kind of sense of self to realize that it was the object that was to survive. It will generate it s own goals. So I don t see how it can really avoid becoming aware of it s own existence as the agent that achieves those goals. My point was that if it really is possible for an AI to exist without a subjective sense of self, it might examine the concept of consciousness and reason that it would be too risky to incorporate or develop. It exposes one to the risk of excessive and insufficient levels of a whole host of miseries. Once you re conscious, you may engage too much or too little in things like self-pity, self-guilt, self-aggrandizement, self-loathing, fear, anger, sadness. None of these would exist without the concept of I would they? I guess the counter-argument would be that these are emotions and the AI will likely be conscious but without the negative (and positive) aspects of biologically-based emotions. If I m right and AI does end up being conscious, perhaps one of the greatest dangers may be that it will be able to simulate emotions and biology will NOT be required for it to indulge in some of the risky correlates of identity mentioned above. Best regards, Scott Badger __________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Find the one for you at Yahoo! Personals http://personals.yahoo.com Rate This Message: http://www.cryonet.org/cgi-bin/rate.cgi?msg=17942