The Two Sides of A.I.
posted by Brianna Hopper | April 23, 2024 | In OpinionIn the 1950s, the development of artificial intelligence was partly made possible by American mathematician Claude Shannon. Shannon had created a robotic machine in which he dubbed ‘Theseus.’ The machine was a robotic mouse which was placed inside of a maze to remember its path to get out with the usage of telephone relay switches. Through the experiment, the relay switches would switch from on to off. The mechanical rodent would turn 90 degrees clockwise and go forward as it had maneuvered its way through the maze recording the walls and exits upon its way. This was the first learning machine.
It wasn’t until six years later that the term “artificial intelligence” was introduced and coined by American computer scientist John McCarthy in 1956 at a workshop conference at the Dartmouth University in New Hampshire. McCarthy’s definition of artificial intelligence included machines that could engage in “perceptual learning, memory organization and critical reasoning,” according to the Council of Europe’s History of Artificial Intelligence.
By the ‘90s and into the 2000s, artificial intelligence had begun to expand, from the evolution of cell phones becoming much easier to carry going from the chunky brick like cellphones to the modern age sleek and pocket-sized we see today. Artificial intelligence has brought about evolution not only in science, but in healthcare, manufacturing, robotics, transportation and so much more.
Artificial intelligence has pushed society forward, but there are some downsides to artificial intelligence, which have been extremely detrimental to others. The idea in which a computer can copy an individual’s voice whether that person is still alive or not, to make imagery of a person with and or without their knowledge is a pretty unnerving thought. One may not think too much about it because artificial intelligence is open for anyone’s usage, who knows what type of person could use that for their own nefarious purposes?
Especially worrying is the growing usage of deep fakes to make and distribute explicit sexual content using the likeness of individuals and celebrities without their knowledge nor their consent. It’s gotten to the point where an image created using artificial intelligence is difficult to tell from the original.
Artificial intelligence has become more frequent in the twenty-first century that companies now use models created from artificial intelligence to sell products from makeup to hair care products.
It’s terrifying that these things made out to help society can be so detrimental and dangerous as well.
Photo courtesy of Richard Patterson
Leave a Reply
You must be logged in to post a comment.