The 1968 release of Stanley Kubrick and Arthur C. Clarke's groundbreaking film, "2001: A Space Odyssey" introduced millions of moviegoers to the relatively new concept of Artificial Intelligence (A.I.). The HAL 9000, the space ship's on-board computer, could think for itself, speak for itself, even act in self-defense. With its chillingly calm voice and red, all-seeing eye, HAL at once embodied our deepest fears about and greatest hopes for technology. Intelligent machines might help us reach the stars - or else they might eclipse us, and render our humanity irrelevant.
Either way, the year 2001 has come and gone, and your desktop computer - impressive tool that it is - is hardly cause for philosophical meditation on what it means to be human. Where are the HAL 9000's and C3PO's science fiction promised us?
Either way, the year 2001 has come and gone, and your desktop computer - impressive tool that it is - is hardly cause for philosophical meditation on what it means to be human. Where are the HAL 9000's and C3PO's science fiction promised us?