*From:* Ben Goertzel <[email protected]> > *Sent:* Monday, 08 March 2021 23:39 > *To:* AGI <[email protected]> > *Subject:* Re: [agi] Patterns of Cognition > > > > > Please tell me how you know whether the robot is conscious or not. > > I connect my brain to its brain with a "wire" of variable bandwidth > and see what it feels like to sense myself fusing with it > > Then I carry out the same experiment with another human, a dog, a > mushroom, a toaster, a computer running Microsoft Access, and Donald > Trump... and compare... > > ben >
So let's try it. If I randomly connect my neurons to the neurons in a dog's brain, then I get a lot of novel sensations that just confuse me. After years of experiments I learn their meanings. When I taste metal, it means the dog is scratching it's left ear, and so on. Eventually our minds work as one. It's as if I have two bodies, one human and one dog. It doesn't tell me if the dog is conscious because it feels like there is only one consciousness connected to both bodies. I try the same experiment with a toaster, but there is not much to connect. I still feel human, except that I recall a childhood memory of my cat when the toast pops up. Anyway, a faster way to connect brains is through language and senses like vision and touch. I am connecting now to a computer in my hand. I don't get any sense that it is conscious. ------------------------------------------ Artificial General Intelligence List: AGI Permalink: https://agi.topicbox.com/groups/agi/Ta5ed5d0d0e4de96d-M1c2f3a87950377c7127458e6 Delivery options: https://agi.topicbox.com/groups/agi/subscription
