No, a fuzzy definition isn't pointless ... it's just fuzzy ...
If you can distinguish humans from thermostats by their DEGREE of intelligence, what's the problem if your definition says thermostats are SLIGHTLY intelligent Of course, there are going to be many interesting structures and dynamics that only characterize systems with intelligence above a certain level... ben g On 4/25/07, Richard Loosemore <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:
Benjamin Goertzel wrote: > > A thermostat is intelligent, in my view, it's just not **very** > intelligent... > > The functions a thermostat approximately maximizes are nowhere near as > complex > as the ones a human brain approximately maximizes... Now there is the problem. I am happy enough to agree that 'intelligence' is such a nebulous concept that there is no clear dividing line between the intelligence of a human and other kinds of intelligence. But if you allow this fact to be used to justify a "joke" definition that includes thermostats, Furbys and every trivial optimization program in the universe, then as I said at the beginning of this thread, such a definition would be pointless. That definition would be as practical and useful to the AGI building community as the Sirius Cybernetics Corporation's definition of an AGI as "Your Plastic Pal Who's Fun To Be With." Richard Loosemore. > > > > What's wrong with it is that this definition is so broad that it can > make a thermostat look like it is an intelligent system. > > Any definition that classifies thermostats as 'intelligent' is broken. > > Anyone can come up with a definition of intelligence that accidentally > encompasses most of the universe, as well as the real intelligences. > > The trick is to find a non-circular definition that leaves out the > thermostats, cuddly toys, Conway's Game of Life and the little > program I > once wrote in Fortran that printed out HAPPY BIRTHDAY. > > Very old argument. > > > Richard Loosemore. ----- This list is sponsored by AGIRI: http://www.agiri.org/email To unsubscribe or change your options, please go to: http://v2.listbox.com/member/?&;
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