> ----- Original Message ----- > From: "Chris Campbell" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> > To: [email protected] > Subject: Re: Sentient artificial life forms [was-Re: [gundam] (OT)Matrix > Revelations] > Date: Thu, 15 Jun 2006 15:05:28 -0600 (GMT-06:00) > > > -----Original Message----- > > From: Richard Ramos <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> > > To be human, to be alive again, to become fully human...the idea > > that something or someone not human would embrace humanity is a > > powerful archetype. > > It's pervasive, at least. But it bugs me on a fundamental level > because it assumes that being human is really great and being > anything else isn't, and that doesn't strike me as a very > reasonable (or even plausible) perspective for a machine to have. I > like the idea of AIs who love humanity, and who even find us > fascinating (since our perspective on things is so necessarily > different from theirs), but who are still fundamentally okay with > who they are -- machines, that is, just like the Tachikomas. It's a > balancing act, I suppose, but they see much more "alive" to me -- > and, paradoxically, much more mechanical -- than most any other AI > I've ever encountered, no matter the medium.
I suspect that part of it is because the Tachikomas have an element of humanity that many fictional AIs don't. The Tachikomas clearly display emotions - particularly curiosity and fear. In many cases, AIs attempting to become 'human' are focused on a perceived lack of emotion (i.e. Data). The ability for a human to experience strong emotions, as opposed to relying on pure logic, is seen as the central dividing line. But that's not an issue with the Tachikomas, who often seem somewhat like mischievious children (which is appropriate as they're not very old and still learning about the world around them). junior -- _______________________________________________ Search for businesses by name, location, or phone number. -Lycos Yellow Pages http://r.lycos.com/r/yp_emailfooter/http://yellowpages.lycos.com/default.asp?SRC=lycos10 -------------------------------------------------- The Gundam Mailing List MK-II [email protected] Archives: http://www.gundam.com/gml Help: Email [EMAIL PROTECTED] with this in the BODY: help list
