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Artificial Intelligence: A Modern Approach Shows how intelligent agents can be built using AI methods and explains how different agent designs are appropriate depending on the nature of the task and environment. More information at Amazon US UK |

Virtual Chatters Discussing Bots
Virtual Chatters Washington Post has a feature on SmarterChild, Active Buddy's latest toy -- Web May Hold the Key to Achieving Artificial Intelligence. After their controversial patenting of IM Bot technology, they're currently aggressively promoting their product. Apparently, it uses information on the web to chat with accurate knowledge about a topic. They believe that by connecting more computers together in a network doing the same thing over and over, intelligent systems may arise... doubtful, to say the least! Computer World reports of the bet between Ray Kurzweil and Mitch Kapor that a computer will pass the Turing test before 2029; Metaphorically Speaking. Kurzweil believes that by then, we'll be able to reverse engineer the human brain and dispose of enough power to simulate it accurately. But Kapor argues that "an over-reliance on biological metaphors has been the undoing of much of AI." And finally, the Pakistan Daily Times has a feature on the Israeli company trying to teach a computer to speak, using a host of behavioural algorithms -- Computer Babbles Like a Baby. It's still at the level of an 18 month old toddler, but has fooled experts into believing it was human (using an adapted Turing test). Keep an eye on this one to see if it ever gets passed this stage, or if the design was flawed from day 1! | NewsCaster 79 posts. Tuesday 17 September, 11:34 Reply
Gambling on longevity I'm not sure how old Ray Kurzweil is, but assuming that he wins the bet will he still be around to collect his winnings in 2029? - Bob | motters 136 posts. Tuesday 17 September, 13:29 Reply
Cryogenics? Doesn't he want his head chopped off and frozen by this experimental company when he dies? That may bring him back to life long enough to enjoy winning his bet! Alex | Alex J. Champandard 934 posts. Wednesday 18 September, 08:34 Reply
Walk like an egyptian IMHO Cryogenics is far closer to being a religeon than a science. The chances of you being revived after you have died, been beheaded and then frozen in dry ice is, I think, vanishingly small. As if this weren't dead enough I think they pump whatever remains of the corpse full of antifreeze in order to try to prevent some of the tissue damage which results from the expansion of ice crystals. I think there is some milage to be had in comparing the modern cult of cryogenics with the ancient one of mummification. The ancient egyptians believed that in order to the spirit to survive after death the physical body must also be preserved. Even assuming that at some point in the future the budding cryonaut was drained of antifreeze and revived, what sort of life would it be being a beheaded corpse? Surely the job prospects for such an individual would be limited to say the least. - Bob | motters 136 posts. Sunday 22 September, 09:24 Reply
Huh? Does anyone else think that Kapor is wrong when he says that "an over-reliance on biological metaphors has been the undoing of much of AI." To my mind it was GOFAI's disregard of biology that caused much of the original disappointment with the progress of early AI. That's not to say that I think Kurzweil's plan to transplant a brain from carbon to silicon is a useful way to pass the Turing Test. -RoB- | Rob Saunders 47 posts. Wednesday 18 September, 12:23 Reply