Dichotomy of human brain and artificial intelligence is both a popular Sci-Fi topic and a serious subject for research. I remember watching Matrix sequel and thinking “50 more years and we may as well end up there, sitting like stupid eggs in a basket and dreaming life. Machines will rule the world.” It seems though that human mind is much more complex than any machine invented so far.
Hans Moravec in his article When will computer hardware match the human brain? compares processing and memory capacity of the artificial intellect and the human brain. Based on technological trends of the last century he predicts that computers that match general intellectual performance of the human brain will be available and cheap in the 2020s. For now home computer’s intelligence matches a spider’s one, and Deep Blue Chess machine has as many MIPS (million instructions per second) as a mouse.
However, the point of this week’s material was that computers are unable of “emotional thought” which plays a crucial role in human processing and encoding of the information. The importance of imagery and emotions in cognitive processes are stressed in the article We Feel, Therefore We Learn: The Relevance of Affective and Social Neuroscience to Education by Mary Helen Immordino-Yang and Antonio Damasio. When it comes to learning many teachers fail to recognize that humans are social and emotional creatures and the contributors present the evidence of emotion playing a crucial role in many cognitive processes. Further in the article it runs as “hidden emotional processes underlie our apparently rational realworld decision making and learning”. As a conclusion, the contributors express their hope that better understanding of neurobiological underpinning of cognition will provide a basis for innovation in the design of learning environments.
Personally, I enjoy technology to the fullest. And I don’t believe in Terminator-like possibilities. Machines are ever destined to remain tools, with higher MIPS than me probably, but never as creative, adaptable and resourceful.
References: Moravec, Hans (1998). "When will computer hardware match the human brain?". Journal of Evolution and Technology 1.
Immordino-Yang, M.H., & Damasio, A.R. (2007). We feel, therefore we learn: The relevance of affective and social neuroscience to education. Mind, Brain and Education, 1(1), 3-10
