This week’s reading was a concept that I’d assumed belonged to the movies, simply science fiction— which is why it was a topic both exciting and difficult to wrap my head around. The idea of Nano-Bio-Info-Cogno (NBIC) convergence focuses on the categorisation of three layers of reality: social, psychological, and material, and proposes the union between material levels of reality and cognitive levels of human experience. “Where one reality touches another, interacts with another – and therefore transforms another – we find convergence taking place.” (Lemos, 2008)
We then explore ideas of integrating AI into neural networks of the human brain, hence introducing the field of neurotechnology (Lemos, 2008). This would allow the hybridisation of matter and mind—nanotechnology that can directly interfere with the working of the human mind. While this is an incredible breakthrough in several fields, it also raises several questions about safety, privacy and ethics. Alternatively, ideas surrounding the reverse engineering of the human brain in order to allow AI to mimic human qualities are being widely speculated. While this is entirely possible and already being implemented, man has still not found a way to enable consciousness within AI. While there are many who believe that this is achievable, personally I don’t think AI can be developed after a certain stage to the point where they can achieve consciousness upto the level of that of human beings. Maybe I don’t know enough to make an informed opinion, but from what I do, I think they can reach a stage where the can imitate consciousness—but not actually embody it.
Bibliography
Lemos, R., 2008. Metanexus. [Online]
image- dribbble. G, Lorena. [image] available at: https://dribbble.com/shots/7041936-Weaving-my-allegorical-elegy-part-I
Accessed: 20 November 2020
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