22 - What are intelligence? And why?

Summary:

Davis begins this rather informative paper by explaining the title (English use of plural verbs) and how there are many different thoughts of what "are" intelligence. He explains the different views of reasoning, including mathematical, psychological, biological, statistical, and economical. He then goes on to explain different views of how intelligence has evolved and why it has evolved, using various views on early humans hunting skills, socializing skills, etc. The next section discusses less "human" variations on intelligence, showing different animals that have proven to be much more intelligent than most of their kind (or at least a human perception of their kind).

Discussion:

While this paper has little to do with sketch recognition, it is a very interesting read. Davis provides a great deal of information while keeping a neutral stance. When questioned in an interview, he specifically tried not to single any idea out as the best, worst, or even most in need of further consideration.

What I like about this paper is that it explains that if humans ever expect to develop a "strong AI" machine, we cannot continue to focus on things like rational, statistical logic. Intelligence is a product of evolution, shown by the lack of symmetry in the human brain, and a slow and steady process at that. If human scientists intend to create a human-like computer brain, they are going to have to cover thousands and thousands of years worth of history, let alone what little we know of before history was written.

Personally, I didn't believe that a true "strong AI" unit would ever be produced. We will have computers that think 1000 times faster and more efficient than humans, be able to make decisions in practically any situation, and perhaps even be superior to humans in almost every way, but it will never be able to emulate the random quirks that exist in every human. What I was intrigued and somewhat baffled by, however, is Davis' inclusion of "biology" in the reasoning list. I think this will be the defining step in AI, and the major hurdle and seemingly unscale-able wall that seperates "weak AI" from the real "strong AI". This will be the small flickers of random and illogical thought that happen to humans, the unexplainable phenomenon that separate humans and machines at the present.