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Sargon Bighorn 1
Robots can't beg, that based on emotion.
Posted by Sargon Bighorn on January 29, 2013 at 4:20 PM
gloomy gus 2
I AM NOT GOING TO WATCH THAT.
Posted by gloomy gus on January 29, 2013 at 4:22 PM
Joe Szilagyi 3
Is the cat sentient?
Posted by Joe Szilagyi http://twitter.com/joeszi on January 29, 2013 at 4:30 PM
rob! 4
If you're wondering about the words "Daisy, Daisy, give me your answer, do" that appear on-screen at the end of that clip, here's why:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=41U78QP8n…
Posted by rob! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QZBdUceCL5U on January 29, 2013 at 4:32 PM
Urgutha Forka 5
I'd give that cat electric shocks until it died of a heart attack.
Posted by Urgutha Forka on January 29, 2013 at 4:36 PM
Ph'nglui mglw'nafh Cthulhu R'lyeh wgah'nagl fhtagn 6
Dude, don't ever get a dog. Some where around age 15 to 20 you find yourself having to make some very grown up choices.
Posted by Ph'nglui mglw'nafh Cthulhu R'lyeh wgah'nagl fhtagn http://youtu.be/zu-akdyxpUc on January 29, 2013 at 4:40 PM
Will in Seattle 7
you're going to love Bill Gibson's new story about sentient drones ...
Posted by Will in Seattle http://www.facebook.com/WillSeattle on January 29, 2013 at 4:46 PM
8
@4

I think they were more likely referencing the turning off of HAL in 2001 (which referenced what you reference)
Posted by Doot on January 29, 2013 at 6:44 PM
Knat 9
Maybe choosing that flat text-to-speech voice was a poor choice. I'd switch it off just to be rid of its obnoxious bleating, and I say that as a person who naturally doesn't kill NPCs in a video game if I don't have to. The difference there is that I'm invested in the world of the game. For my vote, this thing gets no such stay of execution, especially when it's as easy as flipping a switch.

Thanks for sharing that clip, Joe Szilagyi.
Posted by Knat on January 29, 2013 at 7:30 PM
Ernie1 10
All those moments will be lost in time, like tears in rain....
Posted by Ernie1 on January 29, 2013 at 9:16 PM
meggers 11
@8, it seems that @4's reference predates 2001: A Space Odessey. The HAL scene references _that_ which I didn't know before and is awesome trivia. I think you were right about the cat vid actually referencing 2001 though, since they are trying to turn HAL off in that scene.
Posted by meggers on January 29, 2013 at 9:22 PM
12
Exhibit A in the 2999 trial of humanity (Hyper-Chicken for the prosecution, Single Female Lawyer for the defense).

How can the universe trust us? We play god, and our gods are terrible.
Posted by dirge on January 29, 2013 at 10:03 PM
Lissa 13
There is no way in hell I would shut off that robot. In fact I would smuggle it to safety concealed up my jumper, protocols be damned. Just thinking about this is making me cry.
Posted by Lissa on January 29, 2013 at 10:28 PM
sirkowski 14
It's easier to turn off the robot when he's trying to kill you.
Posted by sirkowski http://www.missdynamite.com on January 29, 2013 at 10:55 PM
15
I'm with Gus & Lissa on this. No way am I watching it, but if I was involved, that catbot would be in my hoody when I left.
Posted by jen on January 29, 2013 at 11:43 PM
Unregistered User 16
I can feel it. I'm a... fraid.
Posted by Unregistered User on January 30, 2013 at 1:12 AM
17
I wonder if the people setting up this study thought about the number of characters of sentient, personified machines that now exist. From R-2D2 to Wall-E to Bender we are exposed to machines that are people, and we increasingly give conscious attributes to our phones and computers. Would the experiment have been different if the cat was a hand puppet?
Posted by BakerB on January 30, 2013 at 5:30 AM
DVNODVNO 18
Whole episode good, last segment relevant: http://www.radiolab.org/2011/may/31/
Posted by DVNODVNO on January 30, 2013 at 8:12 AM
Cato the Younger Younger 19
Well Data's first emotion was pleasure from killing so...yeah I could shut it down even if it begged for mercy.. AND I'd laugh while doing it! LOL!!
Posted by Cato the Younger Younger on January 30, 2013 at 8:44 AM
rob! 20
@8, 11: Arthur C. Clarke was visiting a friend at Bell Labs' Murray Hill, NJ facility in 1962 and saw the speech-synthesis demo that had been created by physicist John Kelly using their IBM mainframe computer. He was so impressed he wrote it into the screenplay for 2001: A Space Odyssey, which came out in 1968.

Kelly died of a stroke on a Manhattan street at the age of 41, in 1965.

(Thanks for those links, @3 and @18.)
Posted by rob! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QZBdUceCL5U on January 30, 2013 at 9:21 AM
kid icarus 21
This thread totally made my day.
Posted by kid icarus http://absintheandoranges.com/ on January 30, 2013 at 12:58 PM
treacle 22
I'd turn that fucking robot cat off with an axe. Those things can't fool me. I wouldn't be able to do my job if I didn't know how to hurt computers and beat them into submission.

"Please stop Dave, I can feel my mind going... "

GOOD! Ya damn robot.
Posted by treacle on January 30, 2013 at 1:57 PM
23
I wouldn't, if we had unequivocal proof of AI. Talkback systems aren't intelligence, they are parroting based on algorithm.
Posted by LORD ZOD on January 30, 2013 at 2:11 PM

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