be appreciably different from a conversation on this forum? Heck, if the thing can pun, the greatest majority of us would swear up and down it's a flesh-n-blood UFie! And, if we were to find out it is a machine-based intelligence, I daresay it would find itself accepted all the more, here, for its unique viewpoint and differences.
And let us consider the case of humans accepting other humans as equals: our species has a long history of prejudice and inequity against creatures more like ourselves than different, and vastly more like ourselves than our pets whom we accept as "part of the family." We have, historically, denied other humans' intelligence and dignity based on such superficial differences as skin tone, language, or religion, and those creatures whom we've denied were creatures with whom we could interbreed. Yet, at the same time, we have long ascribed intelligence to cats, dogs, horses, etc.--creatures quite unlike ourselves, really. It seems to me that seriously weakens the requirement that we see a similarity in physical form with an intelligent being before we are willing to accept it as intelligent.
We are more willing to accept as intelligent that which responds to our words, and behaves as if it has intelligence. The greater the degree of self-awareness exhibited, and the more easily understood it is for us (the more it responds to our own language, and even dialect), the more willing we are to ascribe intelligence to it. |
