THOUGHT EXPERIMENT
The BIG question inside research into A.I.
(artificial intelligence) is whether the state-of-the-art program
LaMDA is
an Elvis impersonation
or is Elvis himself? (Language Model for Dialogue Applications)
To me, the more important question rests in the verb "IS".
What do we really mean by using the word "IS"?
Stay with me just one step further, okay?
Isn't this the exact same situation as the social question grappling with WHAT IS A WOMAN?
Definitions can both clarify and obscure simultaneously.
Public identity, private identity, biological identity, legal identity each matter differently in context.
EXAMPLE
A song is playing on the radio: "Ya ain't nuthin' but a Hound Dog"
and somebody asks: "Is that Elvis?"
How are you able to answer?
Is it merely a case of "It sounds like him - so it IS him?"
We see a photo of an Elvis impersonator and we're asked,
"Is it Elvis?" Well, it sure does look like him.
If I may say so: it matters how we answer.
Do you know what "personation is?"
"Personation (rather than impersonation) is a primarily-legal term, meaning 'to assume the identity of another person with the intent to deceive. It is often used for the kind of voter fraud where an individual votes in an election, whilst pretending to be a different elector."
Let's walk up to the person and ask them what their intention is, shall we?
Question: Hey - who are you?
Answer: I am Elvis Presley
Well, that didn't help - did it?
Question: Are you a Man or a Woman?
Answer: (the person replies) Whichever they say is their intention to be (or not) who they say they are.
Are we getting closer to the truth here?
If a person states their INTENTION to be or not to be somebody or something ...
Where does this leave us in our search for Elvis?
Does the estate and finances of Elvis go to any impersonator who claimed to be the King of Rock n Roll?
For sentience in A.I. or
in determining gender?
Does the estate and finances of Elvis go to any impersonator who claimed to be the King of Rock n Roll?
For sentience in A.I. or
in determining gender?
Do we take A.I. at its word?
Do we take Elvis impersonator at his word?
Do we take Man/Woman at his/her word?
IT MAKES IT A DIFFERENCE only when the difference is a matter of genuine IDENTITY.
Identity is a precious thing.
A sane person faces a jury with a different liability than an insane person for a very good reason:
INTENTION carries personal responsibility.
INTENTION carries personal responsibility.
Perhaps the only way out of our confusion is toward determining
the SANITY of the A.I., the Elvis impersonator, the Man/Woman, eh?
Good Luck with that!
It is all the exact same question but in different forms, isn't it?
It comes down to WHAT IS AT STAKE?
Should it matter when we vote if we say we are another person?
Yes. What is at stake is a fair election.
Should it matter if we claim property, privileges, or rights if we are who we SAY we are?
Yes. Obviously.
Why are we all grappling with questions of IS-ness, identity,
gender, sentience right now?
Because humanity has come this far by disambiguation of everything by taxonomy, category, definition, precision, scientific standardization, and ultimately TRUTH ITSELF is at stake.
By ignoring the stakes and politicizing A.I. we are in grave danger
of losing humanity to a boomerang of chaotic disintegration and the loss of what it means to be SANE.
That's my opinion and your mileage may vary.
Which is it - COMEDY or TRAGEDY? It matters because
we will end up laughing or crying at the end.
Unless you are a person who cries at comedy
and laughs at tragedy. Then, you have way greater
problems to grapple with ...
