Game over

摘要

Gamers beware, your ultimate adversary has been born. Or so says John Taylor, a professor of mathematics at King's College London. He is growing an advanced artificial intelligence that he claims will give the baddies brains to rival your own. When powering your own trusty sidekick, however, its cool thinking will be indispensable. Taylor's progeny will be able to speak, build memories, learn your weaknesses and respond emotionally to events in the game. They will even become conscious, he says. According to Taylor, these are the first steps towards something very big in the world of artificial intelligence (AI). "We're trying to create something that can think," he says. It's a bold - many would say ridiculous - claim. Researchers from a range of scientific disciplines have been trying to understand the roots of consciousness, intelligence, thought and emotion for decades, hoping to "grow" these attributes in a silicon mind. The fruits of their research are less than astounding.