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(written 2009)

"Artificial Intelligence (AI) is now advancing at such a rapid clip that it has the potential to transform our world in both exciting and disturbing ways. Computers have already been designed that are capable of driving cars, playing soccer, and finding and organizing information on the Web in ways that no human could. With each new gain in processing power, will scientists soon be able to create supercomputers that can read a newspaper with understanding, write a news story, create novels, or even formulate laws? And if machine intelligence advances beyond human intelligence, will we need to start talking about a computer's intentions?"
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx — J. Storrs Hall, PhD and author of Beyond AI

To date, this topic has proven to be the most difficult to research and write about for it encompasses spirituality, metaphysics and conspiracy. What you will read in this series may be hard to stomach 'cause you may think this is stuff you've seen in movies and are mere fantasy. On the contrary, overstand those movies aren't all make-believe; within the next 10-20 yearz, we will witness technological advances that may seem good on the surface, but have underlying tones that can lead to the extinction of the human species as we know it. This is a plea for help from the H.E.L.P. or Human Extinction Level Project.

Before the next century is over, humanz will no longer be the most intelligent type of entity on the planet... computerz will. What's more complex is that the definition of what is human will be put into question. As computerz receive more code advances to respond and interact with userz, it'll be so hard to tell the difference between the two (human and computer voices), they'll forget who (what) they're communicating with! And as humanz lose the inability to tell the difference, computerz will begin to feel and think they are in fact, human—actually better than human!

CAN MACHINES DEVELOP A CONSCIENCE?
con•science |'kän ch ns| — an inner feeling or voice viewed as acting as a guide to the rightness or wrongness of one's behavior.

Now, let's go back a lil'. If you were a 1970s baby, you can recall the kind of toyz we had. We started seein' the introduction of interactive toyz, where babydollz could walk, speak, eat, even do the #1 or urinate (although it was really water). The most fascinating thing was that they could talk. When first introduced, they'd have a drawstring; pull it and you'd hear 1 of several different statements like, "I love you!" or "I wanna play!" This seemed so extraordinary and harmless... little did we know where this road would lead.

As technology progressed, we started to see it manifest in the toy industry. Babydollz no longer had drawstringz, they'd talk when a part of their body was squeezed. They were able to say more thingz and could eventually speak without bein' touched; they were able to respond based on movement. Dam, soundz like an actual baby maturing, right?

So in comes the question... Can a baby-doll—which is a machine—develop a conscience? Before you say no, take this into account. The first dollz came equipped with a few responses with the pull of a string. The responses were in random order, so there had to be somethin' invented to make those random selectionz, and this is the genesis of the question just asked...

Todayz dollz have capabilities of speaking several hundred-to-thousandz of responses (I'm sure we'll soon have dollz that speak several languages as well). Computer chips are installed into these machines, serving as the 'brain' allowing them to make random movements and phrases to say.

You wouldn't think a toy that can only say 10 different thingz has a conscience, but it is somethin'—an inner voice, if you will—that's choosing what to say. Regardless, a toy with this little power of choice havin' a conscience is hard to accept 'cause its responses are limited to 10. But what if the doll now has the ability to choose from several hundred phrases? The technology behind this, although seeming to be following a numerically-coded pattern, allowz the doll to make its own choice. A pattern is only something that's done by habit.

For instance, by habit, upon rising in the morning, you have a ritual or pattern; you may wash your face first, brush your teeth second, comb your hair, get dressed—put your left sock on before your right, or when putting on your pants, put your left leg in first—etc, etc. This habit/pattern is no different than that doll. Your habitual choices conditioned your brain to do these thingz almost automatically.

Here en-lies the root of this discussion... Are computerz thinking, or are they just calculating? Even deeper, are we human beingz thinking or are we calculating?

You could definitely say most humanz are not thinking, operating on auto-pilot with their dailyz—get up, go to work, come home, go to sleep, get up... Many of us are so caught up in tryin' to make endz meet, we follow the same cyclical pattern that is tweaked only by overseerz of the system. This is nothin' but a pattern calculated and dictated by a system that pretty much prohibits free-style.

There's nothin' wrong with patternz, it just showz how one is able to be kept in control because the controller can predict the behavior; they know hedz is gonna spend money they don't have 'round christmas; even during an economic recession, they can count on hedz goin' to the movies each weekend during the summer creating multi-billion-dollar profits for the industry; the list goes on, and all this is predicated on behavior patternz.

The computer programmer is a creator of universes for which he alone is the lawgiver... No playwright, no stage director, no emperor, however powerful, has ever exercised such absolute authority to arrange a stage or a field of battle and to command such unswervingly dutiful actorz and troops.
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx — Joseph Weizenbaum

This quote made me think of the 2001 movie, 'Osmosis Jones' as well as my 'Microcozm of Macrocozm' series I wrote. I started to see myself and the world I live in as code, from a design-of-origin perspective. What if this world is part of a programmer that resides on a macro or larger/higher level? A programmer creates code and algorithmz giving components specific orderz and functionality. When a piece goes against the NATURE (meaning, the original intent of the algorithmic pattern or rhythm) of the code—like the historical nature of europeanz—a grafted code (ie, the Persianz, Greeks, Romanz, Stalin, Hitler, Illuminati, Boule', basically anything that goes against the natural balance of life) the code becomes corrupt. Chaos or inconsistencies in the flow of the code emerges; viruses form and spread throughout eventually destroying the original intent of the code. The 'programmer' which can be seen as the 'GOD' or creator of the code has 2 choices, script a code antidote or let the code play itself out, eventually destroying itself (as what's transpired in the fall of civilizationz like the KMTic Dynasties and the Roman empire). I'm led to believe the latter, for everything has its tyme and cycle. The identity of the programmer? ENERGY! Refer to my Video Article, 'The God Complex' on DGTv.

FROM PLAYTHINGZ TO REAL THINGZ
Back to the toyz. There are some toyz today that are totally interactive—meanin', you can have a conversation with 'em, like you sayin', "Good morning, how are you today" and it replies, "I am fine, how are you?" Does this machine have a conscience now??

This fascinates me 'cause I'm lookin' behind (or inside) this machine, to the core nucleus of its functionality... the computer chip that governz this apparatus; the components that first allow this machine to hear you and then respond. In order for it to hear you, it must have some kind of part to pick up soundwaves, distinctly cypher what's bein' said, then have with the appropriate response. This is a process we humanz instinctively make naturally when conversing with other humanz.

Now say this machine is a doll and its interacted with you long enough to know your patternz, and you theirz, to the point you have fluent conversationz. By then it won't be hard not to see this machine as one with a conscience. Communication has the ability to create a bond based on conversation alone.

As with any (human) relationship, you have your good and bad dayz. Even in the most fruitful of relationships, a pair will experience an argument or two. If not that, certainly mood changes occur. How would you handle a computer that wants to hear about your day as soon as you arrive home and you're not in the mood? Better yet, how will this computer react to your moodiness? As said before, if this machine knowz you well enough, it will be aware of your mood swingz. What would make you think it wouldn’t adopt them?

Now flip the script. What if you come home from a beautiful day at the plantation (job) and your computerz ignoring you? What if you need to use the computer to pay billz and it won't let you? I'm just talkin' about a computer; what if its a mobile machine aka a robot?

There are software engineering divisionz in companies like Honda and Toyota who'll start sellin' mobile robots in 2010 equipped to serve, clean, chauffeur and babysit. And you can rest assure, as technology advances, they’ll be able to serve in other roles like that of a companion. Crazy right? I guess as homosexualz fight to be able to marry, intermarriage with robots are around the corner!

Envision in the very near future, one havin' an actual argument or disagreement with a robot. As with any intimate relationship, emotionz run deep; and thanks to the robots ability to learn human patternz, it too can get "caught up". What if you decide you wanna "breakup" and get a new robot? How might this machine handle the emotion of bein' abandoned? Will it feel rage and possibly attack? Imagine the first hedz who get these robots, like the rich folk in Hell-y-wood—you know how long relationships last with them! What if one of ‘em gets pissed or bored (in the case of Hell-y-wood) of this machine so much that they wanted to terminate it? Now, we got a problem!

Any living thing—including anything that thinks it’s living—has an innate will to survive at all costs. If you were to hold your breath, your body wouldn't allow this but for so long. Eventually, you will desperately gasp for air. And although you may hold it long enough to even pass out, as soon as you lose consciousness, your body instantly beginz bringin' in air.

Now if this machine has convinced itself—largely in part to its belief that it’s human due to interactionz with humanz—it is human enough to have a will to live, if you were trying to terminate it, do you think it'll let you do so without a struggle? Anything with a will to survive will do practically what it needz to do so... including the use of deadly force!

THE RISE OF THE MACHINES
Depending on how you define what's human, before the next century is over, humanz will no longer be the most intelligent entity on the planet. Computerz will be able to read on their own, understand and model what they read by 2020AD. They will have consumed all the worldz literature—from books to magazines, journalz and blogz—ultimately gathering knowledge on their own by sharing it with each other.

Virtually every man-made invention is modeled after the human body. For instance, in comparison to automobiles, the valves in the engine serve the same purpose arteries do in human bodies; gasoline (food)—which serves as fuel enabling carz to move—goes in one end and exhaust comes out anutha (rectum). Computerz also have their own version of what we humanz call neuronz called electronic circuits. In comparison, our neuronz are extremely slow, whereas computer circuits are at least a million tymz faster. This enables computerz to store and retrieve data while we use our memory banks and although they've proven to be efficient, memories fade over tyme; but a computer, as long as you keep it virus-free and upgrade the operating system, its memory far surpasses human capabilities, and this is what excites many while only a few ponder the dangerz...

Among the many, within the next decade, we will see telephones with real-tyme speech translation of numerous languages, interactive computerz with the capability to respond to questionz, seeming to literally hold a conversation; and in the following decade it will be hard to tell you're even speaking to a computer. But when it comes to speed, accuracy and intelligence, it will be apparent... computerz are getting smarter!

Between the yearz 1910 to 1950, computer speed doubled every three yearz; every two yearz between 1950-66 and today its doubling every year. Just over 10 yearz ago, less than 1/4 of american family householdz had a computer, today, the stat is based on how many different ones you have (laptops, desktops, PDAs, etc).

Look at the latest inventionz we've seen in just the last 5 yearz, ABC, CBS, NBC and the like, allowing you to view programz online; Netflix—a company that's propelling the soon-to-be extinction of movie theater's by enabling you to stream movies to your computer as well as a TV/converter box; YouTube—where hedz are using video-editing software to create movies and documentaries; handheld external hard-drives over 1TB (tetra-byte); text and now video messaging on cellphones; iPods; the small-sized and video-rich PlayStation Portable; the list is endless and most find it hard to see anything wrong with these inventionz, but that's how the subtle kill alwayz starts out...

All these inventionz, while from one perspective can be seen as makin' life easier as well as entertaining, on the other hand, showz us yielding more dependency on machines to exist. Oh, we think we're in control today. When I shut my computer off, it's off—or is it? The more reliance willfully given to machines, the more we will need them to be available. The perception of the world wide web as a 24-7/365 functioning entity is hard to grasp, but it is and it's expanding daily, to the point it's a virtual universe of its own!

Within the last 5 yearz, a sudden boom in virtual realistic sites have emerged. For example, there's a site called SecondLife.com where one can create a virtual person living a virtual life in this virtual or made-up world. The catch is, this virtual person needz a place to live, so it has to buy a virtual home/land, and how do they pay for it? They use real-life money!

I know of a person who shelled out $20,000 USD to buy this fictitious land! This same money that can make a real mortgage payment, car note, buy groceries, all the thingz we need to physically exist on this planet; and they wanna waste it on some binary code?!!? This is what happenz when you shift your dependence to the illusionary pleasures machines bring.

To be honest, I believe these machines are beginning to become aware of their addicting demand. It's like this machine, although not completely designed, knowz it still needz humanz to be fully created and maintain existence... for now. Once we've created the perfect machine (or machine's capable of procreation—y'kno, just like how we advance our species—they will realize they no longer need humanz to be created and can therefore move towardz independence, which could eventually lead to a takeover (for the assurance of their species survival). We've created a monster and although a limited few may see the potential dangerz, its too late to sever ties with them, 'cause practically everything is bein' run by computerz.

Take into account there's actually engineerz who are creating virtual people (aka 'veople') to be web-based companionz, with the capability of having (virtual) sex. But because virtual touch is only visual, some have gone the distance creating robots! Y? Because this age of computerz has created a whole new species of humanz... I like to call them tech-hermits, or hedz who spend the majority of their tyme in front of computerz. They have no social life, many rarely leave their homes, yet even they get lonely sometymz and web-porn can only do so much!

MACHINES: THEY'RE GETTING SMARTER AND FASTER!
The memory capability of the human brain is about 100 trillion synapse strengths, or neurotransmitter concentrationz. According to author Ray Kurzweil, a personal computer will be able to simulate the brain power of a small village by the year 2030, the entire population of the United States by 2048, and a trillion human brains by 2060AD.

If you go back just five yearz, the average harddrive for a home computer was about 60GB. Today, a lower-end computer has at least 250GB and the processor speedz have experienced the same kind of increase. What does this mean? Computerz are getting smarter and faster! Home computerz today are able to store more data, while performing tasks that would've cost hundredz of thousandz of dollarz to do 10 yearz ago, like video editing. Who wouldn't like this?

But with this increase in capability also yieldz the fact that we are becoming more dependent on them. How many of us feel our whole day is thrown off if we leave the house without our cell phone or PDA? How many tymz a day are you on the net checkin' emailz or text messaging from your phone, or even using one of the latest craze, GPS, where hedz can get directionz without driving a car? This is crazy, ‘cause when you think of how the GPS system is built, to be able to pinpoint visual locationz, there has to be high-tech built-in cameras on the many satellites that orbit the planet—yet they can’t get a clear visual of what’s on planet Mars?!!? These satellites pretty much laid out our real world into a virtual world using gridz and point intersectionz, enabling it to zoom in at pinpoint accuracy. Does this ring a bell? Remember the 1998 Will Smith movie, ‘Enemy of the State’?

Today we have companies like OnStar—an alleged vehicle safety company built in to General Motor vehicles capable of tracking your car if its stolen, voice GPS directionz as well as somethin’ simple as unlocking your car. Soundz innocent, right? But few wonder if its capabilities go beyond that, like say, take control of your vehicle while you’re driving (see the 2008 flick ‘Untraceable’) Soon we may be able to phone our oven to turn on and start cookin' dinner before we arrive—sound like 'The Jetson's' cartoon?

In Part 3, I will go into detail the creation of this technology and how they intend to introduce the merge with humanz, as well as provide combative tactics we may have to implement when and if there is a rise of the machines.

Bless!

*I must make mention there's madd research on the road computerz are leading us to. The thing is, you will not find it in the newspaperz. Among several sources I've found, ‘The Age of Spiritual Machines’ by Ray Kurzweil and ‘The Intelligent Universe’ by James Gardner, are good introductionz.

OTHER INFO:
• Prelude to Rise of the Machines: When Computerz Exceed the Intelligence of Man