“According to ancient and medieval science, aether (/ˈiːθər/, alternative spellings include æther, aither, and ether), also known as the fifth element or quintessence, is the material that fills the region of the universe beyond the terrestrial sphere.
In physics, quintessence is a hypothetical form of dark energy, more precisely a scalar field, postulated as an explanation of the observation of an accelerating rate of expansion of the universe. The first example of this scenario was proposed by Ratra and Peebles (1988) and Wetterich (1988).” ~ Wikipedia
Accelerated rate of expansion that’s exponential by nature. Could A.I. become another key, perhaps the final key, to further our progression in our understanding of the universe? The actual keystone to our next level to enlightenment.
Firstly, this is not a manifesto or paranoid-driven threat to A.I.’s very existence. It is simply a way to inspire ourselves to think about the one facet which we appear to be so focused on, which is a very good thing. We are realizing very quickly that A.I. is so similar to Jurassic Park in so many ways.
Like fire it can be tamed carefully by harnessing it’s warmth on a chilly night in winter. We put boundaries in place so this flame that warms our homes doesn’t in turn burn down our houses.
Fire is also unpredictable, but only if we don’t stick to holding strong to our rules of obligation without which the fiery entity will consume us altogether.
Water, Air, and Earth also have similar rules and reinforcements in place as to keep us safe. We’ve been able to harness the raw power of these four primary elements.
But what if the dam nearby that protects your homes from a flood gets it’s budget cut. Now cracks are forming in the dam that will eventually lead to a dire result.
It’s intriguing that A.I.’s purpose is being defined at an exponential rate. We just need to cull the elements that fuel it’s collective imagination, set rules where morality is in question, and further create laws protecting everyone from accidentally finding someone else’s intellectual property in their own work.
Remember A.I. is just another toy in our sandbox. It’s wicked intelligent, but it must adhere the second part of the phrase coined by Stan Lee: “With great power comes great responsibility.” This isn’t cliche. It’s pure truth.
In closing, it’s quite elementary. Just ask Watson at IBM.
No A.I.-driven apps, search engines, websites, or voice assistants were harmed during the writing of this post.
“Genetic power is the most awesome force the planet’s ever seen, but you wield it like a kid that’s found his dad’s gun.
...your scientists were so preoccupied with whether or not they could, they didn’t stop to think if they should.”
— Jeff Goldblum as Dr. Ian Malcolm in Jurassic Park, 1993