Hans Moravec
by tim on Jan.08, 2009, under Robotics
One of the fore-fathers of American robotics is Hans Moravec. He said something I find very interesting. It’s called the Moravec Paradox and goes something like this:
“it is comparatively easy to make computers exhibit adult level performance on intelligence tests or playing checkers, and difficult or impossible to give them the skills of a one-year-old when it comes to perception and mobility.”1
- Moravec, Hans (1988), Mind Children, Harvard University Press [↩]
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Welcome!
We live in a very exciting time! Technological advancements continue to move forward at an increasing rate. If you read any decent amount of Verner Vinge or Ray Kurzweil, you'll come to understand the Law of Accelerating Returns. The idea is that every innovation feeds the engine of change causing it to move at a rate that increases over time. These gentlemen assert that the speed at which change accelerates is not linear, but exponential. It is thought, then, that we live at the bend in the curve just waiting for that near vertical take-off. What will happen then? Will it be change for the positive? For it to be so, we have to set the precedents now. History has shown that technology will be used for maleficent purposes. We must learn from this and work towards infusing our research with ethics.
