Human Machine 2008: Section 8 Abstracts

Post Abstracts Below

Posted at Nov 20/2008 04:26PM:
daehnke: my abstract is...

Posted at Nov 20/2008 07:58PM:
James Lee IHUM 57 Final Project Abstract

I. Authors A. Seung Woo Jung (TF: Anita Chan, Section 14) B. James J. Lee (TF: Jon Daehnke, Section 8) C. Jeongsoo Sim (TF: Hsuan Tsen, Section 17 ) D. Eunmo Yang (TF: Alice Petty, Section 6)

II. Theme/Issue that the project is engaging: Whether machines can pass as human beings, and if so, what are the qualities they must fulfill minimally in order to be considered as humans.

III. The evidence used and how that evidence speaks to the theme/issue: Our project would be based on texts like Computing Machinery and Intelligence, Blade Runner, The Electric Ant, Ghost in the Shell, The Father Thing, and Pinocchio, all of which involve machine characters that are designed to function like human beings. We would deduce from these texts the human-like quality(s) that each particular machine possesses, and would then accumulate them to establish the criteria for machines in passing as human beings.

IV. A thesis: Whether machines can pass as humans does not depend so much on how much information they can store and regurgitate, but more so on their ability to respond and react to new stimuli. Hence, machines must be able to show a decent level of creativity, comprehension and display of emotions, and the ability to effectively manage various situations before they can be qualified as human beings.

V. A description of the project, what form it will take and why that form was chosen: The project will be a standardized test aimed at informing machines whether they are qualified to become human beings. The questions would predominantly involve the areas of creativity, emotions, and situational management and only those machines that score above the level set by the test makers (us) would pass as humans. Along with the standardized exam, we would also provide an answer key. The reason we have chosen this method is that we want to get down to the specifics. For instance, the Turing test is quite arbitrary in a sense that the result is affected greatly by situational factors (e.g. who the tester is, his/her condition during the test, the nature of words exchanged, etc). Hence, we intend to establish a yardstick that alone could be relied upon to evaluate the humanness of the machines tested.

Posted at Nov 20/2008 08:10PM:
Chau Vu, Gabe Guimte, Nicholas Baldo Abstract

Nicholas Baldo 05 Christy Pichichero Chau Vu 08 Jon Daehnke Gabriel Guimte 08 Jon Daehnke

Mechanization: Rationality vs. Communication

Giedion claims on p. 30 that Mechanization “is the end product of a rationalistic view of the world.” We feel that Mechanization does not necessarily require rationality, only that component parts can share information. Without communication, organization and mechanization become impossible, as is the case for humans in Autofac. Furthermore, LaMettrie’s Machine Man provides a mechanized view of sex, in which only communication (that is, physical intercourse)—and not any rationalistic motivation—is relevant and necessary for its execution.

Thesis: Mechanization does not necessarily require rationality, only that component parts can share information.

Our project will take the form of a drawing activity. The drawing activity will ask that each person add one small piece to a drawing. The collective drawing generated shows how no rational organization is needed to produce a final product. In addition, we will present biological examples that demonstrate our thesis.

Nick will research ant behavior and how it relates to the thesis. His work will include information from an interview with Stanford University’s own Dr. Deborah M. Gordon, who’s research has been key to modern science’s understanding of ants. (http://www.stanford.edu/~dmgordon/). Chau’s research will focus on communication in ants, specifically the use of pheromones. Gabe will use the course texts to support the thesis, delving deeper into the connections made at the top of this page. Chau and Gabe administer the drawing activity outside of class and share the resulting pictures.

Posted at Nov 20/2008 08:36PM:
phelps:

Nancy Phelps, Section 08, Jon Daehnke. My paper will explore the question of when exactly the boundary between a human and machine becomes blurred. I will focus on the importance of a “machine’s” ability to exhibit unbridled emotions and to act spontaneously on them as the hinge that determines their nature. Displaying emotion alone is not enough to qualify a machine as human; it must be unbridled and spontaneous. I also plan on talking about how a machine’s ability to act drastically based on these spontaneous emotions represents our greatest fear. I plan to use Blade Runner and 2001: A Space Odyssey to prove my point. In 2001 Hal demonstrates and acts on unbridled emotions, as does Roy Batty in Blade Runner. The way that several of the scenes in these films are shot helps to prove my point that a machine’s ability to cross into our own world represents our greatest fear. My preliminary thesis is that a machine’s ability to express uncontrolled emotion and to subsequently act drastically on them is what makes them human and is what ultimately scares the human race.

Posted at Nov 20/2008 10:43PM:
Kevin: My project, so far as I have planned, will be a CS game that compares human performance to that of machines and explores Kleist’s notions of self-awareness and grace. The game play is still under construction, but it will pit the player against the computer. The game as it is planned now will be split into three canvases: a canvas with a human on the left, another with an arrow key in the middle, and another with a robot on the right. The middle canvas will present an arrow sign to which the player must respond accordingly by pressing the appropriate button. Each button press initializes an action for the human avatar. In essence, the player is competing against the computer—which is represented by the robot on the right canvas. However, since the robot follows a set of programmed instructions, it will never falter, and will execute the commands perfectly. As the game progresses, there will be distractions that pose difficulties for the player, such as an object obstructing the arrow sign. This distraction represents the self-awareness and consciousness that Kleist argues hinders our achievement of grace. The game also exemplifies the limits on human capability while underscoring the potential of machines.

Posted at Nov 21/2008 02:28PM:
NoraWillett: One Light Abstract Since the rise of machines, artists have drawn inspiration from the way that machines are created and move. While the creators of machines strive to make machines more human-like, some artists progress in the opposite direction, striving to make their artistic expressions more machine-like. This progression can be seen in various works of art, ranging from drawings and paintings to plays and films. Through the fusion of human and machine elements, films raise questions such as: What is life? How do machines and humans present different aspects of life? In The Ghost in the Shell, life is a loosely defined term used to describe both humans and machines with human characteristics. The Ghost in the Shell also shows that by giving up life to someone else, one eventually receives life back. Although The Ghost in the Shell raises questions about what existence means and how one character or person is unique, it does not provide answers. It is up to viewers to form their own meaning of life and existence with the thoughts and ideas presented to them. In the film, One Light, I will pose questions to viewers about the definition of life and what we choose to do with life once we gain it. One Light will resolve the issue that one can only discover what it means to be alive by sharing that life with others. I will create a computer animated short, One Light, which will compel the viewer to consider what life means to them and how they choose to use it. One Light will be about a machine who possesses life, symbolized by a blue glowing light in his hand. He can choose to either keep the blue light and live or give it up to the immobile shell of a human. The machine decides to forfeit the light and places his hand over the human’s heart. The human comes alive and gazes at his own hand where a light blue circle has formed. The final shot is of the machine’s face which is dark, except gradually a blue light seeps into his eyes. In order to create One Light, I will use the animation program Autodesk Maya to model, texture, rig and animate the machine and human. I will create and light an environment in which the human and machine will interact. Once the different shots in One Light are created and rendered from a variety of camera positions, they will be edited together to form the final short. The animated short will be presented within a PowerPoint presentation discussing the issue of choosing to share life with others and the advantages of using computer animation to capture the affects of that choice.

Posted at Nov 21/2008 02:49PM:
Connor Hanton: Partners: Connor Hanten, Section 03 Arbel Kodesh, Section 08 Matt Duenas, Section 08

Theme: Identity as it relates to perception and behavior.

Evidence used: My Fair Lady – Eliza’s explanation of the difference between a lady and a flower girl. The Turing Test – If a machine makes us think it is a human, then it is a human. We incorporate the converse: if we think that a human is a machine, then it is a machine. Being There – When people treat Chance like a genius, it does not matter that he is infantile.

Project: We are making a video about a person who gets in an accident, and returns to consciousness, thinking everything is normal. As he learns that more and more of his body parts were replaced with machine prosthetics, his body changes into that of a robot. As his former acquaintances treat him like a machine rather than a human, he becomes the machine because his identity does not depend upon how he behaves, but how he is treated.

Posted at Nov 21/2008 10:57PM:
Christine Ensley: Christine Ensley - Jon Daehnke - Section 8. In my paper, I am focusing on the idea that life, whether organic or mechanic, is simply a series of images. What is ‘memory’ other than just set of snippets in time? I will use the texts “Electric Ant” and “Bladerunner” and refer to the Muybridge chronophotography sequences. In “Electric Ant,” Mr. Poole realizes his life as he knows it is determined by punched-hole tape roll, and in “Bladerunner,” the replicants begin to understand that their entire memory has been implanted to resemble the real memories of a human. The main difference between humans and these characters, however, lies in the fact that they have the ability to know when their life’s film will end, when their “reality tape” will run out, as humans do not.

Posted at Nov 21/2008 11:03PM:
Sami Shad: Rachel Jasmin Encarnacion Jon Daehnke Section 8 Jason Gonzalez Jon Daehnke Section 8 Sami-Ur-Rehman Shad Xinyu Dong Section 12 Carlos Vargas Alice Petty Section 4

Issue: Human Dependence on Machinery

Texts: Autofac, 2001: A Space Odyssey. By developing more and more specific tools, Space Odyssey shows that humans are decreasing their self-sufficiency until the time that using a program created by humans HAL is able to arrive at the conclusion that the humans need him and are more of a liability to the mission than an asset, and tries to eliminate the crew.

Thesis Statement: With increased use of technology, humans tend to lose self-sufficiency and thus must be careful to not reach complete dependence on technology and lose their purpose in life, as shown in Autofac.

Media: Slam Poetry (aka Spoken Word) It is a powerful way of portraying an argument using language as a tool.

A conversation has to be carried out that expresses the point of the thesis, and explains opposing arguments. Each team member will have to come up with the best way to word his/her argument and work to make his/her contribution coherent with the rest of the team's contribution. Opposing arguments are to be articulated and catered for during the spoken word.

Posted at Nov 21/2008 11:25PM:
Alerman: Alex Lerman: section 08, Jon Daehnke; Jonathan Tilley: Alice Petty. We plan to write and film a movie that will address the themes of passing and self-awareness through the depiction of the life of a robotic student at Stanford. He will be a freshmen and through the unique medium of film, we will show his struggle against questions of his own existence and what it means to be himself and not human. He will undergo the discrimination and criticism of the student body who feel their intellect challenged by the prospect of a human-like computer. Through film’s mediums of music, sound and picture we will convey the emotions felt by the robot but that would be otherwise unable to be convincingly expressed. Our script will take inspiration from Turing’s Computing Machinery and Intelligence and various Phillip K. Dick stories, along with Blade Runner and Pinocchio. The essential thesis of our film will be that failure to pass the Turing test does not prove a lack of consciousness. As long as a machine is self aware and aware of the world around it, it has the potential for thought traditionally classified only for humans. Our various duties will include script-writing, story boarding, filming and acting, and editing. Each task will be shared by each of us equally, or if unequally, will be balanced by another task. (i.e. the one writing more of the script will do less of the editing.)

Here is the finished version.

Posted at Nov 21/2008 11:58PM:
Wendy Mu: Wendy Mu, Section 8, Dr. Daehnke. My paper will be about the boundary between humans and machines. I plan on discussing the relationship between the human as a creator and the machine as their creation. I will use Blade Runner and Turing's essay Computing Machinery and Intelligence. In Blade Runner, each successive "generation" of Replicants are created to be more and more human-like. In Turing's essay, Turing discusses a theoretical method of creating a machine that is exactly like the adult brain. My preliminary thesis is: In Blade Runner and Turing's Computing Machinery and Intelligence, the human creator's desire to give human qualities to their creations suggest that humans want to blur the boundary between themselves and machines.

Posted at Nov 25/2008 09:49PM:
arbelk: connor hanton

Posted at Nov 25/2008 09:52PM:
arbelk: Me and Matt Duenas are working with Connor Hanten from section 3