Unit 4 Living with technology
Reading：
Artificial intelligence: friendly or frightening?
Imagine waking up one morning with the option of staying in bed and pressing a button to send a robot to do all the work for you. How cool that would be! It may seem like building castles in the air, but given the rate at which artificial intelligence, or AI, is being developed, in the future such dreams may actually come true. At the basic level, artificial intelligence is a branch of computer science that aims to develop intelligent machines. One of the essential aims of AI is to develop computer intelligence capable of learning from experience, adjusting to new inputs and performing tasks like humans. To achieve this aim, many approaches to creating true AI have been put forward, including “deep learning”, which enables a machine to improve its own performance by learning from the results of its previous actions. Deep-learning AI has the capacity to analyse massive amounts of data through multiple layers, imitating the complex networks of the human brain.
The dream of AI has been around for centuries, and the development of computers since the 1940s has finally made it a reality. Years before the term “artificial intelligence” was coined in the mid-1950s, the theory had been explored by Alan Turing, one of the pioneers in the field of computer science. However, for a long time, AI technology developed very slowly. A major breakthrough in AI came in 1997, when Deep Blue, a chess-playing computer, beat the world chess champion Garry Kasparov. Then in 2017, a computer program named AlphaGo defeated Ke Jie, arguably the best human Go player, which demonstrated a significant advance in deep-learning AI systems.
Nowadays, AI is already being applied in many fields: finance, health care, natural
language processing and art, to name but a few. From autonomous vehicles to domestic robots, from recommendation systems to computers writing novels, AI has an unlimited number of applications. Ordinary people are now using AI to get instant translations of text in foreign languages, and machines can recognize fingerprints and even faces.
In short, this technology is transforming the way we live. It is clear that we are at a turning point in history. With machines like AlphaGo now capable of thinking and learning from their mistakes, we are getting closer to the dividing line between humans and machines. The question is, where will all this lead? While AI enthusiasts promise us a bright future where intelligent robots will be working to our advantage, these undoubted benefits also bring concerns and fears. Could machines really develop human-like intelligence? And what would happen if they did? Would thinking machines work alongside humans or threaten the existence of humans? How would they be punished if they committed crimes or even murdered humans? As we become more and more dependent on computers, some scientists are urging us to think about the dangers posed by the advances in AI. Stephen Hawking, for example, warned, “The development of full artificial intelligence could spell the end of the human race.”
Apparently, such warnings demand our attention. We need to make sure that we will not fall victim to AI. We may still think it would be fantastic to relax all day and allow autonomous machines to do all the work for us—but perhaps we should not be too greedy and rather be careful what we wish for!
Extended reading:
Virtual reality
SUSAN: Frank, you’ve been working at the forefront of developments in virtual
reality for many years. Can you tell us what virtual reality is and how it works?
FRANK: Of course. The basic definition of VR lies in the name itself, which means
“reality that is not real”. When you wear a VR headset equipped with cameras and sensors, you are surrounded by three-D images, sounds and other sensory information, which creates a super-realistic effect called “presence”. Though you know the sensory information surrounding you is not real, part of your brain believes it is—and acts accordingly.
SUSAN: Thanks, Frank. Can you give some examples of the practical applications
VR has?
FRANK: I’d love to. There are a host of educational applications. Academic VR
enables students to interact with others in a three-D environment. There are endless possibilities for the subject matter that can be created in a VR system. Imagine studying the solar system or the human body in a fully immersive environment. By delivering the content in a meaningful way, this new approach to learning manages to engage students’ interest and enhance learning efficiency. The applications can be expanded to make it easier to visualize data such as engineering projects and a variety of other design developments. It’s pretty exciting!
SUSAN: This sounds like it has a lot of constructive applications. What about its uses
for highly developed technical industries such as medicine?
FRANK: Surgeons are already using robotic technology with VR to perform complex
surgeries. What if I told you that doctors could create a virtual “twin” in order to practise delicate surgery before attempting it on the patient? This technology can be applied to train new surgeons; it also enables experts to test new techniques safely before trying them on human subjects. Treatments of anxiety and drug addiction are other valuable and cost-effective applications of VR.
SUSAN: That is amazing! It sounds like VR will be a life-changing technology as
well as a life-saving one. How will it affect the different aspects of our everyday lives, such as entertainment, shopping and travelling?
FRANK: The entertainment industry is one of the most enthusiastic advocates of VR.
Current game systems come with headsets so that players can enter virtual environments and play against either real or virtual opponents. It won’t be long before virtual museums and interactive three-D exhibitions become common. In shopping, you can look forward to being able to have your own virtual reality clone try on clothes and to see products with 360-degree views. Also, people who want to go on holiday will have the opportunity to take a virtual tour of several destinations before deciding where to go. In either case, this technology will help people make more informed choices.
SUSAN: I can’t wait! However, as with any technology, there must be some barriers
to the development of VR, I guess?
FRANK: It really boils down to three things—time, cost and technical limitations.
We will need time to develop and fine-tune the hardware and software. The initial cost will discourage most people in the beginning but that should be fixed over time. The last issue is our own technical limitations. Just trying to figure out how to do what we want in terms of technology will prove challenging in some areas.
SUSAN: Considering there are so many challenges to deal with, are you still
optimistic about the future of VR?
FRANK: Sure. When talking about VR, we should keep in mind its quick rate of
evolution. The possibilities seem endless. For example, 5G technology, with its potential to serve up more stable mobile connectivity at faster speed, will make it possible for people to enjoy a more immersive VR experience wherever they are. Indeed we are only limited by our imagination. What excites me the most is that young people today are digital citizens who are comfortable with technology. They’re well equipped to become part of a technological generation that will develop and use VR to do things we might think impossible today.
SUSAN: Thank you, Frank. It all sounds wonderful.
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