Bots and Beasts

What Makes Machines, Animals, and People Smart?

Paul Thagard

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English

MIT Press
07 May 2024

Artificial intelligence

"Octopuses can open jars to get food, and chimpanzees can plan for the future. An IBM computer named Watson won on Jeopardy! and Alexa knows our favorite songs. But do animals and smart machines really have intelligence comparable to that of humans? In Bots and Beasts, Paul Thagard looks at how computers (""bots"") and animals measure up to the minds of people, offering the first systematic comparison of intelligence across machines, animals, and humans.

Thagard explains that human intelligence is more than IQ and encompasses such features as problem solving, decision making, and creativity. He uses a checklist of twenty characteristics of human intelligence to evaluate the smartest machines--including Watson, AlphaZero, virtual assistants, and self-driving cars--and the most intelligent animals--including octopuses, dogs, dolphins, bees, and chimpanzees. Neither a romantic enthusiast for nonhuman intelligence nor a skeptical killjoy, Thagard offers a clear assessment. He discusses hotly debated issues about animal intelligence concerning bacterial consciousness, fish pain, and dog jealousy. He evaluates the plausibility of achieving human-level artificial intelligence and considers ethical and policy issues. A full appreciation of human minds reveals that current bots and beasts fall far short of human capabilities.

An expert on mind considers how animals and smart machines measure up to human intelligence.

Octopuses can open jars to get food, and chimpanzees can plan for the future. An IBM computer named Watson won on Jeopardy! and Alexa knows our favorite songs. But do animals and smart machines really have intelligence comparable to that of humans? In Bots and Beasts, Paul Thagard looks at how computers (""bots"") and animals measure up to the minds of people, offering the first systematic comparison of intelligence across machines, animals, and humans.

Thagard explains that human intelligence is more than IQ and encompasses such features as problem solving, decision making, and creativity. He uses a checklist of twenty characteristics of human intelligence to evaluate the smartest machines--including Watson, AlphaZero, virtual assistants, and self-driving cars--and the most intelligent animals--including octopuses, dogs, dolphins, bees, and chimpanzees. Neither a romantic enthusiast for nonhuman intelligence nor a skeptical killjoy, Thagard offers a clear assessment. He discusses hotly debated issues about animal intelligence concerning bacterial consciousness, fish pain, and dog jealousy. He evaluates the plausibility of achieving human-level artificial intelligence and considers ethical and policy issues. A full appreciation of human minds reveals that current bots and beasts fall far short of human capabilities."

By: Paul Thagard
Imprint: MIT Press
Country of Publication: United States
Dimensions: Height: 229mm, Width: 152mm,
Weight: 369g
ISBN: 9780262548540
ISBN 10: 0262548542
Pages: 312
Publication Date: 07 May 2024
Audience: General/trade , ELT Advanced
Format: Paperback
Publisher's Status: Active

TABLE OF CONTENTS... Preface xi 1 Attributing Minds to Machines and Animals 1 2 Prodigious People 21 3 Marvelous Machines 55 4 Amazing Animals 91 5 Human Advantages 131 6 When Did Minds Begin? 159 7 The Morality of Bots and Beasts 193 8 The Ethics of Artificial Intelligence 225 Acknowledgments 249 Notes 251 Index 283

Paul Thagard, a philosopher and cognitive scientist, is Distinguished Professor Emeritus of Philosophy at the University of Waterloo. He is the author of Brain-Mind, Natural Philosophy, The Cognitive Science of Science, Hot Thought, Mind- Introduction to Cognitive Science (the last three published by the MIT Press), and many other books. He writes a popular blog for Psychology Today and can be found at paulthagard.com.