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From: portegys@ihuxv.UUCP (Tom Portegys)
Newsgroups: net.ai
Subject: Behavioristic definition of intelligence
Message-ID: <584@ihuxv.UUCP>
Date: Mon, 14-Nov-83 14:01:55 EST
Article-I.D.: ihuxv.584
Posted: Mon Nov 14 14:01:55 1983
Date-Received: Tue, 15-Nov-83 07:58:24 EST
Organization: AT&T Bell Labs, Naperville, Il
Lines: 18


What is the purpose of knowing whether something is 
intelligent?  Or has a soul?  Or has consciousness?

I think one of the reasons is that it makes it easier to
deal with it.  If a creature is understood to be a human
being, we all know something about how to behave toward it.
And if a machine exhibits intelligence, the quintessential 
quality of human beings, we also will know what to do.

One of the things that this implies is that we really should
not worry too much about whether a machine is intelligent 
until one gets here.  The definition of it will be in part
determined by how we behave toward it. Right now, I don't feel
very confused about how to act in the presence of a computer
running an AI program.

           Tom Portegys, Bell Labs IH, ihuxv!portegys