Intelligence is described as the ability to adapt to new environments and situations and being able to understand consequences and effects that your actions cause. This is something that all living creatures have in some way or another. Animals adapt to their environments and react to interference, plants do the same. Human intelligence, however, is in an entirely different ball park. With the uprise of technology and advancements constantly being made, it has now come time to question the use of artificial intelligence. Artificial intelligence, or AI, means giving non living things, such as computers and robots, the ability to think for themselves to an extent. What would this mean for the future? Would the economy, society, and the world as we know it change for the better or worse?
Pros Of Artificial Intelligence
No Breaks
One of the biggest benefits to using machines with some level of artificial intelligence is that they could be utilized to do necessary jobs more efficiently. Machines do not need to take breaks in the way that humans do. They do not need to sleep, eat, or use the restroom. This would allow businesses to produce goods twenty four hours a day, 365 days a year.
Inhumane Circumstances
Artificial intelligence has allowed many avenues in research and exploration to develop and advance that would not have if it did not exist. This is especially true with space exploration. The satellites and rovers that are being sent in to space all of the time can stay there forever, and continue to reach further and further out into our solar system, giving us a much better understanding of what lays in the beyond.
No Emotional Barriers
Intelligent machines do not have emotions. This is greatly beneficial because nothing interferes with their ability to perform the task they were designed to do. This is completely untrue with humans, many people find it difficult to work under very stressful conditions or during times of trauma.
Cost Efficient
Machines do not need to receive a paycheck every month. While they are quite costly to maintain and power, this cost is greatly less than what an entire company full of human employees would have to be paid. The costs are also minimized and controlled.
Cons of Artificial Intelligence
Job Loss
With the introduction of machines that can complete human’s jobs quicker, more accurate, and cheaper, the rate of jobs lost is climbing. Ever since the introduction of factory machines people have been losing jobs to technologies.
Personal Connections
Another large concern to think about when it comes to artificial intelligence is their lack of compassion and sympathy. If these robots are introduced into fields such as healthcare, how can we ensure the patients and customers comfort? Sure, they can be programmed to care, but it is not genuine.
Loss of Information
We have seen it time and time again, and probably even experienced it once or twice, information being lost due to machine damages. The majority of our documents, videos and images are all stored on computers, phones, and other forms of technology. Many things can cause this information to be lost in an instant, and also non retrievable. This could pose very large problems if artificial intelligence is implemented in areas such as banks or healthcare.
Evolved?
It may seem like a science fiction movie, but what would really happen if these artificially intelligent machines began to think for themselves, literally? It could pose major security risks, but it sure does make a great story line.
Technology and advancements in this field are happening, and they are happening very fast. It is something that we cannot and will not stop, so it is best to embrace the changing world we live in and take advantage of all of the incredible things that we have access to.
