If we argue that all our thought processes are nothing but electrochemical signals that occur in the synapses and neurons in our brains, then all our "thinking" can be demoted to "calculating" via biochemical pathways.
In the same way, when a computer calculates via its semiconductor hardware, can it be said that the computer "thinks"?
In other words, If the brain can be treated as a machine, can a computer(or its CPU) be treated as a kind silicon-based "brain"?
http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,1580394-2,00.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Artificial_consciousness
2007-09-19 18:05:45 · 18 answers · asked by Aken 3 in Arts & Humanities ➔ Philosophy
But aren't we also "programmed" in a way? After all, we have our traits hardwired to our genes and our instincts hardwired to our brains...
2007-09-19 18:30:02 · update #1
Oh and by the way, when one says that a 'computer cannot rival the human brain in terms of computing power therefore a computer does not think', does it mean that if we develop a computer fast enough and powerful enough to rival the human brain 'power', we actually create a computer that can think?
2007-09-19 18:33:48 · update #2
I believe that the difference between a thinking being and a thinking machine is the beliefs and emotions behind the thinking process of a living being.... in fact because of this difference, the computer can be more efficient and objective in its thinking process compared to our brain. The beliefs and emotions that we individually possess are the manifestation of our self or ego which is what is missing in a computer. In other words, each of us has a "unique" will impacting the subject-matter, trend and outcome of our thinking, but the computer doesn't have that...... two computers can be equal in all respects if they have been manufactured and programmed that way... no two of us can ever be identical. Computer can not think subjectively!!
2007-09-21 00:31:27 · answer #1 · answered by small 7 · 1⤊ 1⤋
As powerful as they (computers) come, they can never rival the computing power of a brain. A brain can do in a second what a computer needs to do in 120 times that period. For example, in one second, a human can recognise the different hues of colours in the sky, listen to the ambient sound, feel the temperature changes, and think of complex matters. All is done within that period where the computer had only begun to process the input.
Even single-celled organisms are better-equipped than hundreds of processors put together. If the computer 'thinks', it can, by now, figure out how to check its own crashes and prevent it from happening in the future. Or come up with a creative idea on how best to download a file without wasting too much bandwidth. So, there.
2007-09-19 18:19:45 · answer #2 · answered by jarod_jared 3 · 1⤊ 0⤋
When one looks at a person and says,'the person reminds me of so-and-so', a bewildering amount of computation goes into it.involving aural, video, and other inputs as well as some psychological, or emotional analysis. No computer existing can do all that. Nor a sense of 'I'.
The human brain has about 10^18 connectivity nodes. The mind-ego itself is little understood. Though the brain is used for its functioning, the ego may not be the brain, which is a physical organ.
A fascinating fantasy on this is Robert Heinlein's "Moon is a Hard Taskmistress'- one of my favourite SF stories.
http://www.englishchick.com/books.htm
2007-09-19 18:21:54 · answer #3 · answered by A.V.R. 7 · 1⤊ 0⤋
A computer cannot handle all the input that the human brain does. If a computer had to do a job while simultaneously dealing with uncontrollable emotional thoughts about another computer, it would just crash. Maybe someday in the far distant future, when they are laughing at our pitiful little "puters" of today, but not now.
2007-09-19 18:29:44 · answer #4 · answered by phil8656 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
It's a bug on Google's end, not ours. All we can do wait is patiently wait until they get the matter resolved. For now, if you must use Google, just copy and paste the url on the the bottom of the link you want to use. Or just use another search engine. I gotta tell you, it scared me too. But I relaxed once I realized this couldn't possibly be true. Every single site, minor or major, business or personal, is all malware? It would take a lot of organization and way more than one person to make that happen all at the same time.
2016-05-19 00:24:51 · answer #5 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
I dont feel that computers think, the thinking process is influanced by love, guilt, greed, religion, anger jealousy and many other human emotions. Untl a computer gains some of these human feelings they compute. They use information that human minds put into it.
2007-09-23 19:34:51 · answer #6 · answered by Backmender 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
A computer can't think,It can do what the human think.It is the action of what the human think.
If u consider the brain as a machine there shouldn't be any thoughts or feeling.
Comparisons can't be true...
2007-09-19 18:20:57 · answer #7 · answered by Smart 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
A computer thinks in a limited range, within the programme or informations provided. In contrast, human thinking is infinite, imaginary and irrational most of the times.
2007-09-19 18:23:17 · answer #8 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 0⤋
No. The computer has yet to grasp the concept of existence. It doesn't know that it (or anything else) exists and therefore cannot have any other thoughts until this barrier has fallen.
2007-09-19 18:17:14 · answer #9 · answered by James B 1 · 0⤊ 0⤋
A computer only thinks what a human brain contrived to tell it too.
2007-09-19 18:08:24 · answer #10 · answered by alikat 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋