[net.ai] Life, don't talk to me about life....

speaker@umcp-cs.UUCP (09/18/83)

	From:     jpj@mss
	Subject:  Re: Another Definition of Intelligence
	To:       citcsv!seismo!rlgvax!cvl!umcp-cs!speaker
	
	I find your notion of an artificial intelligence sitting
	back, taking in all that goes on around it, but not being
	motivated to comment (perhaps due to boredom) an amusing
	idea.  Have you read "The Restaurant at the End of the
	Universe?"  In that story is a most entertaining ai - a
	chronically depressed robot (whos name escapes me at the
	moment - I don't have my copy at hand) who thinks so much
	faster than all the mortals around it that it is always
	bored and *feels* unappreciated.  (Sounds like some of my
	students!)

Ah yes, Marvin the paranoid android.  "Here I am, brain the size
of a planet and all they want me to do is pick up a peice of
paper."

This is really interesting.  You might think that a robot with such
a huge intellect would also develop an oversized ego...  but just
the reverse could be true.  He thinks so fast and so well that he
becomes bored and disgusted with everything around himself... so
he withdraws and wishes his boredom and misery would end.

I doubt Adams had this in mind when he wrote the book, but it
fits together nicely anyway.
-- 
					- Speaker
					speaker@umcp-cs
					speaker.umcp-cs@UDel-Relay

This must be hell...all I can see are flames... towering flames!