X-Message-Number: 2271
Date: 20 May 93 02:32:29 EDT
From: JOHN K CLARK <>
Subject: CRYONICS  Quaife Turing and Robots

In msg 2262 Art Quaife says "It is not at all clear how we could even go
about testing whether a machine is conscious". I have a suggestion,lets
use the same method we use to tell if our fellow Human Beings are
conscious,the Turing Test.It may not be perfect (after all the only one
Dr Quaife can be certain is conscious is Dr Quaife,perhaps he is the only
conscious person in the world and is suronded by mindless though
intelligent robots like you and me) but its not bad and its all we have.
Consciousness must have an effect on visible behavior or I don't see how
evolution could could have produced it and it did , at least once.If it
changes behavior you can test for it. 

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