Volume XXIII, Number 7 (Issue 1116) | February 17, 2025
Something to Ponder
Even introverts are social creatures, their protests notwithstanding. As such they/we require relationships if we are to get things done, feel complete, etc. Poet John Donne reminded us of that when he penned, “No Man Is an Island.” Experience tells us relationships are complex and fragile things with highs, lows, ebbs, and flows throughout their existence. In order for our relationships to grow, survive, and thrive, mutual acceptance and mutual trust must be present. While the latter may begin with the benefit of the doubt when the risk of loss is deemed to be low, trust can also take shape on the basis of personal observation or the testimony of a credible third party. Yet regardless of its origins, trust can only be sustained if there is a level of credibility gained through performance, reliability, and consistency. It is our need for acceptance (mutual acceptance to be more specific) that gives relationships their strength and durability. A different word to describe this dynamic is interdependence.
Our earliest ancestors’ ability to survive required, among other things, an elevated level of interdependence which quickly gave rise to the formation of tribes. The sustainability of those tribes was in turn the wellspring for our forebearers’ efforts to develop a basic mutual code of conduct. Compliance with that code meant you could remain with the tribe whereas violation of the code resulted in ostracism and almost certain death. Over time, those primitive codes merged and evolved into more standardized codes of ethics including the Ten Commandments.
Those codes of ethics have served well at times, not so well at others. But on balance those standards have received sufficient acceptance to enable us to add to our individual and collective store of wisdom and general prosperity. But now we stand on the threshold of a new era where artificial intelligence is reaching a stage where it is achieving omniscience – only without the guardrails that feelings and a conscience provide. From there, omnipotence is not far away. Once we cross that boundary, machine-learning will no longer require or accept our input. Based on current trends the day is not that far off when machines will no longer be dependent upon humans while humans will be even more dependent upon machines. So much for interdependence, let alone a moral code that might regulate the relationship.
The questions we must ask and quickly answer in the face of this inevitability are:
- Who is going to create a universal code of conduct (ethical standards) that will govern those machines and their output (actions)?
- What will that code include (and exclude)?
- When will we get around to it? We dare not wait!
- Where will it reside?
- How will it be protected?
If you buy even a fraction of my arguments, the “why?” need not be asked other than to state the obvious: the “artificial” in artificial intelligence is the basis of the need. Still unconvinced? Then allow me to paraphrase something Malcolm Gladwell said in a recent interview: our values should not change – even with the passage of time – whereas our ideas must change and evolve as we gain new knowledge and understanding.
Soli Deo Gloria
“You may ask me for anything in my name, and I will do it. “If you love me, keep my commands. And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another advocate to help you and be with you forever—the Spirit of truth. The world cannot accept him, because it neither sees him nor knows him.” John 14:14-17
J. Keith Hughey
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E-mail: keith@jkeithhughey.com
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Copyright 2025 by J. Keith Hughey. All rights reserved. Permission is hereby granted for reproduction and redistribution of this essay as provided under the copyright laws of the United States of America. Recent issues of Musings may be found at www.jkeithhughey.com. Your comments are always welcome.