Artificial Intelligence is sort of like jelly

Just thinking about it turns my brain to jelly.  Thinking about that makes me pause.  I do like jelly.  In the right circumstances, it is quite right.  Just what is needed to top a piece of toast.  And, it has been around for centuries in one form or another.  Few people I know don’t imbibe, at least a bit, often in their lives.  Rarely is its merit argued or questioned.

The home produced version is accepted and welcomed at the table.  If offered as a gift among friends and family, a simple identifying label is appreciated.  When sold on the open market, a full blown and regulated label is expected, and generally required, to warn the purchaser of exactly what they are getting in order to make a fully informed decision.

Artificial Intelligence is sort of like jelly. Maybe not quite as old, but pretty darn old.

According to a 2016 article in Forbes, the first recorded example of the use of artificial intelligence was in 1308.  Given the circumstances of available knowledge at the time, I think the account just about hits the nail on the head.  Apparently, a poet and theologian named Ramon Llull had given some thought to the subject for a period of time.  His field of study as of yet was not quite defined, but the article described his published findings as “further perfecting his method of using paper-based mechanical means to create new knowledge from combinations of concepts.”

When you put it like that, it makes perfect sense. The world of artificial intelligence develops slowly.

According to the Forbes article, in 1666 a mathematician and philosopher named Gottfried Leibniz followed up on the idea “in proposing an alphabet of human thought and arguing that all ideas are nothing but combinations of a relatively small number of simple concepts.”

Like jelly.  Basic jelly is made of fruit and sugar and pectin.  Pectin is the stuff that solidifies the fruit and sugar.  It is also made of fruit.  The entire jar of delicious and satisfying jelly is made of stuff you can find either in your cabinet and your garden or possibly with a quick trip to the store.  Or maybe from a neighbor friend who has an abundance of fruit, or from the local farmers’ market.

Jelly can be quite creative.  Fruit is a broad term.  Jelly flavors can be gathered from red bud blossoms, hot peppers, dandelions (finally a reason to celebrate a yard full of that), fruits nearly past prime, and so forth.

Are you following the developing analogy?

Would that be so simple?  And, personal.  And, though maybe messy in the process, produces a satisfying product which can be enjoyed without much consternation.

We use and have used artificial intelligence every day, multiple times, without much consideration or stress.  Bits of this and bits of that are taken into our thought processes through research, conversation and study, then rearranged, and reprocessed and new ideas emerge.  Moving on.

Whether we realize it or not, we always assumed the new bits and pieces were generated by other humans and shared in some manner which may be mechanical though not altered by the mechanics.  We weighed the value of the information by considering the source and circumstances.

Google Artificial Intelligence.  The first definition which appeared in my search clearly states that “AI makes it possible for machines to learn from experience, adjust to new inputs and perform human-like tasks.  Most AI examples…rely heavily on deep learning and natural language processing.”

The concept of modern AI is traced to a summer workshop at Dartmouth College in 1956.  It is said that the folks around that table were the leaders in the field of AI research for decades.  That brings it mighty close to this minute.

My whimsical mind envisions one guy said something like, “Wouldn’t it be super if a typewriter could predict the words a secretary would use in preparing the minutes of this meeting  based on just a few letters?  Think of all the time she would save.  More time to run our other errands.”

“What a great idea.  Let’s see where that goes.”   “Could a feature be added to underline a word that is misspelled?”  “What about grammar corrections?”  “This could be huge!”

Those guys enjoyed years of job security.

It is huge.  Beyond that.

Mechanical means make life so much more efficient, convenient, practical.  Horses are beautiful to look at and take for a trail ride.  Horsepower is definitely more useful in a car.  A handwritten note is a nice touch, but a phone call can save a life in an emergency.

Human knowledge has been translated into accepted and necessary mechanical processes for quite a long time.  We rarely give it a thought as we go through our daily lives.

The remaining Beatles have released a “new” song in which a form of AI was used to “lift out” John Lennon’s voice.  Imagine the implications in the art world if a “new” work by Van Gogh appeared on the market.  What is real?

AI should come with a warning label like jelly.

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