A big issue having to do with the field of artificial intelligence, or, even more, with artificial intelligence in the domain of science fiction is emotions. Since emotions constitute a function of the brain, will computers ever be able to experience them? The dispute between Marvin Minsky and the other outstanding figure in artificial intelligence, John McCarthy, involves the emotional part of intelligence. The latter claims that we are in a position of creating clever machines, not necessarily bestowed with human feelings. Minsky, on the other hand, believes that such a hyper-computer like HAL, the one in “Space Odyssey” which will be capable of envy is attainable. “The solution to all problems”, he says, “demands resources. When resources are limited…”

According to Minsky each and every emotion is nothing but a specific array in our brains: “If you take a look at any of the books referring to the human mind you will see that it looks like a huge arrangement of switches…

Love means nothing else than 20-30 of these switches being turned on and some others being switched off. It is a specific arrangement…Anger is another one…”

MARVIN MINSKY…

…is a member of the faculty at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. He also teaches Mathematics at the University of Princeton and is a pioneer in the field of artificial intelligence. He has been awarded with dozens of prizes in Science and has written Society of Mind, which has been a bestseller. Today he is working at the MIT Media Lab and is writing the sequel to the Society of Mind under the title: Emotion Machine…