Intentionality%20and%20artificial%20intelligence

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Intentionality and artificial intelligence

• Michael Lacewing
• enquiries_at_alevelphilosophy.co.uk

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Intentionality

• Mental states are about, or directed onto,
  something, e.g. belief about Paris, desire for
  chocolate.
• Intentionality has nothing to do with intentions.
• An Intentional mental state has Intentional
  content.

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Intentional content

• Oedipus kills his father out of anger
• Was Oedipus angry with his father? Yes, and no
• We always think of the world in a particular way
• Do atmospherically formed crystals in hexagonal
  form reflect all wavelengths of visible light?
• Call this aspectual shape.
• Intentional object the thing we think about
• Intentional content object shape

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Reduction

• How can anything physical have Intentionality?
• Physical states and properties, e.g. chemical
  ones, are never about anything
• Functionalism Intentionality is a
  causal-functional property
• A belief is about dogs because it is caused by
  dogs and causes behaviour towards dogs.
• But a cloud is caused by water evaporating from
  the sea yet the cloud isnt about the sea.

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Functional accounts

• Beliefs carry information about the world.
• Natural states do this, e.g. smoke carries
  information about fire.
• But beliefs can be mistaken, smoke cannot.
• The function of beliefs is to represent the world
  truly.
• Many natural things can malfunction.
• Mistake malfunction
• Stomachs can malfunction, but still arent
  about food.

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The Chinese Room

• Is artificial intelligence intelligent? Searle
  only if Intentionality could be reduced to
  functions

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One response

• The issue is the type of interaction with the
  world
• Replace the person by a computer.
• Put the computer inside a robot.
• Connect up a visual input and audio output.
• The robot can now name objects in Chinese.
• Does the robot understand Chinese?

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Consciousness and aspect

• Searle the robot still doesnt understand, but
  simulates understanding
• To understand, we need consciousness
• Aspectual shape is essential to genuine
  Intentionality
• Only consciousness provides aspectual shape
  (point of view)