AI....are we approaching the age of the Matrix?

When I saw the movie series the Matrix, I was really so fascinated by the idea of this Artificial Intelligence (AI) thing. I wondered whether it could actually be true, and of late I am actually coming across a lot of information on it which suggests, YES, it could be true....fiction turning into reality!

Robots and computer programs (bots) are being made and further developed, which function on its own intelligence and adapt to situations and memorise situations and derive solutions for the same, without being fed with any information on how it should respond to situations. It's a big milieu in science but it may have its disadvantages too. It is said, now AI is being dreaded more than the nukes.

I must say, boy! it's one hell of a crazy innovation.

What is intelligence?

Well, time and again, in the entire universe the two greatest scientific mysteries have been the origin of the universe and the origin of intelligence. And intelligence....it lies in the brain.

To understand Artificial Intelligence, let's first see how the human brain works, so it will correlate.

Talking about the brain in a nutshell. Our brain is said to consume about 20-30 watts of power and it performs super calculations. So it’s quite a mystery - How is the brain wired up? How do we enhance our mental capabilities? Etc, etc....

Based on such studies, later on, the development of microprocessors and microchips started; that is, "Logic" based electronic devices. We all have read about basic Logic in our school course.

The brain has three parts, the back of the brain, which is so-called the reptilian brain. It is the most ancient primitive part of the brain that governs balance, territoriality and mating. The very back of the brain is also the kind of brain that you find in reptiles.

Then, we have the center part of the brain, which is so-called the monkey brain or the mammalian brain. The brain of emotions. The brain of social hierarchies.

And the front of the brain which is the human brain, especially the prefrontal cortex. This is where rational thinking takes place. So when you ask yourself, where am I? The answer is right behind your forehead. That is where you actually are.

Researchers, scientists and engineers further carried forward their progress in computer science and programming, and based on the idea of the human brain functionality, tried to create something similar, and called it Artificial Intelligence. These science guys....they always try to create a replica.

Attached to the concept of intelligence is the concept of consciousness too. Our brain is a prediction machine. And so, when we look at the evolution from the reptilian brain to the mammalian brain to the prefrontal cortex, we realize, that intelligence and consciousness put together, is the process of understanding our position in space with respect to others - that is emotions (in India it is very well defined by NAVARASA) - and finally running simulations into the future.

Thus, based on the attributes of the brain, the concept of Artificial Intelligence evolved. To understand AI, how it works - it is intelligence and consciousness together, which leads to learning then prediction/anticipation then response to an upcoming situation and smart adaptability and capability to modify and change....just like the human brain. But human brains tend to make mistakes, whereas these bots and borgs don't.

In the present times, with the Internet of Things (IoT), in the sensors, devices, data and cloud infrastructure that connects the numerous smart devices around us, increasingly smart interconnected world, are unprecedented and inevitable.

Billions of devices around the world are becoming interlinked and beginning to talk to each other for helping us to network, communicate, understand, control and manage our day to day lives, our homes, health, factories, cities, everything....even, now there are these automatic self driving cars, metro trains without drivers, aircrafts which run on auto pilot and so on.... Artificial Intelligence is being used and implanted into every man made device/thing for our convenience.

What if there is a malfunction and these bots and borgs go crazy? Give it a thought....

So now what say?

The tech world had drastically advanced. And so, here we are....approaching into the age of the Matrix - should I put it as? Can such a phenomenon actually happen....human race taken over by bots and borgs? We better be careful!