rss feedIBM computer to compete against humans on Jeopardy! Wasn’t chess good enough?
All of this thinking about whether robots and computers will surpass or match humans in the future prompted me to think about Deep Blue.
It’s that IBM supercomputer that played chess against champion Garry Kasparov (human) in 1997 - and won. Yes, I know: I have problems just getting past the first few moves.
Reviewing this piece of history led me to an IBM research site talking about research and Watson.
That’s the company’s new supercomputer that (get ready for this) is set to take on human brains, flesh and blood on the popular television game show, Jeopardy!
It will be a fascinating intellectual bout to watch.
I hope the trash talk will rise to the occasion with witty rejoinders mixed in with in-your-face-how-dare-you-talk-about-my-momma-in-that-way retorts.
Oh, wait. The human competitors will have to insult all the mothers of the IBM team members. That’s too much effort.
I’m sure ordinary people, futurists, academics and technologists will have commentary on how the match breaks down.
It might be good to watch the show in a bar that day. Why?
You can drink and be happy, as the slightly haunting thought of a computer actually being smarter than you slowly sinks in.
I wonder whether the American Philosophical Association plans to weigh in on this event.
Anyway. It’s true that IBM could have rested on its laurels with the Deep Blue victory.
Some thought the company experienced a bit of a bump when Lenovo took over the IBM personal computer division years ago.
But at least with Watson, it’s safe to say this: Innovation continues at Big Blue. And innovation, as the big-thinkers like to remind us, typically helps.
Of course, if the Watson-vs.-human battle isn’t enough technology for you, Microsoft has its Home of the Future.
JUNE 2010 UPDATE: The New York Times weighs in with lengthy coverage of Watson (and there’s an embedded video, too).
