Activity 11. In groups discuss how quantum computers will improve very sphere of our life. Share your ideas with the class.

Activity 12. Hold a debate on the following resolution: “Quantum computers will cause a doomsday scenario”.

TEXT3. ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE WILL KILL OUR GRANDCHILDREN

Extracts from: http://berglas.org/Articles/AIKillGrandchildren/AIKillGrandchildren.html,http://www.futureforall.org/ai/singularity.htm

PRE-READING

Activity 1. Read the title of the text and dis/agree with it.

Computers have become an integral part of our life, and advances in Artificial Intelligence (AI) are impressive. It is difficult to predict future progress, but if a computer ever became about as good at programming computers as people are, then it could program a copy of itself.  This would lead to an exponential rise in intelligence (now often referred to as the Singularity).  And evolution suggests that a sufficiently powerful AI would probably destroy humanity.  

One frightening aspect of an intelligence computer is that it could program itself.  If man built the machine, and the machine is about as intelligent as man, then the machine must be capable of understanding and thus improving a copy of itself.  When the copy is activated it would be slightly smarter than the original, and thus better able to produce a new version of itself that is even smarter.  This process is exponential, just like a nuclear chain reaction.  At first only small improvements might be made, as the machine is only just capable of making improvements at all.  But as it became smarter it would become better and better at becoming smarter.  So it could move from being barely intelligent to hyper intelligent in a very short period of time. Man's intelligence is intimately tied to his physical body.  The brain is very finite, cannot be physically extended or copied, takes many years to develop and when it dies the intelligence dies with it.  On the other hand, an artificial intelligence is just software.  It can be trivially duplicated, copied to a more powerful computer, or possibly a botnet of computers scattered over the web.  It could also adapt and absorb other intelligent software, making any concept of "self" quite hazy. This means that its world view would be very different from man's, and it is difficult to predict how it would behave.

There are many doom's day scenarios.  Bio technologies, nano technologies, global warming, nuclear annihilation.  While these might be annoying, they are all within our normal understanding and some of humanity is likely to survive.  We also would have at least some time to understand and react to most of them.  But intelligence is fundamental to our existence and its onset could be very fast.  How do you argue with a much more intelligent opponent?

LANGUAGE FOCUS

Activity 2. Fill in the table with derivatives:

Noun	Verb	Adjective	Adverb
		integral
			sufficiently
		impressive
	activate
annihilation

Activity 3. Match the words to make collocations. Make you examples with them:

1. integral	a. rise
2. advances	b. powerful
3. exponential	c. in artificial intelligence
4. scatter	d. over the web
5. sufficiently	e. part

Activity 4.Fill in the crossword:

Across

5. the hypothesized creation of smarter-than-human entities who rapidly accelerate technological progress beyond the capability of human beings to participate

7. very rapid

8. the study of the modelling of human mental functions by computer programs

Down

1. a network of computers using distributed computing software

2. beginning, inception

3. obscure, vague

4. act of moving forward, improvement

6. constituting a whole

GRAMMAR FOCUS

Activity 5.Choose the correct variant:

1. Evolution suggests that a sufficiently powerful AI _______ humanity.  

a. would destroy b. will destroy c. will have destroyed d. will be being destroyed

2. By 2030 an intelligent machine _______ potential to replicate itself.

a. will have b. will have had c. will be having d. will be had

3. The computer with AI’s world view _______very different from man's.

a. will have been b. would be c. will be d. will be being

4. Even in a doomsday scenario the humanity _______.

a. will have survived b. will have been survived c. will survive d. will be surviving

5. By the time the intelligent computers are invented people _______ how to treat them.

a. will have known b. will know c. will be knowing d. would know

Activity 6. Use the correct form of Conditional I:

1. If a computer _______ (become) smart enough, it _______ (program) a copy of itself.

2. If the copy _______ (activate), it _______ (be) smarter than the original.

3. If a computer _______ (understand) that it’s smart, it _______(think) that it is smarter than people.

4. If we _______ (have) enough time, we _______ (react) to the computer intelligence.

5. If the doomsday scenario _______ (come) true, humanity _______(have) hard times.

WHILE-READING

Activity 7. Break the text into parts and entitle each.

Activity 8. Mark the sentences as True, False or Not Given:

1. The author of the text is pessimistic about the future of humanity with the development of AI. ___

2. The potential danger of an intelligent computer lies in its ability to think. ___

3. The process of self-improvement of intelligent computers is compared to a nuclear chain reaction. ___

4. There is no limit to the process of computer self-improvement. ___

5. The author predicts that humanity will be able to control the computer intelligence. ___

POST-READING

Activity 9. Translate the first paragraph of the text.

Activity 10. Identify the topic of the text and formulate its main idea. Summarize the text.

Activity 11. Divide into the groups of 3. Each student reads a separate card with a proposed safety measure to prevent the doomsday scenario. Share your info with the group. Propose your solution of the problem and present it to class.

Card A Dr Anthony Berglas proposes a moratorium on producing faster computers.  Just make it illegal to build the chips, and so starve any Artificial Intelligence of computing power. We have a precedent in the control of nuclear fuel.  While far from perfect, we do have strong controls on the availability of bomb making materials, and they could be made stronger if the political will existed.  It is relatively easy to make an atomic bomb once one has enough plutonium or highly enriched uranium.  But making the fuel is much, much harder.  That is why we are alive today.

Card B Isaac Asimov’s Three Laws of Robotics are one of the earliest examples of proposed safety measures for AI. The laws are intended to prevent artificially intelligent robots from harming humans. A robot may not injure a human being or, through inaction, allow a human being to come to harm. A robot must obey orders given to it by human beings except where such orders would conflict with the First Law. A robot must protect its own existence as long as such protection does not conflict with the First or Second Law. Later, Asimov added the Zeroth Law: "A robot may not harm humanity, or, by inaction, allow humanity to come to harm"; the rest of the laws are modified sequentially to acknowledge this.

Card C Yudkowsky proposed an alternate solution, namely that it might be possible to program a "Friendly" AI that will not hurt us.  If the very first AI was friendly, then it might be capable of preventing other unfriendly AIs from developing.  The first AI would have a head start on reprogramming itself, so no other AI would be able to catch it, at least initially.

Activity 12. Hold a debate on the resolution: One day computers will be as intelligent as humans.

Activity 13. Make your predictions for the following spheres of our life. Then read the text and compare with your list.

Sphere	Time	Predictions
Artificial Intelligence
Computers
Electronics
Robotics