Critique of Computationalism

Question 1

What is a thought experiment?

Answer 1

Thought experiments are done “without leaving the armchair” it is something known both from science and philosophy.

Question 2

What is intuition pumps (Dennett)?

Answer 2

Thought experiments are often used to take an abstract knowledge/subject and make it vivid and relatable

The Chinese room, is a thought experiment, which takes something abstract; implementation independent, systematically interpretable symbol manipulation and makes it vivid and relatable.

Question 3

Give examples of thought experiments

Answer 3

If a thought experiments are good then they are often remembered and used for a very long time.
Examples of thought experiments:
* Schrodinger’s cat
* The missing shade of blue
* The Chinese Room

Question 4

What is the Chinese room?

Answer 4

I know, but for practice speaking it

Question 5

What are the three axioms searle made to the chinese room?

Answer 5

Axiom 1. Computer programs are formal (syntactic)
Axiom 2. Human minds have mental contents (semantics)
Axiom 3. Syntax by itself is neither constitutive of nor sufficient for semantics.

Question 6

Explain Searle’s first axiom

Answer 6

Axiom 1. Computer programs are formal (syntactic)
* The idea that computers operate purely on the manipulation of symbols based on rules (syntax), without understanding their meaning (semantics).
* Searle emphasizes by showing that a computer program, like the person in the Chinese Room, works purely on syntax.

Question 7

Explain Searle’s second axiom

Answer 7

Axiom 2. Human minds have mental contents (semantics)
* Human minds are not just about symbol manipulation but also about understanding and meaning. Human mental states involve semantics.
* Underscores that human minds possess understanding and intentionality — qualities that go beyond mere symbol manipulation, which Searle asserts are essential for genuine understanding.

Question 8

Explain Searle’s third axiom

Answer 8

Axiom 3. Syntax by itself is neither constitutive of nor sufficient for semantics.
* Merely following syntactical rules (syntax) does not lead to understanding or meaning (semantics). In other words, manipulating symbols according to formal rules does not result in actual comprehension.
* Reflects Searle’s claim that formal symbol manipulation (syntax) cannot produce real understanding (semantics), similar to how the person in the Chinese Room can manipulate Chinese symbols without understanding them.

Question 9

What is the system argument and Searle’s response?

Answer 9

Argument:
* The systems reply argues that while the individual in the Chinese Room does not understand Chinese, the entire system (comprising the person, the instruction book, and the room) does understand Chinese.
* Proponents claim that understanding should be attributed to the whole system rather than the individual components.

Searle’s Response:
* Searle counters by suggesting that even if you internalized the whole system (memorizing the rules and symbols), you still wouldn’t understand Chinese; you would just be manipulating symbols.
* He maintains that understanding cannot emerge from purely syntactic symbol manipulation, regardless of the system’s complexity.

Question 10

What is the brain argument and Searle’s response?

Answer 10

Argument:
* The brain simulator reply suggests simulating the neuronal processes of a native Chinese speaker’s brain. If a computer could replicate the exact functions of a brain, it would ostensibly understand Chinese.
* This approach posits that simulating the right causal processes of the brain will lead to genuine understanding.

Searle’s Response:
* Searle argues that simulating a brain’s processes is still just running a program, which involves symbol manipulation without understanding.

Question 11

What is the robot argument and Searle’s response?

Answer 11

Argument:
* The robot reply proposes placing the system inside a robot, allowing it to interact with the real world through sensors and effectors.
* Proponents argue that grounding the symbols in the robot’s sensory experiences would result in genuine understanding.

Searle’s Response:
* Searle contends that adding sensors and effectors doesn’t solve the problem of understanding. The robot would still be processing symbols based on input-output relationships, without any intrinsic comprehension.
* He believes that while sensory input might make the robot’s behavior more complex, it still wouldn’t endow the system with real understanding or consciousness.

Question 12

What is the Turing test?

Answer 12

The Turing test, which tells us that “in principle” it is impossible for a human to know whether they are talking with a computer or a person, as it behaves and “speaks” like a human.

Question 13

What do we use the Turing test for today?

Answer 13

• Aim of cognitive science – Reverse engineering of the mind
• Reverse engineering – Figuring out the functions and mechanics of a system we have not designed
• A good way of reverse engineering – Design something that is functionally indistinguishable
• Turing test – A test for checking whether things are functionally indistinguishable

Question 14

Name Turings three levels of indistinguishability

Answer 14

T2 - Symbolic
T3 - Symbolic and Sensorimotor
T4 - Symbolic, Sensorimotor and Neuromolecular

Question 15

Explain T2 - Symbolic

Answer 15

• Focuses on systems indistinguishable from humans in symbolic manipulation.
• Illustrated by the traditional Turing Test, where a system communicates textually in a way that mimics human conversation.
• Reveals the Symbol Grounding Problem, indicating that while symbol manipulation can mimic human behaviour, it lacks intrinsic meaning.

Question 16

Explain T3 - Symbolic and Sensorimotor

Answer 16

• Extends beyond symbol manipulation to include sensorimotor capabilities.
• Systems at this level not only manipulates symbols but also interacts with its environment indistinguishable from humans.
• Addresses the Symbol Grounding Problem by grounding symbols in physical interactions, ensuring they acquire meaning through interaction with the world.

Question 17

Explain T4 - Symbolic, Sensorimotor and Neuromolecular

Answer 17

• Includes neuromolecular capabilities, encompassing the biological processes underlying cognition.
• Represents a comprehensive emulation of human cognition, including the workings of neural networks.
• Implies a deeper level of indistinguishability, extending beyond behaviour and physical interaction to include biological substrates of cognition.

Question 18

What is the symbol grounding problem?

Answer 18

It addresses how symbols (such as words or other representations) gain meaning, particularly in the context of computational systems like AI.
About linking the sentence “A cat on a mat” to the mental image of an actual cat on a mat.

For symbols to be meaningful, they need to be connected to their real-world referents (the actual objects or concepts they represent).
Symbols gain meaning by linking them to sensory experiences (e.g., seeing, touching, or smelling an apple).

Question 19

What is Harnad’s perspective on the symbol grounding problem?

Answer 19

* Iconic Representations: Direct sensory experiences of objects (e.g., visual perception of an apple).

• Categorical Representations: Generalized concepts derived from multiple sensory experiences (e.g., recognizing different apples as belonging to the category “apple”).
• Symbolic Representations: Symbols used to denote these categorical representations (e.g., the word “apple” represents the category).

Question 20

What is Leibniz’s law? ( ∀ x ∀ y[∀ F(Fx⇔Fy)⇒ x=y])

Answer 20

In plain words: For any x and y, if x and y haven all the same properties, F, then x and y are identical
* In even simpler words: if it looks like a duck, sounds like a duck, smells like a duck, quacks like a duck, then it is a duck

The thing is though, no two distinct entities can ever actually share the exact same properties, and if X is indiscernible with Y, then they are in fact identical.

Question 21

What is Intrinsic properties? (Leibniz’s law)

Answer 21

Properties that belong to an entity itself, regardless of external circumstances.
* Examples: Mass, shape, charge, chemical composition.
* Intrinsic properties are inherent to the object and do not depend on the object’s relationship to other entities or its environment.

Question 22

What is Extrinsic properties? (Lebniz’s law)

Answer 22

Properties that depend on an entity’s relationship with other entities or its environment.
* Examples: Location, being a sibling, ownership, distance from another object.
* Extrinsic properties are not inherent to the object alone; they rely on external factors and context.