人工智能双刃剑 服务于人也伤人

The notion of machines rebelling against humans has long been a theme of science fiction books and films. But as advances in computer processors and memory chips rapidly usher us into the world of artificial intelligence, some scientists and technological entrepreneurs are urging us to get ready for machines becoming more independent.

以机器反叛对抗人类的概念为主题的科幻小说和电影已经出现了很长一段时间，但是，随着电脑处理器和记忆芯片的快速发展正引领我们走入人工智能世界，一些科学家和技术创业者也敦促人们为机器将变得更加自主和独立做好准备。

For instance, the artificial brains called autopilots that have been flying airplanes for decades require the presence but not the focused attention of the pilot. But smart cars are going to be the first machines making independent decisions in close interaction with humans.

人工大脑，也被称为自动驾驶系统，已经用于驾驶飞机几十年。使用这个系统，飞行员只需要坐在驾驶舱，而不需要集中注意力操纵飞机。但是，智能汽车即将成为第一个能够通过与人进行互动，然后独立作出决定的机器。

Many feel uneasy about it. But Jerry Kaplan, a computer scientist and author of the book "Humans Need Not Apply," says smart cars will be much more cautious than humans and their style of driving will save many lives. He spoke to VOA via Skype.

虽然许多人对此表示不安，但是计算机科学家、《人力不再适用》一书的作者杰里·卡普兰表示，智能汽车会比人更加仔细，并且这种智能的驾驶方式能挽救许多生命。

“I think when you take a broader picture, you have to recognize that we may be able to reduce the amount of carnage on our highways by 80, 90 percent” by using smart cars, he said.

他通过Skype对美国之音记者说:“我认为如果你从大局来看的话，你必须认识到智能汽车的使用可能使高速公路上的惨剧减少80%到90%。”

Advanced technologies have always been of great interest to the military, which is developing drones capable of flying without remote control. Some say the possibility of such weapons systems making decisions about life and death is much harder to accept than a smart car.

军队总是对先进的技术有极大的兴趣，他们正在研发能够不需要遥控的无人机。有些人说，像这样能够决定生死的武器系统的使用，相比智能汽车会更难让人接受。

“Who will be responsible for one of these weapons systems killing an innocent person?" asked Toby Walsh, a professor of artificial intelligence at the University of New South Wales in Sydney. "It’s very unclear; we don’t have the framework in place to understand. Is it the person who built the autonomous robot? Is it the person who built the program? It is the person who turned it on?”

新南威尔士大学的托比·沃尔什说：“如果这些武器系统杀害了无辜的人，谁来负责？这是非常不清楚的,我们没有适当的制度来搞清楚这个事情。是生产自主机器人的人，是创建这个项目的人，还是启动机器的人来负责呢？”

While some are calling for a worldwide ban on smart weapons, others point out that the components for building them already exist — creating the danger that a rogue nation or terrorist group could gain the upper hand. There are other reasons, too, for moving forward.

尽管一些人要求相关部门在全球范围内出台对智能武器的禁令，另有一些人指出，生产这些武器的零部件已经出现，一些无赖国家和恐怖组织在这方面已占据了优势，我们必须继续前进。

“There are very strong moral arguments that we need to develop these technologies because they reduce things like the so-called collateral damage,” Kaplan said.

卡普兰说：“我们需要发展这些技术还有一个十分强有力的道德理由。由于使用这些技术，减少了许多所谓的军事行动的附带性破坏（比如军事行动造成的平民伤亡）。”

As the technology is racing ahead, artificial intelligence may bring both good and bad things. And scientists warn that we have to do more to adjust to changing times.

随着技术的飞速发展，人工智能可能是一把双刃剑。科学家提醒人们，必须做更多努力去适应迅速变化的时代。

Kaplan said there is an interim period "in which people are put out of work and people need to learn new skills, and unfortunately, because this is an accelerated pace of this kind of automation, those problems in the short run are going to get significantly worse.”

卡普兰说：“现在这个阶段于人们而言是一个过渡期，有些人失业，有些人需要学习新的技能。很不幸的是，因为发展这种自动化技术的步伐正大大加快，许多短时间内产生的问题正变得更加糟糕。”

While thinking about the changes artificial intelligence will create in our everyday lives, it may be worthwhile to remind ourselves of the First Law of Robotics, which famed science fiction writer Isaac Asimov suggested in 1942: “A robot may not injure a human being or, through inaction, allow a human being to come to harm.”

在考虑人工智能会给日常生活带来的变化时，科幻小说作家艾萨克·阿西莫夫提出的 “机器人第一定律”可能是值得我们想到的一个东西。他在1942年提出，“机器人不得伤害人类，或坐视人类受到伤害。”