The Surprisingly Difficult Science
of Beautiful Paintings
Derek J. SMITH, C.Eng., C.I.T.P.
High Tower Consultants Limited
Cardiff Metropolitan University (Retired)
smithsrisca@btinternet.com
http://www.smithsrisca.co.uk
A presentation to
Thursday 26th July 2012
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
• During the 1980s Derek Smith worked for British Telecom,
Cardiff, where he specialised in the design and operation of very
large CA-IDMS "semantic network" databases.
• Between 1991 and 2010 he taught psycholinguistics and
neuropsychology to the Speech and Language Therapy
students at Cardiff Metropolitan University.
• He is currently working with International
Software Products, Toronto, on "Project
Konrad", an artificial consciousness
project using a CA-IDMS platform.
WHY WE ARE HERE TODAY
Here is a critically acclaimed
painting.
In a moment you will find out if
you love it or hate it, or
whether you are going to
wonder what all the fuss is
about, but there is no single
science to explain this (or any
other) moment of artistic
appreciation.
HOPEFULLY MANY OF
YOU WON'T HAVE SEEN
THIS PICTURE BEFORE.
WHETHER YOU LIKE IT
OR NOT, ASK
YOURSELF WHY, AND
GIVE YOURSELF A
SCORE HOW MUCH.
Francis
Bacon
HATE
IT
LOVE IT
"Portrait of Lucien
Freud" [ONE
0
10 OF THREE]
(1952)
PLAN OF THE PRESENTATION
• Section 1 examines why vision evolved and how the eye feeds
information to the visual areas of the brain.
• Sections 2 to 4 then introduce some of the specific problems
raised when the visual object happens to be a work of art.
• Finally, Sections 5 to 7 report how these problems have helped
the author design a robot brain capable of human-like
experience, and suggest how that robot brain might, in turn,
teach us more about the human experience of art.
SECTION 1
THE VISUAL SYSTEM AND
SURVIVAL
HOW VISION BEGAN, HOW IT WORKS, WHY IT
DOES WHAT IT DOES
THE VERTEBRATE NERVOUS SYSTEM
HOW IT ALL BEGAN
This is a Pikaia, a wormlike creature from 530 MYA, known only
from the fossil record. It has segmented blocks of muscle and
has evolved a nerve cord to coordinate their contraction and
relaxation.
HEAD
TAIL
Pikaia, or creatures like
them, are the evolutionary
ancestors of all modern
vertebrates, including
humans.
| ---------------------- 50mm -------------------- |
THE VERTEBRATE NERVOUS SYSTEM
HOW IT ALL BEGAN
As new animals evolved, this nerve cord gradually thickened
at the head end to form a brain.
Visual information was processed in an area known as the
"optic tectum" [solid blue]. The surface layer, or "cortex", of
the "cerebrum" [light blue] provided additional general
intelligence when called for.
THE VERTEBRATE NERVOUS SYSTEM
HOW IT ALL BEGAN
As evolution continued,
brains became larger
and more powerful, and
many functions of the
optic tectum were taken
over by the cerebral
cortex.
THE VERTEBRATE NERVOUS SYSTEM
HOW IT ALL BEGAN
The underlying
structure of all
these nervous
systems is the
same.
Note that vision is
just one cortical
specialism
amongst many.
SMELL
AND
TASTE
CONSCIOUSNESS,
COMMAND,
AND CONTROL
HABIT,
INSTINCT,
AND
EMOTION
BALANCE
AND
REFLEXES
BODILY SENSES
INSTRUCTIONS
TO MUSCLES
VISION
AND
HEARING
THE VERTEBRATE NERVOUS SYSTEM
HOW IT ALL BEGAN
It is common
practice to refer
to all mental
processing
above the level
of instinct and
reflex as
"cognition", and
to the science
thereof as
"cognitive
science".
SMELL
AND
TASTE
KNOWING
HABIT,
INSTINCT,
AND
EMOTION
BALANCE
AND
REFLEXES
BODILY SENSES
INSTRUCTIONS
TO MUSCLES
VISION
AND
HEARING
THE VERTEBRATE NERVOUS SYSTEM
HOW IT ALL BEGAN
NOTE HOW VISUAL
INFORMATION GETS
SQUEEZED
KNOWING
UPWARDS
THROUGH THE
HABIT,
INSTINCT,
LOWER SYSTEMS
AND
ON ITS WAY TO
EMOTION
BECOMING
CONSCIOUS.
SMELL
AND
TASTE
BALANCE
AND
REFLEXES
VISION
AND
HEARING
BODILY SENSES
INSTRUCTIONS
TO MUSCLES
THE VERTEBRATE NERVOUS SYSTEM
HOW IT ALL BEGAN
NOTE ALSO
HOW THE
HIGHER
SYSTEMS ARE
NOT ALWAYS
NEEDED ....
KNOWING
HABIT,
INSTINCT,
AND
EMOTION
BALANCE
AND
REFLEXES
BODILY SENSES
INSTRUCTIONS
TO MUSCLES
SMELL
AND
TASTE
VISION
AND
HEARING
THE VERTEBRATE NERVOUS SYSTEM
THE VISUAL SYSTEM IN HUMANS
Here is how the visual system feeds
information into the human
cerebrum. What happens after
it arrives is far less clear
because the mind's higher
functions are still poorly
understood.
?
?
?
?
?
??
THE VERTEBRATE NERVOUS SYSTEM
HOW IT ALL BEGAN
Because they are more technically precise, we shall be using a
lot of engineering diagrams like this towards the end of the
presentation.
? ? ?
CORTICAL LEVEL
HIGHER COGNITION
AUTONOMOUS WILL
DIRECTED
ATTENTION
WILLED
BEHAVIOURS
CONCEPTS
SUBCORTICAL LEVEL
SECONDARY
SENSORY
ANALYSIS
FIGURE-GROUND /
DRAMATIC GIST
PRIMARY
SENSORY
ANALYSIS
SENSORY INPUT
EMOTIONAL STATES
DRIVES AND INSTINCTS
REFLEX LEVEL
MOTOR
SCHEMA
MANAGEMENT
MOVEMENT
UNITS
LOWER
MOTOR
SUBROUTINES
MUSCLE
OUTPUT
SO WHAT HAPPENS AS THE LOWER
VISUAL PROCESSES FEED INFORMATION
THROUGH TO THE HIGHER ONES?
THE VISUAL SYSTEM AND SURVIVAL
SEARCHING FOR PREDATORS
SEE ACTIVITY #1
IN YOUR
ACTIVITIES PACK
"The Hidden Tiger"
Donald Rust
(2011)
THE VISUAL SYSTEM AND SURVIVAL
FINDING A MATE
THESE TWO MALES ARE DOING
ARTISTS
OFTEN
HUMAN
THEIR BEST
TODEPICT
BE VISUALLY
INSTINCTIVE
"BODY
LANGUAGE" IN
ATTRACTIVE
TO POTENTIAL
THEIR WORKS
.....
BREEDING
PARTNERS.
THE HUMAN VISUAL SYSTEM IS
SIMILARLY INVOLVED IN
INTERPRETING OTHER PEOPLE'S
BODY LANGUAGE.
"The Flirt"
Eugen von Blaas
(1904)
THE VISUAL SYSTEM AND SURVIVAL
SEARCHING FOR OBJECTS
SEE ACTIVITY #2
IN YOUR
ACTIVITIES PACK
This act of recognition will come very quickly once you have
sorted the "figure" from the "ground".
THE VISUAL SYSTEM AND SURVIVAL
THE GESTALT LAW OF SIMILARITY
Visual input is organised for us long before it becomes
conscious. Indeed the organising actually determines what we
become conscious of.
RELAX AND LET YOUR VISUAL SYSTEM
TELL YOU WHAT'S GOING ON HERE
THE VISUAL SYSTEM AND SURVIVAL
THE GESTALT LAW OF CONTINUITY
THE VISUAL SYSTEM AND SURVIVAL
THE GESTALT LAW OF CLOSURE
THE VISUAL SYSTEM AND SURVIVAL
THE GESTALT LAW OF CLOSURE
Artists like to take advantage
of the Gestalt Laws.
Upon close inspection this is
an impossible scene.
However the visual system
simply fills in the gaps,
ignores the inconsistencies,
and decides for us what is out
there.
Rene Magritte
"Free Rein" (1965)
THE VISUAL SYSTEM AND SURVIVAL
THE GESTALT LAW OF COMMON FATE
Your experience of this scene will change in an instant once
things start to move, because things which move together get
processed together.
THE VISUAL SYSTEM AND SURVIVAL
FACE RECOGNITION
Another thing the visual system is
good at is recognising people.
SEE ACTIVITY #3
IN YOUR
ACTIVITIES PACK
THE VISUAL SYSTEM AND SURVIVAL
FACE RECOGNITION AND CARICATURE
THE VISUAL SYSTEM AND SURVIVAL
BUT HOW LITTLE WE REALLY SEE
PLAY "WHODUNNIT" VIDEO (WCRS)
THIS SHORT VIDEO INCLUDES 21 DELIBERATE VISUAL TRICKS AND
INCONSISTENCIES - HOW MANY CAN YOU SEE?
THE VISUAL SYSTEM AND SURVIVAL
VISUAL SCANNING
SEE ACTIVITY #4 IN YOUR
ACTIVITIES PACK
THE VISUAL SYSTEM AND ART
VISUAL SCANNING
Our eyes build up what we see
from a succession of very brief
"fixations". The scanning process
can nowadays be monitored using
special glasses, as shown below.
This technique allows
us to study the points
of relative interest in
an artwork .....
Betz, Engelbrecht, Klein,
and Rosenberg (2010)
THE VISUAL SYSTEM AND ART
VISUAL SCANNING
Recent research* suggests that the visual system carries out
two distinct scanning processes in tandem. Firstly there is a
snap decision as to the GIST of the scene at hand. Secondly a
slower item-by-item process scans each figure for its DETAIL.
It's three
actors on a
film set
*Locher, Krupinski, Mello-Thoms, and Nodine (2008)
This guy in the
foreground seems to be
talking to me rather than
the others in the picture.
The guy in black's
holding something up
but I can't make it out.
The girl's etc., etc.
THE VISUAL SYSTEM AND ART
VISUAL SCANNING
Here are some more examples of rapid gist processing. Note
how quickly you recognise the basic scenario .....
Note
howanyone
quicklynotice
you
But did
can the
identify
scene
blue aCar
No?as
a this or a that.
SO MUCH FOR THE VISUAL SYSTEM
STUDIED IN ISOLATION.
BUT IT'S WHEN VISION AND EMOTION GET
TOGETHER THAT THINGS START TO GET
REALLY COMPLICATED.
SECTION 2
ART AS FELT EMOTION
A BRAIN OF MANY SELVES
ART AS FELT EMOTION
BEAUTY AS "AGREEABILITY"
This picture is an
"abstract" - just swirls of
paint, which you may or
may not find "agreeable".
THIS IS PUZZLING,
BECAUSE THE VISUAL
SYSTEM ITSELF
CONTAINS NO OBVIOUS
PLEASURE CENTRES!!
Jackson Pollock
"Number 8" [DETAIL]
(1949)
ART AS FELT EMOTION
BEAUTY AS "AGREEABILITY"
IN FACT A PICTURE IS
NOT ART UNTIL THE
VISUAL SYSTEM HAS
DELIVERED ITS FINDINGS
TO A DIFFERENT BRAIN
SYSTEM, NAMELY THE
ONE RESPONSIBLE FOR
OUR EMOTIONS, FOR
ONLY THEN CAN WE LIKE
OR DISLIKE IT!!
ART AS FELT EMOTION
MacLEAN'S (1952) "TRIUNE" BRAIN
Understanding forms and
scenes, felt emotion, thinking,
and the will
Emotional activation and
instinctive behaviour; visual
scanning and organisation
Sensations and actions
linked as Reflexes
ART AS FELT EMOTION
MacLEAN'S (1952) "TRIUNE" BRAIN
FELT EMOTION
EMOTION
EYES
SENSATION
One of the reasons
science does not yet
understand art is that
these three brain
systems are responding
to different things, and in
different ways.
ART AS FELT EMOTION
MacLEAN'S (1952) "TRIUNE" BRAIN
FELT EMOTION
EMOTION
EYES
SENSATION
This is easy to demonstrate
whenever our higher self
feels something which our
lower selves have already
started to respond to.
ART AS FELT EMOTION
MacLEAN'S (1952) "TRIUNE" BRAIN
FELT EMOTION
EMOTION
EYES
SENSATION
This is why animals can get
by without higher selves at
all!
ART AS FELT EMOTION
THE DIFFERENT EMOTIONS
There is a wide range of
emotions hard-wired
into us, including those
shown here.
:-)
;-)
:-(
:-{
{:-()
SO LET'S HAVE A QUICK LOOK AT HOW
ARTISTS DOWN THE AGES HAVE PLAYED
ON OUR EMOTIONS .....
ART AS FELT EMOTION
RITUAL AND MYSTERY IN ART
Artist(s) unknown
Venus of Willendorf
(25,000 BC)
Artist(s) unknown
Lascaux II Cave Painting
(15,000 BC)
ART AS FELT EMOTION
HAPPY ART
Leonardo da Vinci
"Mona Lisa"
(ca 1503)
Lucien Freud
"Woman Smiling"
(1959)
ART AS FELT EMOTION
ANGRY ART
3D-Edddy
"Anger"
(2004)
EYEBROWS DOWN
TEETH BARED
EYES WIDE
ART AS FELT EMOTION
SCARY ART (ROMANTIC GOTHIC)
Caspar David Friedrich
"The Abbey in the
Oakwood"
(1810)
SOMBRE COLOURS
MOODY ATMOSPHERE
MONKS AND COFFINS
ART AS FELT EMOTION
SCARY ART (MODERN GOTHIC)
DISTURBING ART IS
OFTEN BASED ON
CONFLICTING
EMOTIONS, AS SHOWN
HERE.
POSITIVE EMOTION
FOR THE CHILD
BUT
NEGATIVE EMOTION
FOR THE GIST
Zhang Peng
"Untitled" (ca. 2010)
ART AS FELT EMOTION
EXPERIMENTAL ART
Yang Zhichao
"Planting Grass"
(2002)
EVOKES NEGATIVE
EMOTIONS
ASSOCIATED WITH
BODILY INJURY
SECTION 3
SCENES AS STORIES
THE EXCEPTIONALLY DIFFICULT SCIENCE
OF INTERPRETING VISUAL DRAMA
SCENES AS STORIES
COMIC STRIP VERSUS CARTOON
Stories are easy to tell pictorially if you are allowed to use lots
of images, as in a comic strip .....
SCENES AS STORIES
COMIC STRIP VERSUS CARTOON
..... but it is harder to
make a single picture
self-explanatory.
Faced with this problem,
cartoonists often
combine simple images
with supporting
captions.
Only then do we get
the joke .....
Tim Harries
SCENES AS STORIES
"THE PREGNANT MOMENT"
When storytelling in art you need to concentrate on what is
known as "the pregnant moment", a single image which will
convey your story to an audience, given what that audience
already knows.
This sort of "narrative art" is easy if your audience already
knows the story, for then you can have a one-image narrative,
as in the following example of religious art .....
SCENES AS STORIES
"THE PREGNANT MOMENT"
Caravaggio
"Supper at Emmaus"
(1601)
WELL-KNOWN STORY
WELL-KNOWN CHARACTERS
HEAVY ON SYMBOLISM
[CHECK OUT THE BASKET]
Read the full story at Wikipedia
SCENES AS STORIES
SEEING AND UNDERSTANDING
But if you don't already know the
story you have to work it out for
yourself from scratch. What are
the important unseens here, for
example?
THIS, TOO, IS PUZZLING,
BECAUSE THE VISUAL SYSTEM
ITSELF CONTAINS NO NONVISUAL INTERPRETATION
CENTRES!!
SCENES AS STORIES
SEEING AND UNDERSTANDING
INSTEAD THE VISUAL SYSTEM
HAS PASS INFORMATION TO
THE HIGHER INTELLECT, AND
THIS, IN TURN, OFTEN FINDS IT
DIFFICULT TO WORK OUT
WHAT HAPPENED. Did she kill
him, perhaps? Or did he die from
an illness? Or commit suicide?
And who said he was dead
anyway - maybe they've both just
woken up with hangovers .....
SCENES AS STORIES
SEEING AND UNDERSTANDING
Typically the intellect needs to establish WHO did WHAT, to
WHOM, with WHAT, WHERE, WHEN, and WHY. Just like in the
game CLUEDO or our earlier WHODUNNIT.
SCENES AS STORIES
SEEING, UNDERSTANDING, AND FEELING
The intellect also wants to
know if we are reacting
emotionally, i.e., HOW WE
FEEL, because it will often
have been the artist's
conscious intent to disturb
us.
Here's another of Zhang
Peng's deliberately disturbing
images .....
Zhang Peng
"Untitled" [CROPPED] (ca. 2010)
SECTION 4
GOOD ART / BAD ART
WHAT, THEN, IS TRUE ART?
GOOD ART / BAD ART
DOES ART HAVE TO BE LIFELIKE, OR JUST
PLEASING ON THE EYE?
As we have already seen,
some sensations are
soothing and pleasant in
themselves even though
they serve no particular
purpose.
Some good art, in other
words, does not have to
be about anything!
GOOD ART / BAD ART
DOES ART HAVE TO BE LIFELIKE, OR JUST
PLEASING ON THE EYE?
Nor does artistic skill mean
being true to life, even when
an artwork is about
something.
This formative example of
"Cubism" is imprecise,
primitive, disjointed, and
lacks perspective, but many
find its colours and shapes
pleasing to the eye.
Pablo Picasso
"Les Demoiselles d'Avignon" (1907)
GOOD ART / BAD ART
IS IT TRUE TO LIFE?
Similarly this 1952
caricature must have been
good because a set of three
sold for £23 million in
February 2011.
Francis Bacon
"Portrait of Lucien Freud" [ONE OF THREE]
(1952)
GOOD ART / BAD ART
IS IT TRULY BEAUTIFUL?
Or perhaps the secret of
good art is to pick a
beautiful subject to start
with.
Some people rate this
portrait as the most
beautiful painting ever.
Gottfried Helnwein
"The Murmur of the Innocents (11)"
(2009)
GOOD ART / BAD ART
DOES IT INSPIRE ME?
Others look for art
to inspire them
spiritually and
reinforce their
faith.
Check it out online
- it's full of
symbolism!
Leonardo da Vinci
"The Last Supper" [RETOUCHED]
(1498)
GOOD ART / BAD ART
IS IT "POLITICALLY CORRECT"?
Others use it to
control what we
think.
George Grosz
"The Hero"
(1936)
Nazi Propaganda
(same era)
ART AS FELT EMOTION
EXPERIMENTAL ART
Others believe that
art's primary task is
to make you stop
and think - to
challenge your
assumptions about
yourself and the
world.
GOOD ART / BAD ART
IS IT JUST "COLLECTIBLE"?
Others like to possess
beauty in preference to
cash.
In 2011 this Cézanne
sold as an investment to
a private collection for
over $250 million.
Paul Cézanne
"The Card Players"
(1895)
GOOD ART / BAD ART
OR DOES IT JUST HAVE TO BE AWESOME?
And many just like to stand
in awe, reminded by the
artist of the raw beauty of
nature.
This beauty is often
impossible to describe in
words.
James Ward
"Gordale Scar" (1814)
GOOD ART / BAD ART
CAN I EVEN DESCRIBE WHAT I FEEL?
INDESCRIBABLY BEAUTIFUL
ART IS KNOWN TECHNICALLY
AS "SUBLIME".
MANY ARTISTS STRIVE TO
PRODUCE SUBLIMITY RATHER
THAN JUST BEAUTY.
Here's another example.
Caspar David Friedrich
"Wanderer above a Sea of Fog"
(1818)
A PAINTING CAN BE PRETTY, OR LIFELIKE,
OR POLITICALLY ACCEPTABLE, OR
PLEASANTLY SCARY, OR INDESCRIBABLY
AWESOME, OR WHATEVER, AND EACH OF
THESE RESPONSES ACTIVATES OUR
BRAINS IN DIFFERENT WAYS!
NO WONDER, THEN, THAT ART THEORY
FINDS IT SO DIFFICULT TO EXPLAIN WHAT
MAKES ART GOOD!
GOOD ART / BAD ART
WHY SUCH A PROBLEM?
BECAUSE ART EXPERTS ARE NOT BRAIN
EXPERTS .....
GOOD ART / BAD ART
WHY SUCH A PROBLEM?
..... AND EVEN IF THEY WERE THEY
WOULDN'T UNDERSTAND THE
UNCHARTED AREAS OF THE BRAIN .....
?
?
?
?
?
??
GOOD ART / BAD ART
WHY SUCH A PROBLEM?
..... ESPECIALLY
WHEN OUR FEELINGS
NEED TO BE PUT
INTO WORDS.
EYES
SUBLIME EMOTION
FELT EMOTION
EMOTION
SENSATION
OUR OWN RESEARCH IS TRYING TO SOLVE
SOME OF THESE PROBLEMS USING
COMPUTER SIMULATION SOFTWARE.
WE BELIEVE THAT IF WE COULD GET A
MACHINE TO GO THROUGH THE MOTIONS OF
APPRECIATING ART WE SHOULD HAVE A
BETTER IDEA WHAT GOES ON IN HUMANS.
GOOD ART / BAD ART
WHAT MIGHT ROBOTS MAKE OF ART?
Here's Robby the Robot (from the
1956 movie "Forbidden Planet")
looking at our masterpiece of
sublime art.
WHAT WILL IT TAKE FOR
"HIM" TO SEE MORE THAN
JUST PIGMENTS ON A
CANVAS, AND TO BE
STRUCK INSTEAD BY
THEIR DEEPER MEANING?
There's a lot of light
blues and greys, with
some dark green in
the middle.
BUT BEFORE WE CAN ANSWER THIS
QUESTION WE NEED SOME IDEA WHAT
ROBOTS ARE AND WHAT THEIR BRAINS
ARE CAPABLE OF.
YOU MAY JUMP STRAIGHT TO SECTION 6 IF
YOU ALREADY KNOW THE HISTORY HERE.
SECTION 5
A SHORT HISTORY
OF ROBOTS
FROM "AUTOMATICITY" TOWARDS "AUTONOMY"
A SHORT HISTORY OF ROBOTS
EARLY AUTOMATA
Here's an automaton from
around 2000 years ago. The
word comes from the Greek
for "self activating", and gives
us the modern words
"automatic" and "automation".
These toys for the rich and
powerful were worked by
hidden pipes and linkages
underneath! THEY MOVED
FOR THEMSELVES, BUT HAD
NO MIND.
A SHORT HISTORY OF ROBOTS
EARLY MECHANICAL PROGRAMMING
Here's a typical pin-cylinder
music box. This one plays a tune
on bells. See how the pins
"know" the tune in advance and
play it by each activating a
corresponding hammer.
This is an early instance of "preprogramming". BUT, BEING
ENTIRELY AUTOMATIC, MUSIC
BOXES HAVE NO MIND.
A SHORT HISTORY OF ROBOTS
EARLY CALCULATING MACHINERY
In 1495 the Italian painter-inventor
Leonardo da Vinci demonstrated an
automaton in the shape of a knight
in arms.
Worked by pulleys and wires, this
automaton could perform a range of
simple human-like movements.
This 2005 replica is in a gallery in
Germany, IT MOVES A BIT, BUT IT
HAS NO MIND.
A SHORT HISTORY OF ROBOTS
EARLY CALCULATING MACHINERY
Similar technology was used in early calculating
machines. This one's from the German philosopherengineer Gottfried Leibniz in 1673. It's driven by the handle
front left, IT DOES ARITHMETIC FASTER THAN WE CAN,
BUT IT HAS NO MIND.
A SHORT HISTORY OF ROBOTS
MORE MECHANICAL PROGRAMMING
The French inventor Jacques de
Vaucanson built this automaton duck
in 1739 to amuse a rich patron.
Its inner clockwork permitted it to
make lifelike movements, including
feeding; also, as the appropriately
placed arrow shows, going to the
toilet. BUT IT HAS NO MIND.
A SHORT HISTORY OF ROBOTS
MORE MECHANICAL PROGRAMMING
In the late 18th century, the
weaving industry found a way to
automate their looms by scaling
up earlier "music-box"
technology. They brought preprogramming into industry!
This is the Joseph Jacquard
punched card control system, on
a 5 metre tall continuous loop,
one per loom. BUT THE LOOMS
HAVE NO MIND.
A SHORT HISTORY OF ROBOTS
MORE CALCULATING MACHINERY
In 1822 the British inventor Charles Babbage designed a
giant calculating machine called a "difference engine".
Unfortunately, the machine took a
long time to build, and remained
incomplete until the Science
Museum finished the job for him in
2000. BUT THE MACHINE HAS NO
MIND.
A SHORT HISTORY OF ROBOTS
FUTURIST THEATRE AND ART
In 1914 the American author L. Frank Baum
published a story entitled "Tik-Tok of Oz",
in which a mechanical man shares
adventures with Dorothy, one of the "meat
people" [i.e., humans].
"The Wizard of Oz" (1939)
L. Frank Baum
"Tik-Tok of Oz"
(1914)
A SHORT HISTORY OF ROBOTS
FUTURIST THEATRE AND ART
In 1921 the Czech writer Karel Capek
staged a play entitled "Rossum's
Universal Robots", set in a world
increasingly taken over by artificial
workers he called "robots". The new
name was an instant success.
BAUM'S TIN MAN AND CAPEK'S
ROBOTS HAD MINDS OF THEIR
OWN, BUT ARE WORKS OF FICTION.
NOBODY HAS YET BEEN ABLE TO
BUILD ONE FOR REAL.
A SHORT HISTORY OF ROBOTS
ELECTRONIC CALCULATION
In 1931, the Welsh physicist Charles Wynn-Williams devised
electronic circuitry for counting. This enabled engineers to do
away with cogwheels once and for all, even though the early
circuitry was bulky. BUT SUCH CIRCUITS HAVE NO MIND.
A SHORT HISTORY OF ROBOTS
ELECTRONIC CALCULATION
Between 1934 and 1938 the
German Engineer Konrad
Zuse built the Z1, a
programmable electromechanical binary computer.
This is Zuse, later in life,
standing by a museum
replica of his invention. THE
MACHINE COMPUTES WELL
ENOUGH, BUT HAS NO
MIND.
FROM AUTOMATA TO
ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE
In 1939, the Westinghouse
Corporation exhibited Elektro
the Motoman and Sparky the
Dog at the New York World's
Fair.
Powered by a primitive electromechanical brain, Elektro could
produce a number of simple
output behaviours - movement
and speech - to simple spoken
commands. BUT LIKE A RADIOCONTROLLED TOY IT HAD NO
MIND.
FROM AUTOMATA TO
ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE
By 1943 electronic computers
were processing binary
signals according to preprogrammed logic.
This is a replica of Colossus,
the top-secret code-breaking
machine built at Bletchley
Park during WW2. IT'S AN
ELECTRONIC BRAIN BUT IT
HAS NO MIND.
FROM AUTOMATA TO
ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE
Robots - some good, some bad have since starred in many
movies. This is Pris, from the 1982
movie "Blade Runner".
She's less obviously artificial than
others, thanks to a synthetic skin.
She also feels emotion and
ponders her own existence.
BUT AGAIN IT'S ONLY A WORK OF
FICTION.
"I think, therefore I am"
FROM AUTOMATA TO
ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE
Similarly, this is Johnny Five, from the 1986 movie "Short
Circuit". He looks bright enough, but he was worked almost
entirely by remote control. JUST CLEVER PUPPETRY AGAIN!
NOTE THE PATTERN WHICH IS
EMERGING - MACHINES WITH MINDS
ARE (TO DATE) ONLY WORKS OF
FICTION!
FROM AUTOMATA TO
ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE
This, on the other hand, is Kismet, a state-of-the-art university
research project. Kismet can mimic a number of human
emotional expressions, and is especially good at those
involving eyebrows!
Kismet may display facial
emotions but has no higher
functions system to feel those
emotions. IT'S MIND IS
THEREFORE ONLY ABOUT
AS COMPLEX AS THAT OF A
MOUSE.
FROM AUTOMATA TO
ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE
Meanwhile computers have been getting smaller and smaller
and faster and faster since Colossus' time .....
FROM AUTOMATA TO
ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE
This is the Honda-Kawasaki
ASIMO. It can walk, has colour
vision, face recognition, gesture
recognition, and speech, and
can even obey simple
commands. But it has little
intelligence, and no free will at
all! IT LACKS THE AUTONOMY
NEEDED TO BE ANYTHING
MORE THAN AN AUTOMATON.
Autonomy = flexibility and self-determination
Automaton = automaticity and inflexibility
FROM AUTOMATA TO
ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE
And this is Valerie, a robot receptionist under trial at Carnegie
Mellon University in the US. She's going to be as near lifelike as
they can make her! She'll even remember what you talked about
last time you visited!
SOCIAL LANGUAGE IS
CERTAINLY A MAJOR MIND
SKILL. SADLY PROGRAMMERS
HAVE BEEN WORKING ON IT
FOR 60 YEARS WITH ONLY
VERY LIMITED SUCCESS.
FROM AUTOMATA TO
ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE
So when all is said and done, the problem with robot mind
lies in writing the necessary software not in giving it a brain
or a body.
PROCESSING
HARDWARE
PROCESSING
SOFTWARE
SENSOR
HARDWARE
[STILL IN ITS
INFANCY!!!]
EFFECTOR
HARDWARE
THE NEXT DIAGRAM SHOWS HOW FAR
SCIENCE HAS GOT / NOT GOT WITH
PROGRAMMING THE MIND AFTER 2000
YEARS OF TRYING.
NOTE CAREFULLY WHERE THE
PROBLEMS REMAIN.
CHESS AND SIMILAR PROBLEM SOLVING UNDERSTANDING THINKING
FELT EMOTION AUTONOMY AND SELF-REFERENCED WILL AND
CONSCIOUS EXPERIENCE
? ? ?
CORTICAL LEVEL
HIGHER COGNITION
AUTONOMOUS WILL
DIRECTED
ATTENTION
SIMPLE
MACHINE
EMOTIONAL STATES
DRIVES AND INSTINCTS
TRANSLATION
CONCEPTS
SENTENCE
ANALYSIS
SUBCORTICAL LEVEL
SECONDARY
SENSORY
ANALYSIS
FIGURE-GROUND /
DRAMATIC GIST
PATTERN RECOGNITION
VOICE RECOGNITION
WILLED
BEHAVIOURS
PRIMARY
SENSORY
ANALYSIS
SENSORY INPUT
EYES
ARTIFICIAL
RETINA
REFLEX LEVEL
SIMPLE
BIONICS
VOICE
MOTOR
SCHEMA
MANAGEMENT
SENTENCE
SYNTHESIS
MOVEMENT
UNITS
LOWER
MOTOR
SUBROUTINES
MUSCLE
OUTPUT
HAND
MECHATRONICS
VOICE SYNTHESIS
SECTION 6
INTRODUCING KONRAD,
THE SOFTWARE MIND
PUTTING OUR SEVERAL SELVES TOGETHER
INTRODUCING KONRAD
THE ROBOT AWAITING A BODY
• Project Konrad is a collaboration
between the author and
International Software Products,
Toronto, and is so named as a
tribute to the aforementioned
Konrad Zuse.
INTRODUCING KONRAD
THE ROBOT AWAITING A BODY
CORTICAL LEVEL
HIGHER COGNITION
AUTONOMOUS WILL
DIRECTED
ATTENTION
WILLED
BEHAVIOURS
CONCEPTS
SUBCORTICAL LEVEL
SECONDARY
SENSORY
ANALYSIS
FIGURE-GROUND /
DRAMATIC GIST
PRIMARY
SENSORY
ANALYSIS
SENSORY INPUT
EMOTIONAL STATES
DRIVES AND INSTINCTS
REFLEX LEVEL
MOTOR
SCHEMA
MANAGEMENT
MOVEMENT
UNITS
LOWER
MOTOR
SUBROUTINES
At the moment Konrad exists only in
software. IT'S A ROBOTIC MIND
WITHOUT A BODY - JUST A VOICE
(WHICH YOU'LL BE HEARING
SHORTLY) AND VAST AMOUNTS OF
PRINT-OUT.
MUSCLE
OUTPUT
We use the Kirshenbaum Phonetic
Alphabet to encode output speech
- click for details
its v'eri 'pliziN on Di: Aii.
t'u: 'pliziN in 'f'akt.
its biyond d@skripSun O@lmO'st.
'Oka2i 'wot 'naU.
INTRODUCING KONRAD
THE ROBOT AWAITING A BODY
The software presently runs on an
IBM z196 mainframe, a very fast
computer with a memory so large we
are unlikely ever to fill it.
INTRODUCING KONRAD
THE ROBOT AWAITING A BODY
CORTICAL LEVEL
HIGHER COGNITION
PERCEPTIONS
AUTONOMOUS WILL
DIRECTED
ATTENTION
WILLED
BEHAVIOURS
CONCEPTS
SUBCORTICAL LEVEL
SECONDARY
SENSORY
ANALYSIS
FIGURE-GROUND /
DRAMATIC GIST
FEELINGS
EMOTIONAL STATES
DRIVES AND INSTINCTS
REFLEX LEVEL
PRIMARY
SENSORY
ANALYSIS
SENSORY INPUT
SIGHTS AND SOUNDS
MOTOR
SCHEMA
MANAGEMENT
MOVEMENT
UNITS
LOWER
MOTOR
SUBROUTINES
MUSCLE
OUTPUT
WE WERE PARTICULARLY
INTERESTED IN HOW VISUAL
INPUTS BECOME PERCEPTIONS
AND FELT EMOTIONS IN
MACHINES.
INTRODUCING KONRAD
THE ROBOT AWAITING A BODY
? ? ?
CORTICAL LEVEL
HIGHER COGNITION
PERCEPTIONS
AUTONOMOUS WILL
DIRECTED
ATTENTION
WILLED
BEHAVIOURS
CONCEPTS
SUBCORTICAL LEVEL
SECONDARY
SENSORY
ANALYSIS
FEELINGS
EMOTIONAL STATES
MOTOR
SCHEMA
MANAGEMENT
DRIVES AND INSTINCTS
FIGURE-GROUND /
DRAMATIC GIST
REFLEX LEVEL
PRIMARY
SENSORY
ANALYSIS
SENSORY INPUT
SIGHTS AND SOUNDS
MOVEMENT
UNITS
LOWER
MOTOR
SUBROUTINES
MUSCLE
OUTPUT
WE THEREFORE SIMULATED
WHAT WAS KNOWN ABOUT THE
LAYOUT OF THE MIND'S HIGHER
FUNCTIONS, AND TOOK
EDUCATED GUESSES AT THE
MANY UNKNOWNS.
INTRODUCING KONRAD
THE ROBOT AWAITING A BODY
PERCEPTIONSCORTICAL LEVEL PSYCHOLOGICAL
HIGHER COGNITION
ACTS
AUTONOMOUS WILL
DIRECTED
ATTENTION
WILLED
BEHAVIOURS
CONCEPTS
SUBCORTICAL LEVEL
SECONDARY
SENSORY
ANALYSIS
FIGURE-GROUND /
DRAMATIC GIST
FEELINGS
EMOTIONAL STATES
DRIVES AND INSTINCTS
REFLEX LEVEL
PRIMARY
SENSORY
ANALYSIS
SENSORY INPUT
SIGHTS AND SOUNDS
MOTOR
SCHEMA
MANAGEMENT
MOVEMENT
UNITS
LOWER
MOTOR
SUBROUTINES
MUSCLE
OUTPUT
SPEECH SOUNDS
WE ALSO GAVE KONRAD A
SIMULATED "WILL", THAT IS TO
SAY A POINT AT WHICH ITS
THOUGHTS COULD BECOME
VOLUNTARY ACTIONS.
INTRODUCING KONRAD
THE ROBOT AWAITING A BODY
PERCEPTIONSCORTICAL LEVEL PSYCHOLOGICAL
HIGHER COGNITION
ACTS
AUTONOMOUS WILL
DIRECTED
ATTENTION
WILLED
BEHAVIOURS
CONCEPTS
SUBCORTICAL LEVEL
SECONDARY
SENSORY
ANALYSIS
FIGURE-GROUND /
DRAMATIC GIST
FEELINGS
EMOTIONAL STATES
DRIVES AND INSTINCTS
REFLEX LEVEL
PRIMARY
SENSORY
ANALYSIS
SENSORY INPUT
SIGHTS AND SOUNDS
MOTOR
SCHEMA
MANAGEMENT
MOVEMENT
UNITS
LOWER
MOTOR
SUBROUTINES
MUSCLE
OUTPUT
SPEECH SOUNDS
WE ALSO ALLOWED KONRAD'S
ACTIONS TO GENERATE NEW
INPUTS, THUS CREATING
CYCLES OF COGNITION.
[
]
IT HAS BEEN KNOWN SINCE THE
1950s THAT THE MIND CYCLES
ABOUT 7 TIMES A SECOND.
INTRODUCING KONRAD
THE ROBOT AWAITING A BODY
PERCEPTIONSCORTICAL LEVEL PSYCHOLOGICAL
HIGHER COGNITION
ACTS
AUTONOMOUS WILL
DIRECTED
ATTENTION
WILLED
BEHAVIOURS
CONCEPTS
SUBCORTICAL LEVEL
SECONDARY
SENSORY
ANALYSIS
FIGURE-GROUND /
DRAMATIC GIST
FEELINGS
EMOTIONAL STATES
DRIVES AND INSTINCTS
REFLEX LEVEL
PRIMARY
SENSORY
ANALYSIS
SENSORY INPUT
SIGHTS AND SOUNDS
MOTOR
SCHEMA
MANAGEMENT
MOVEMENT
UNITS
LOWER
MOTOR
SUBROUTINES
MORE IMPORTANTLY WE ALSO
ALLOWED KONRAD TO TAKE
ITS OWN VERBAL OUTPUTS AS
SILENT INPUTS.
INNER
SPEECH
MUSCLE
OUTPUT
SPEECH SOUNDS
NB: YOU CAN'T PROPERLY
STUDY INNER SPEECH IN
HUMANS BECAUSE IT ALL
TAKES PLACE SO QUICKLY .....
INTRODUCING KONRAD
THE ROBOT AWAITING A BODY
SEE ACTIVITY #5
IN YOUR
ACTIVITIES PACK
..... THIS IS A SHAME BECAUSE
BEING ABLE TO LISTEN TO
ONESELF THINK IS A MAJOR
MIND SKILL, AND ONE WE
SUSPECT IS HEAVILY INVOLVED
IN RESPONDING TO ARTISTIC
BEAUTY.
TRY TO LISTEN TO
YOURSELF THINKING AS
YOU WORK OUT WHAT
THIS ARTIST HAD IN
MIND, BECAUSE IT WILL
HELP YOU WITH THE
NEXT FEW SLIDES.
René Magritte
"Not to be Reproduced"
(1937)
INTRODUCING KONRAD
THE ROBOT AWAITING A BODY
So can the Konrad software do better
than Robby the Robot if presented
with our example of sublime art?
CAN IT SEE MORE THAN JUST
COLOURS ON A CANVAS?
"This is a classic of Romantic
Sublime, and it sends shivers
up my spine."
CAN A MACHINE FEEL, AND - MORE IMPORTANTLY - CAN IT
FEEL ITSELF FEELING AND THEN TALK ABOUT THAT
EXPERIENCE?
INTRODUCING KONRAD
THE ROBOT AWAITING A BODY
PERCEPTIONSCORTICAL LEVEL PSYCHOLOGICAL
HIGHER COGNITION
ACTS
AUTONOMOUS WILL
DIRECTED
ATTENTION
THE TEST REPORTED HERE RAN
ON 16TH MAY 2012.
WILLED
BEHAVIOURS
CONCEPTS
SUBCORTICAL LEVEL
SECONDARY
SENSORY
ANALYSIS
FIGURE-GROUND /
DRAMATIC GIST
PRIMARY
SENSORY
ANALYSIS
FEELINGS
EMOTIONAL STATES
DRIVES AND INSTINCTS
REFLEX LEVEL
INNER
SPEECH
MOTOR
SCHEMA
MANAGEMENT
MOVEMENT
UNITS
LOWER
MOTOR
SUBROUTINES
MUSCLE
OUTPUT
SENSORY INPUT
SIGHTS AND SOUNDS
SPEECH SOUNDS
THE SOFTWARE TOOK 24.1
SECONDS OF CYCLICAL
COGNITION TO PRODUCE FOUR
SHORT SENTENCES OF INNER
SPEECH AND 726 PAGES OF
EXPLANATORY PRINT-OUT.
http://www.smithsrisca.co.uk/DEMOS/2A158.pdf
INTRODUCING KONRAD
THE ROBOT AWAITING A BODY
PERCEPTIONSCORTICAL LEVEL PSYCHOLOGICAL
HIGHER COGNITION
ACTS
AUTONOMOUS WILL
DIRECTED
ATTENTION
WILLED
BEHAVIOURS
CONCEPTS
SUBCORTICAL LEVEL
SECONDARY
SENSORY
ANALYSIS
FIGURE-GROUND /
DRAMATIC GIST
PRIMARY
SENSORY
ANALYSIS
FEELINGS
EMOTIONAL STATES
DRIVES AND INSTINCTS
REFLEX LEVEL
INNER
SPEECH
MOTOR
SCHEMA
MANAGEMENT
MOVEMENT
UNITS
LOWER
MOTOR
SUBROUTINES
MUSCLE
OUTPUT
SENSORY INPUT
SIGHTS AND SOUNDS
TO START WITH WE SIMULATED
THE VISUAL SCANNING OF THE
TARGET ARTWORK, FEEDING IN
CODED DETAILS OF FIGURE AND
GROUND AS DESCRIBED EARLIER.
SPEECH SOUNDS
SCIENCE DOES NOT KNOW THE
PRECISE <CODE> USED HERE, SO
WE USE <ENGLISH>.
<GROUND[PICTURE FRAME] GROUND[SKY/MOUNTAIN] FIGURE[MAN]>
http://www.smithsrisca.co.uk/DEMOS/2A158.pdf
INTRODUCING KONRAD
THE ROBOT AWAITING A BODY
<PAINTING IN GALLERY [MAN UP MOUNTAIN]>
PERCEPTIONSCORTICAL LEVEL PSYCHOLOGICAL
HIGHER COGNITION
ACTS
AUTONOMOUS WILL
DIRECTED
ATTENTION
WILLED
BEHAVIOURS
CONCEPTS
SUBCORTICAL LEVEL
SECONDARY
SENSORY
ANALYSIS
FIGURE-GROUND /
DRAMATIC GIST
PRIMARY
SENSORY
ANALYSIS
FEELINGS
EMOTIONAL STATES
DRIVES AND INSTINCTS
REFLEX LEVEL
INNER
SPEECH
MOTOR
SCHEMA
MANAGEMENT
MOVEMENT
UNITS
LOWER
MOTOR
SUBROUTINES
MUSCLE
OUTPUT
SENSORY INPUT
SIGHTS AND SOUNDS
SPEECH SOUNDS
THIS ENABLED A RAPID
JUDGEMENT ON GIST TO BE MADE
AND THEN RETAINED IN SHORTTERM MEMORY [SHOWN HERE IN
BLUE], PART OF A UNIQUE
INDUSTRIAL STRENGTH CA-IDMS
"SEMANTIC NETWORK" MEMORY
DESIGNED BY THE AUTHOR.
http://www.smithsrisca.co.uk/DEMOS/2A158.pdf
INTRODUCING KONRAD
THE ROBOT AWAITING A BODY
<PAINTING IN GALLERY [MAN UP MOUNTAIN]>.
PERCEPTIONSCORTICAL LEVEL PSYCHOLOGICAL
HIGHER COGNITION
ACTS
AUTONOMOUS WILL
DIRECTED
ATTENTION
WILLED
BEHAVIOURS
CONCEPTS
SUBCORTICAL LEVEL
SECONDARY
SENSORY
ANALYSIS
FIGURE-GROUND /
DRAMATIC GIST
PRIMARY
SENSORY
ANALYSIS
FEELINGS
EMOTIONAL STATES
DRIVES AND INSTINCTS
REFLEX LEVEL
INNER
SPEECH
MOTOR
SCHEMA
MANAGEMENT
MOVEMENT
UNITS
LOWER
MOTOR
SUBROUTINES
MUSCLE
OUTPUT
SENSORY INPUT
SIGHTS AND SOUNDS
SPEECH SOUNDS
WE THEN SIMULATED THE
ADDITIONAL JUDGEMENT THAT
THE TECHNICALITIES OF THE
PAINTING - ITS COLOURS AND
FORMS - WERE INTRINSICALLY
AGREEABLE.
NICE
<COLOUR-FORM BALANCE>
http://www.smithsrisca.co.uk/DEMOS/2A158.pdf
INTRODUCING KONRAD
THE ROBOT AWAITING A BODY
<PAINTING IN GALLERY [MAN UP MOUNTAIN]>.
<VERY PLEASANT>
PERCEPTIONSCORTICAL LEVEL PSYCHOLOGICAL
HIGHER COGNITION
ACTS
AUTONOMOUS WILL
DIRECTED
ATTENTION
WILLED
BEHAVIOURS
CONCEPTS
SUBCORTICAL LEVEL
SECONDARY
SENSORY
ANALYSIS
FIGURE-GROUND /
DRAMATIC GIST
PRIMARY
SENSORY
ANALYSIS
FEELINGS
NICE
EMOTIONAL STATES
DRIVES AND INSTINCTS
REFLEX LEVEL
INNER
SPEECH
MOTOR
SCHEMA
MANAGEMENT
MOVEMENT
UNITS
LOWER
MOTOR
SUBROUTINES
WITH THE GIST AND THE RAW
EMOTION NOW SIDE BY SIDE, WE
SIMULATED THE COMPOSITE
JUDGEMENT THAT WE "LIKED"
THE OBJECT AT HAND.
MUSCLE
OUTPUT
SENSORY INPUT
SIGHTS AND SOUNDS
SPEECH SOUNDS
NICE
WE ARE NOW FEELING OUR
FEELINGS!!
<COLOUR-FORM BALANCE>
http://www.smithsrisca.co.uk/DEMOS/2A158.pdf
INTRODUCING KONRAD
THE ROBOT AWAITING A BODY
<PAINTING IN GALLERY [MAN UP MOUNTAIN]>
<VERY PLEASANT>
PERCEPTIONSCORTICAL LEVEL PSYCHOLOGICAL
HIGHER COGNITION
ACTS
AUTONOMOUS WILL
NICE
DIRECTED
ATTENTION
WILLED
BEHAVIOURS
CONCEPTS
SUBCORTICAL LEVEL
SECONDARY
SENSORY
ANALYSIS
FIGURE-GROUND /
DRAMATIC GIST
PRIMARY
SENSORY
ANALYSIS
FEELINGS
NICE
EMOTIONAL STATES
DRIVES AND INSTINCTS
REFLEX LEVEL
INNER
SPEECH
MOTOR
SCHEMA
MANAGEMENT
MOVEMENT
UNITS
WE HAVE TO SHOW THE EMOTION
TWICE, BECAUSE THIS IS HOW THE
BRAIN IS ORGANISED
LOWER
MOTOR
SUBROUTINES
MUSCLE
OUTPUT
SENSORY INPUT
SIGHTS AND SOUNDS
SPEECH SOUNDS
http://www.smithsrisca.co.uk/DEMOS/2A158.pdf
INTRODUCING KONRAD
THE ROBOT AWAITING A BODY
PERCEPTIONSCORTICAL LEVEL
HIGHER COGNITION
AUTONOMOUS WILL
NICE
DIRECTED
ATTENTION
<PAINTING IN GALLERY [MAN UP MOUNTAIN]>
<IT'S VERY PLEASING ON THE EYE>
<VERY PLEASANT>
PSYCHOLOGICAL
ACTS
WILLED
BEHAVIOURS
CONCEPTS
SUBCORTICAL LEVEL
SECONDARY
SENSORY
ANALYSIS
FIGURE-GROUND /
DRAMATIC GIST
PRIMARY
SENSORY
ANALYSIS
FEELINGS
NICE
EMOTIONAL STATES
DRIVES AND INSTINCTS
REFLEX LEVEL
INNER
SPEECH
MOTOR
SCHEMA
MANAGEMENT
MOVEMENT
UNITS
LOWER
MOTOR
SUBROUTINES
SIMULATED THOUGHT PROCESSES
THEN GENERATED THE DEEP
SENTENCE "IT'S VERY PLEASING ON
THE EYE", AND APPROVED SAME FOR
SILENT OUTPUT.
MUSCLE
OUTPUT
SENSORY INPUT
SIGHTS AND SOUNDS
SCIENCE DOES NOT KNOW THE
SPEECH SOUNDS
PRECISE <CODE> USED HERE EITHER,
SO AGAIN WE USE <ENGLISH>.
http://www.smithsrisca.co.uk/DEMOS/2A158.pdf
INTRODUCING KONRAD
THE ROBOT AWAITING A BODY
PERCEPTIONSCORTICAL LEVEL
HIGHER COGNITION
AUTONOMOUS WILL
NICE
DIRECTED
ATTENTION
<PAINTING IN GALLERY [MAN UP MOUNTAIN]>.
<IT'S VERY PLEASING ON THE EYE>
<VERY PLEASANT>.
PSYCHOLOGICAL
ACTS
WILLED
BEHAVIOURS
CONCEPTS
SUBCORTICAL LEVEL
SECONDARY
SENSORY
ANALYSIS
FIGURE-GROUND /
DRAMATIC GIST
PRIMARY
SENSORY
ANALYSIS
FEELINGS
NICE
EMOTIONAL STATES
DRIVES AND INSTINCTS
REFLEX LEVEL
INNER
SPEECH
MOTOR
SCHEMA
MANAGEMENT
MOVEMENT
UNITS
LOWER
MOTOR
SUBROUTINES
MUSCLE
OUTPUT
SENSORY INPUT
SIGHTS AND SOUNDS
THE DEEP SENTENCE WAS THEN
RE-CODED INTO SPEAKABLE
SOUNDS, SHOWN HERE USING
THE KIRSHENBAUM PHONETIC
ALPHABET.
SPEECH SOUNDS
< its v'eri 'pliziN on Di: Aii >
http://www.smithsrisca.co.uk/DEMOS/2A158.pdf
INTRODUCING KONRAD
THE ROBOT AWAITING A BODY
PERCEPTIONSCORTICAL LEVEL
HIGHER COGNITION
AUTONOMOUS WILL
NICE
DIRECTED
ATTENTION
<PAINTING IN GALLERY [MAN UP MOUNTAIN]>.
<IT'S VERY PLEASING ON THE EYE>
<VERY PLEASANT>.
PSYCHOLOGICAL
ACTS
WILLED
BEHAVIOURS
CONCEPTS
SUBCORTICAL LEVEL
SECONDARY
SENSORY
ANALYSIS
FIGURE-GROUND /
DRAMATIC GIST
PRIMARY
SENSORY
ANALYSIS
FEELINGS
NICE
EMOTIONAL STATES
DRIVES AND INSTINCTS
REFLEX LEVEL
INNER
SPEECH
MOTOR
SCHEMA
MANAGEMENT
MOVEMENT
UNITS
LOWER
MOTOR
SUBROUTINES
MUSCLE
OUTPUT
SENSORY INPUT
SIGHTS AND SOUNDS
YOU CAN EITHER LEARN TO READ
THIS PHONETIC CODE ITSELF, OR
ELSE LISTEN TO IT USING
COMMERCIAL SPEECH
SYNTHESIS PACKAGES SUCH AS
ESPEAK [MORE ON THIS].
SPEECH SOUNDS
< its v'eri 'pliziN on Di: Aii >
http://www.smithsrisca.co.uk/DEMOS/2A158.pdf
INTRODUCING KONRAD
THE ROBOT AWAITING A BODY
<PAINTING IN GALLERY [MAN UP MOUNTAIN]>.
<IT'S VERY PLEASING ON THE EYE>
PERCEPTIONSCORTICAL LEVEL PSYCHOLOGICAL
HIGHER COGNITION
ACTS
AUTONOMOUS WILL
NICE
DIRECTED
ATTENTION
WILLED
BEHAVIOURS
CONCEPTS
SUBCORTICAL LEVEL
SECONDARY
SENSORY
ANALYSIS
FIGURE-GROUND /
DRAMATIC GIST
PRIMARY
SENSORY
ANALYSIS
FEELINGS
NICE
EMOTIONAL STATES
DRIVES AND INSTINCTS
REFLEX LEVEL
INNER
SPEECH
MOTOR
SCHEMA
MANAGEMENT
MOVEMENT
UNITS
LOWER
MOTOR
SUBROUTINES
MUSCLE
OUTPUT
SENSORY INPUT
SIGHTS AND SOUNDS
SPEECH SOUNDS
MANY DIFFERENT CODING
SYSTEMS ARE INVOLVED IN THE
COGNITIVE CYCLE. COGNITIVE
SCIENTISTS HAVE BARELY
STARTED TO DECODE THESE AND
NOBODY WILL UNDERSTAND THE
MIND UNTIL THEY DO!
< its v'eri 'pliziN on Di: Aii >
http://www.smithsrisca.co.uk/DEMOS/2A158.pdf
INTRODUCING KONRAD
THE ROBOT AWAITING A BODY
PERCEPTIONSCORTICAL LEVEL
HIGHER COGNITION
AUTONOMOUS WILL
NICE
DIRECTED
ATTENTION
<PAINTING IN GALLERY [MAN UP MOUNTAIN]>.
<IT'S VERY PLEASING ON THE EYE>
<VERY PLEASANT>.
PSYCHOLOGICAL
ACTS
WILLED
BEHAVIOURS
CONCEPTS
THE SURFACE SENTENCE WAS
THEN RE-CYCLED AS INNER
SPEECH INPUT, AND PASSED
UPWARDS THROUGH THE
AUDITORY SYSTEM.
SUBCORTICAL LEVEL
SECONDARY
SENSORY
ANALYSIS
FIGURE-GROUND /
DRAMATIC GIST
PRIMARY
SENSORY
ANALYSIS
FEELINGS
NICE
EMOTIONAL STATES
DRIVES AND INSTINCTS
REFLEX LEVEL
INNER
SPEECH
MOTOR
SCHEMA
MANAGEMENT
MOVEMENT
UNITS
LOWER
MOTOR
SUBROUTINES
MUSCLE
OUTPUT
SENSORY INPUT
<IT'S VERY PLEASING ON THE EYE>
SIGHTS AND SOUNDS
SPEECH SOUNDS
.
< its v'eri 'pliziN on Di: Aii >
http://www.smithsrisca.co.uk/DEMOS/2A158.pdf
INTRODUCING KONRAD
THE ROBOT AWAITING A BODY
PERCEPTIONSCORTICAL LEVEL
HIGHER COGNITION
AUTONOMOUS WILL
NICE
DIRECTED
ATTENTION
<PAINTING IN GALLERY [MAN UP MOUNTAIN]>.
<IT'S VERY PLEASING ON THE EYE>
<VERY PLEASANT>.
PSYCHOLOGICAL
ACTS
WILLED
BEHAVIOURS
CONCEPTS
SUBCORTICAL LEVEL
SECONDARY
SENSORY
ANALYSIS
FIGURE-GROUND /
DRAMATIC GIST
PRIMARY
SENSORY
ANALYSIS
FEELINGS
NICE
EMOTIONAL STATES
DRIVES AND INSTINCTS
REFLEX LEVEL
INNER
SPEECH
MOTOR
SCHEMA
MANAGEMENT
MOVEMENT
UNITS
LOWER
MOTOR
SUBROUTINES
MUSCLE
OUTPUT
SENSORY INPUT
SIGHTS AND SOUNDS
THE SYSTEM HAS NOW HEARD
WHAT IT THINKS, LEAVING IT
FREE TO THINK SOME MORE
ABOUT IT. WE BELIEVE THAT ALL
COMPLEX REASONING DEVELOPS
CYCLICALLY IN THIS WAY.
SPEECH SOUNDS
http://www.smithsrisca.co.uk/DEMOS/2A158.pdf
INTRODUCING KONRAD
THE ROBOT AWAITING A BODY
PERCEPTIONSCORTICAL LEVEL
WHO? WHAT? WHY? ETC.
HIGHER COGNITION
AUTONOMOUS WILL
NICE
DIRECTED
ATTENTION
<PAINTING IN GALLERY [MAN UP MOUNTAIN]>.
<IT'S VERY PLEASING ON THE EYE>
<VERY PLEASANT>.
PSYCHOLOGICAL
ACTS
WILLED
BEHAVIOURS
CONCEPTS
SUBCORTICAL LEVEL
SECONDARY
SENSORY
ANALYSIS
FIGURE-GROUND /
DRAMATIC GIST
PRIMARY
SENSORY
ANALYSIS
FEELINGS
NICE
EMOTIONAL STATES
DRIVES AND INSTINCTS
REFLEX LEVEL
INNER
SPEECH
MOTOR
SCHEMA
MANAGEMENT
MOVEMENT
UNITS
LOWER
MOTOR
SUBROUTINES
MUSCLE
OUTPUT
SENSORY INPUT
SIGHTS AND SOUNDS
SPEECH SOUNDS
THE SYSTEM THEN LOOKED FOR
WORDS TO EXPLAIN WHY THE
PAINTING WAS AS PLEASING AS IT
CLEARLY WAS [LIKE YOU WERE
DOING DURING ACTIVITY #5].
HOWEVER COGNITIVE SCIENTISTS
HAVE LITTLE IDEA HOW THIS
PROCESS WORKS.
http://www.smithsrisca.co.uk/DEMOS/2A158.pdf
INTRODUCING KONRAD
THE ROBOT AWAITING A BODY
..... BUT BECAUSE THE
PAINTING HAD BEEN
DELIBERATELY SELECTED TO
BE SUBLIME, NO SUCH
EXPLANATION COULD BE
FOUND.
"It's just a man
up a mountain so why should I
like it so much?"
INTRODUCING KONRAD
THE ROBOT AWAITING A BODY
PERCEPTIONSCORTICAL LEVEL
HIGHER COGNITION
AUTONOMOUS WILL
NICE
DIRECTED
ATTENTION
<PAINTING IN GALLERY [MAN UP MOUNTAIN]>
<TOO PLEASING IN FACT>
<VERY PLEASANT>
PSYCHOLOGICAL
ACTS
WILLED
BEHAVIOURS
CONCEPTS
SUBCORTICAL LEVEL
SECONDARY
SENSORY
ANALYSIS
FIGURE-GROUND /
DRAMATIC GIST
PRIMARY
SENSORY
ANALYSIS
FEELINGS
NICE
EMOTIONAL STATES
DRIVES AND INSTINCTS
REFLEX LEVEL
INNER
SPEECH
MOTOR
SCHEMA
MANAGEMENT
MOVEMENT
UNITS
LOWER
MOTOR
SUBROUTINES
A SECOND DEEP SENTENCE WAS
THEN GENERATED, AND DULY RECODED INTO THE KIRSHENBAUM
PHONETIC ALPHABET, AS BEFORE.
MUSCLE
OUTPUT
SENSORY INPUT
SIGHTS AND SOUNDS
SPEECH SOUNDS
< t'u: 'pliziN in 'f'akt >
http://www.smithsrisca.co.uk/DEMOS/2A158.pdf
INTRODUCING KONRAD
THE ROBOT AWAITING A BODY
PERCEPTIONSCORTICAL LEVEL
HIGHER COGNITION
AUTONOMOUS WILL
NICE
DIRECTED
ATTENTION
<PAINTING IN GALLERY [MAN UP MOUNTAIN]>
<TOO PLEASING IN FACT>
<TOO PLEASING IN FACT>
<VERY PLEASANT>
PSYCHOLOGICAL
ACTS
WILLED
BEHAVIOURS
CONCEPTS
SUBCORTICAL LEVEL
SECONDARY
SENSORY
ANALYSIS
FIGURE-GROUND /
DRAMATIC GIST
PRIMARY
SENSORY
ANALYSIS
FEELINGS
NICE
EMOTIONAL STATES
DRIVES AND INSTINCTS
REFLEX LEVEL
INNER
SPEECH
MOTOR
SCHEMA
MANAGEMENT
MOVEMENT
UNITS
LOWER
MOTOR
SUBROUTINES
AGAIN THIS OUTPUT
WAS RECYCLED AS
INNER SPEECH .....
MUSCLE
OUTPUT
SENSORY INPUT
SIGHTS AND SOUNDS
SPEECH SOUNDS
< t'u: 'pliziN in 'f'akt >
http://www.smithsrisca.co.uk/DEMOS/2A158.pdf
INTRODUCING KONRAD
THE ROBOT AWAITING A BODY
PERCEPTIONSCORTICAL LEVEL
WHO? WHAT? WHY? ETC.
HIGHER COGNITION
AUTONOMOUS WILL
NICE
DIRECTED
ATTENTION
<PAINTING IN GALLERY [MAN UP MOUNTAIN]>
<TOO PLEASING IN FACT>
<VERY PLEASANT>
PSYCHOLOGICAL
ACTS
WILLED
BEHAVIOURS
CONCEPTS
SUBCORTICAL LEVEL
SECONDARY
SENSORY
ANALYSIS
FIGURE-GROUND /
DRAMATIC GIST
PRIMARY
SENSORY
ANALYSIS
FEELINGS
NICE
EMOTIONAL STATES
DRIVES AND INSTINCTS
REFLEX LEVEL
INNER
SPEECH
MOTOR
SCHEMA
MANAGEMENT
MOVEMENT
UNITS
LOWER
MOTOR
SUBROUTINES
..... AGAIN THE SYSTEM
LOOKED UNSUCCESSFULLY
FOR WORDS TO EXPLAIN WHY
THE PAINTING PLEASED IT .....
MUSCLE
OUTPUT
SENSORY INPUT
SIGHTS AND SOUNDS
SPEECH SOUNDS
http://www.smithsrisca.co.uk/DEMOS/2A158.pdf
INTRODUCING KONRAD
THE ROBOT AWAITING A BODY
..... AND AGAIN IT FAILED.
"I, too, want to
stand at the top of
the world and
wonder what it's
all about."
"Is this what it
means to be
human, perhaps?"
INTRODUCING KONRAD
THE ROBOT AWAITING A BODY
PERCEPTIONSCORTICAL LEVEL
HIGHER COGNITION
AUTONOMOUS WILL
NICE
DIRECTED
ATTENTION
<PAINTING IN GALLERY [MAN UP MOUNTAIN]>
<IT'S BEYOND DESCRIPTION ALMOST>
<VERY PLEASANT>
PSYCHOLOGICAL
ACTS
WILLED
BEHAVIOURS
CONCEPTS
ADMITTING DEFEAT, THE
SOFTWARE THEN PRODUCED
A THIRD DEEP SENTENCE,
AND DULY RECYCLED IT AS
INNER SPEECH .....
SUBCORTICAL LEVEL
SECONDARY
SENSORY
ANALYSIS
FIGURE-GROUND /
DRAMATIC GIST
PRIMARY
SENSORY
ANALYSIS
FEELINGS
NICE
EMOTIONAL STATES
DRIVES AND INSTINCTS
REFLEX LEVEL
INNER
SPEECH
MOTOR
SCHEMA
MANAGEMENT
MOVEMENT
UNITS
LOWER
MOTOR
SUBROUTINES
MUSCLE
OUTPUT
SENSORY INPUT
SIGHTS AND SOUNDS
SPEECH SOUNDS
< its biyond d@skripSun O@lmO'st >
http://www.smithsrisca.co.uk/DEMOS/2A158.pdf
INTRODUCING KONRAD
THE ROBOT AWAITING A BODY
PERCEPTIONSCORTICAL LEVEL PSYCHOLOGICAL
HIGHER COGNITION
ACTS
AUTONOMOUS WILL
NICE
DIRECTED
ATTENTION
WILLED
BEHAVIOURS
CONCEPTS
SUBCORTICAL LEVEL
SECONDARY
SENSORY
ANALYSIS
FIGURE-GROUND /
DRAMATIC GIST
PRIMARY
SENSORY
ANALYSIS
FEELINGS
NICE
EMOTIONAL STATES
DRIVES AND INSTINCTS
REFLEX LEVEL
INNER
SPEECH
..... BEFORE DECIDING THAT
IT WAS FINALLY TIME TO
MOVE ON.
MOTOR
SCHEMA
MANAGEMENT
MOVEMENT
UNITS
LOWER
MOTOR
SUBROUTINES
MUSCLE
OUTPUT
SENSORY INPUT
SIGHTS AND SOUNDS
SPEECH SOUNDS
< 'Oka2i 'wot 'naU>
http://www.smithsrisca.co.uk/DEMOS/2A158.pdf
SECTION 7
IN CONCLUSION .....
ART THEORY AWAITS BETTER COGNITIVE THEORY
ART - A SURPRISINGLY DIFFICULT SCIENCE
THE BIG PROBLEM - TOO
MANY AREAS OF STUDY!!
THE ARTWORKS THEMSELVES
(Art History)
SO THE PEOPLE WHO NEED
THE HELP DON'T GET IT.
BRAIN FUNCTIONS
( Neurophysiology /
Endocrinology )
ART AS EXPERIENCE
(Aesthetics)
ART AS DRAMA
(Dramatic Theory)
BRAIN STRUCTURES
(Neuroanatomy)
THE EXPERIENCE
(Phenomenology)
THE WORKING PRINCIPLES
(Mental Philosophy /
Experimental Cognitive Science /
Artificial Intelligence and Robotics)
THE MEMORY USED
(Database Theory / Neurochemistry)
THE ANIMAL BEHAVIOURS
(Comparative Zoology /
Cognitive Palaeontology)
THE CODES USED
(Psycholinguistics [esp. Pragmatics])
ART - A SURPRISINGLY DIFFICULT SCIENCE
BY TREATING THE BIOLOGICAL MIND AS AN ENGINEERING
PROBLEM, THIS SOFTWARE EXPERIMENT HAS HELPED US
BETTER UNDERSTAND HOW ARTWORKS ARE VISUALLY
PROCESSED.
? ? ?
CORTICAL LEVEL
HIGHER COGNITION
AUTONOMOUS WILL
DIRECTED
ATTENTION
WILLED
BEHAVIOURS
CONCEPTS
SUBCORTICAL LEVEL
SECONDARY
SENSORY
ANALYSIS
FIGURE-GROUND /
DRAMATIC GIST
PRIMARY
SENSORY
ANALYSIS
SENSORY INPUT
EMOTIONAL STATES
DRIVES AND INSTINCTS
REFLEX LEVEL
MOTOR
SCHEMA
MANAGEMENT
MOVEMENT
UNITS
LOWER
MOTOR
SUBROUTINES
MUSCLE
OUTPUT
ART - A SURPRISINGLY DIFFICULT SCIENCE
WE ARE, FOR EXAMPLE, MORE
CONFIDENT THAT THE MIND WORKS
CYCLICALLY, CONSTANTLY
SAMPLING THE PERCEPTUAL AND
EMOTIONAL WORLDS .....
PERCEPTIONSCORTICAL LEVEL PSYCHOLOGICAL
HIGHER COGNITION
ACTS
AUTONOMOUS WILL
DIRECTED
ATTENTION
WILLED
BEHAVIOURS
CONCEPTS
SUBCORTICAL LEVEL
SECONDARY
SENSORY
ANALYSIS
FIGURE-GROUND /
DRAMATIC GIST
FEELINGS
EMOTIONAL STATES
DRIVES AND INSTINCTS
REFLEX LEVEL
PRIMARY
SENSORY
ANALYSIS
SENSORY INPUT
SIGHTS AND SOUNDS
MOTOR
SCHEMA
MANAGEMENT
MOVEMENT
UNITS
LOWER
MOTOR
SUBROUTINES
MUSCLE
OUTPUT
SPEECH SOUNDS
ART - A SURPRISINGLY DIFFICULT SCIENCE
..... AND CONSTANTLY UPDATING
A NETWORK MEMORY MODEL OF
WHAT IS GOING ON IN THOSE
WORLDS.
PERCEPTIONSCORTICAL LEVEL PSYCHOLOGICAL
HIGHER COGNITION
ACTS
AUTONOMOUS WILL
DIRECTED
ATTENTION
WILLED
BEHAVIOURS
CONCEPTS
SUBCORTICAL LEVEL
SECONDARY
SENSORY
ANALYSIS
FIGURE-GROUND /
DRAMATIC GIST
FEELINGS
EMOTIONAL STATES
DRIVES AND INSTINCTS
REFLEX LEVEL
PRIMARY
SENSORY
ANALYSIS
SENSORY INPUT
SIGHTS AND SOUNDS
MOTOR
SCHEMA
MANAGEMENT
MOVEMENT
UNITS
LOWER
MOTOR
SUBROUTINES
MUSCLE
OUTPUT
SPEECH SOUNDS
ART - A SURPRISINGLY DIFFICULT SCIENCE
WE ARE ALSO MORE CONFIDENT
THAT A PAINTING'S GIST
EMERGES VERY RAPIDLY WHILST
THE SUPPORTING DETAILED
SCANNING TAKES LONGER;
FURTHERMORE THAT MUCH CAN
BE ACCOMPLISHED USING THE
GIST ON ITS OWN.
PERCEPTIONSCORTICAL LEVEL PSYCHOLOGICAL
HIGHER COGNITION
ACTS
AUTONOMOUS WILL
DIRECTED
ATTENTION
WILLED
BEHAVIOURS
CONCEPTS
SUBCORTICAL LEVEL
SECONDARY
SENSORY
ANALYSIS
FIGURE-GROUND /
DRAMATIC GIST
FEELINGS
EMOTIONAL STATES
DRIVES AND INSTINCTS
REFLEX LEVEL
PRIMARY
SENSORY
ANALYSIS
SENSORY INPUT
MOTOR
SCHEMA
MANAGEMENT
MOVEMENT
UNITS
LOWER
MOTOR
SUBROUTINES
MUSCLE
OUTPUT
<PAINTING IN GALLERY [MAN UP MOUNTAIN]>
SIGHTS AND SOUNDS
SPEECH SOUNDS
ART - A SURPRISINGLY DIFFICULT SCIENCE
WE ARE ALSO MORE CONFIDENT
THAT THE LOWER REACHES OF
OUR MINDS RESPOND
EMOTIONALLY WITHOUT
CONSULTING OUR HIGHER
MINDS, THIS BEING HOW THINGS
HAPPEN IN ANIMALS.
PERCEPTIONSCORTICAL LEVEL PSYCHOLOGICAL
HIGHER COGNITION
ACTS
AUTONOMOUS WILL
DIRECTED
ATTENTION
WILLED
BEHAVIOURS
CONCEPTS
SUBCORTICAL LEVEL
SECONDARY
SENSORY
ANALYSIS
FIGURE-GROUND /
DRAMATIC GIST
FEELINGS
EMOTIONAL STATES
DRIVES AND INSTINCTS
REFLEX LEVEL
PRIMARY
SENSORY
ANALYSIS
SENSORY INPUT
NICE
SIGHTS AND SOUNDS
MOTOR
SCHEMA
MANAGEMENT
MOVEMENT
UNITS
LOWER
MOTOR
SUBROUTINES
MUSCLE
OUTPUT
SPEECH SOUNDS
ART - A SURPRISINGLY DIFFICULT SCIENCE
THIS LOWER PROCESSING OFTEN
INFLUENCES HOW WE INTERPRET
THE NARRATIVE DRAMA IN A
PICTURE .....
PERCEPTIONSCORTICAL LEVEL PSYCHOLOGICAL
HIGHER COGNITION
ACTS
AUTONOMOUS WILL
DIRECTED
ATTENTION
WILLED
BEHAVIOURS
CONCEPTS
SUBCORTICAL LEVEL
SECONDARY
SENSORY
ANALYSIS
FIGURE-GROUND /
DRAMATIC GIST
FEELINGS
EMOTIONAL STATES
DRIVES AND INSTINCTS
REFLEX LEVEL
PRIMARY
SENSORY
ANALYSIS
SENSORY INPUT
MOTOR
SCHEMA
MANAGEMENT
MOVEMENT
UNITS
LOWER
MOTOR
SUBROUTINES
MUSCLE
OUTPUT
ALERT!!
SCARY
SIGHTS AND SOUNDS
SPEECH SOUNDS
ART - A SURPRISINGLY DIFFICULT SCIENCE
..... THE TRULY MAGICAL MOMENT
BEING WHEN OUR HIGHER MIND
COMES TO FEEL ITS OWN
EMOTIONAL RESPONSE.
PERCEPTIONSCORTICAL LEVEL PSYCHOLOGICAL
HIGHER COGNITION
ACTS
AUTONOMOUS WILL
DIRECTED
ATTENTION
WILLED
BEHAVIOURS
CONCEPTS
SUBCORTICAL LEVEL
SECONDARY
SENSORY
ANALYSIS
FIGURE-GROUND /
DRAMATIC GIST
FEELS NICE
FEELINGS
IS
NICE
MOTOR
SCHEMA
MANAGEMENT
REFLEX LEVEL
MOVEMENT
UNITS
EMOTIONAL STATES
DRIVES AND INSTINCTS
PRIMARY
SENSORY
ANALYSIS
SENSORY INPUT
<PAINTING IN GALLERY [MAN UP MOUNTAIN]>
<IT'S VERY PLEASING ON THE EYE>
SIGHTS AND SOUNDS
<VERY PLEASANT>
LOWER
MOTOR
SUBROUTINES
MUSCLE
OUTPUT
SPEECH SOUNDS
SO CAN WE SAY MORE PRECISELY WHAT
MAKES AN ARTWORK BEAUTIFUL AT ONE
EXTREME, OR DISTURBING AT THE OTHER?
ART - A SURPRISINGLY DIFFICULT SCIENCE
WE THINK SO.
THE KEY MOMENT SEEMS TO BE WHEN
WE SENSE THAT AN ARTWORK IS
BEAUTIFUL, OR SCARY, OR WHATEVER,
BUT CANNOT IMMEDIATELY EXPLAIN
WHY.
FROM THAT MOMENT ONWARDS THE
OBJECT OF STUDY BECOMES NOT JUST
THE ARTWORK BUT ALSO ITS
ASSOCIATED EMOTIONS.
ART - A SURPRISINGLY DIFFICULT SCIENCE
THE FACT THAT THE HIGHER
BRAIN IS NOW STUDYING THE
LOWER BRAIN AS WELL AS THE
ARTWORK PUSHES IT TO ITS
LIMITS!
AND AT THE SAME
TIME, EMOTIONALLY
COMPLEX
ENCOUNTERS ARE
NATURALLY
MEMORABLE .....
ART - A SURPRISINGLY DIFFICULT SCIENCE
WHICH IS WHY WE LIKE A
GOOD LAUGH .....
..... OR A GOOD GHOST
STORY .....
..... OR A DANGEROUS TRICK
AND HAVE WE FOUND THE MIND'S "INNER
EYE", THAT IS TO SAY, THE BIT WHICH
DOES THE EXPERIENCING?
ART - A SURPRISINGLY DIFFICULT SCIENCE
NO.
THE SYSTEM HAS MERELY BEEN
MOVING SHORT FRAGMENTS OF
<CODED> INFORMATION FROM ONE
MEMORY LOCATION TO ANOTHER,
BECAUSE THAT IS WHAT COMPUTERS
ARE GOOD AT.
IT MAY EVEN BE THAT THE INNER EYE
PROBLEM MAY NEVER BE SOLVED!
ART - A SURPRISINGLY DIFFICULT SCIENCE
NEVERTHELESS WE DO HAVE A BETTER
IDEA ABOUT WHAT MIGHT BE GOING ON
DURING COGNITION .....
WHAT NEEDS TO BE MOVED
FROM WHERE TO WHERE
IN WHAT ORDER
WHAT <CODES> ARE USED ALONG THE
WAY
ART - A SURPRISINGLY DIFFICULT SCIENCE
IN OTHER WORDS WITH SOMETHING AS COMPLEX AS THE
MIND, WHERE SCIENTIFIC DATA ARE OTHERWISE SO
SCARCE, IT HELPS TO HAVE A WORKING MODEL TO
STUDY.
? ? ?
CORTICAL LEVEL
SCIENTIFIC
GUESSWORK
HIGHER COGNITION
AUTONOMOUS WILL
DIRECTED
ATTENTION
WILLED
BEHAVIOURS
CONCEPTS
SUBCORTICAL LEVEL
SECONDARY
SENSORY
ANALYSIS
FIGURE-GROUND /
DRAMATIC GIST
SCIENTIFIC
DATA
PRIMARY
SENSORY
ANALYSIS
SENSORY INPUT
EMOTIONAL STATES
DRIVES AND INSTINCTS
REFLEX LEVEL
MOTOR
SCHEMA
MANAGEMENT
MOVEMENT
UNITS
LOWER
MOTOR
SUBROUTINES
MUSCLE
OUTPUT
ART - A SURPRISINGLY DIFFICULT SCIENCE
AND ABOVE ALL IT HELPS TO HAVE NEW MINDS AND
YOUNGER SCIENTISTS INVOLVED IN THE DEBATE, WHICH
IS WHY WE ALL CAME HERE TODAY.
THE END
ANY QUESTIONS?
? ? ?
Copyright Notice: This material was written and published in Wales by Derek J. Smith,
CEO of High Tower Consultants Limited, Chief Designer on the Konrad artificial
consciousness project, and Editor of the Smithsrisca series of cognitive science study
resources. It forms part of a multifile e-learning resource, and subject only to
acknowledging Derek J. Smith's rights under international copyright law to be identified
as author may be freely downloaded and printed off in single complete copies solely for
the purposes of private study and/or review. Commercial exploitation rights are reserved.
The remote hyperlinks have been selected for the academic appropriacy of their contents;
they were free of offensive and litigious content when selected, and will be periodically
checked to have remained so. Prior scholarship is acknowledged throughout, and precise
references may be obtained from the author if needed. Internet images have been used in
good faith on the understanding that they were in the public domain when imported.
Copyright © 2012, High Tower Consultants Limited.
Publication was by PowerPoint presentation on 26th July 2012. This online version comes
to you for follow-up private study.
FROM AUTOMATA TO
ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE
In 1942 the American science fiction writer Isaac Asimov
published a short story entitled "Runaround", in which he
coined the word "robotics" for the science of designing,
building, and operating robots.
The hero of the tale is a robot named Speedy, who initially has
trouble when the three "Fundamental Rules of Robotics"
produce conflicting behaviours, but eventually - and of its own
volition - saves the lives of its human masters.
BY MAKING ITS OWN CONSIDERED CHOICES SPEEDY
SEEMS TO HAVE A MIND, BUT ONLY IN FICTION.