A young teenage girl enters the psychologists, Elizas, office apprehensively and sits down upon a chair. The girl begins by saying, Men are all alike. In what way? replies Eliza. Well they are always trying to run things in one way or another, the girl laments. Can you think of a specific example? Well my boyfriend made me come here. Your boyfriend made you come here? He says Im depressed all the time. Im sorry to hear that you are depressed. Its true that I am unhappy. Do you think coming here will help you not to be unhappy? Perhaps I can get along with my mother better. Tell me more about your family? Eliza inquires. And the conversation goes on. While this seems like a very ordinary psychologist and patient session, it is indeed not. Eliza is an artificial intelligence program. She is the result of researcher, Joseph Wiezbaum's, attempt to make a program that can converse in English. Eliza amazed people when she appeared in the late 1960s. She was able to converse about any subject, because she stored vast subject information in her data banks. In addition Eliza was deftly able to pick up speech patterns. Suprisingly, after creating one of the most famous programs Wiezbaum objected to bonds that interviewees were making with his creation, and denounced the intelligence of Eliza. She was intelligent, however, she could not think for herself, she was a product of sophisticated programming (Waltz). While it seemed like Eliza could understand the girl, she no more understood the girl and her problems than an alarm clock knows when to wake someone up. Eliza was one of the first programs using artificial intelligence developed; one can only imagine what the future brings. The study of Artificial intelligence (AI) is developing rapidly. As we approach the twenty-first century new technology waits in the wings. Yet people worldwide seem to have a fear of this research and its advancements. Some have legitimate ethical or social ...
