Most ominous thing about AI is not what you think

By: Eli Amdur
Vantage Point
USA Today Network

..... Artificial intelligence (the article was not written by chatGPT. Promise.)
..... We have in our hands the most awesome invention in human history, and with that, we have the power to do more good or more harm than ever before. Don't take that statement lightly. It's not hyperbole; it may, in fact, be an understatement. This goes so far beyond using AI to write (plagiarize) a paper, compose a symphony, aid or confound fact checkers, and even make decisions. Those are the giddy "shiny object" aspects, but it doesn't amount to bono-millonth of the totality of AI.
..... Simply, we now have the power to advance civilization by a greater exponent in the next quarter-century (and beyond, of course) that in all the centuries leaning up to this day - from the development of our first advancement: stone tools, 3,000,000 years ago. by the same token, with the same tool - AI - we can destroy it all: 2 million years of plodding process, in a heartbeat.
..... In the coming months I'll have plenty to say about this, as it will change the jobs landscape in ways never imagined. (It already has.) Moreover, it will fundamentally change the way we live, even where we live - and that statement is not limited to Plant Earth.
..... Obviously, I'm not the only one spouting off on this - and other know so much more than I - so why, actually, do you need to add my words to the trillions already spewed on the subject?
..... Because there are fewer of us delivering the message I'm about to convey: In our rush to use AI for every conceivable purpose, we'd better ensure we're not using it to abdicate our responsibility to develop and advance ourselves and our own skills, not just as a civilization, but as individuals.
..... I spent 15 years teaching two graduate course in communication and leadership. I made it clear that communication, the most sought-after skill of all, is not an innate gift, but a skill - and skills can be developed, improved and honed - always and continuously. but it takes work, diligence and never-ending practice. By the same token, communication skills, if ignored, will atrophy. My job was to help in the improvement process, No matter where you stated, I was going to help you improve, no matter what, so long as you shared the goal. Why wouldn't you?
..... I insisted on strict adherence to the university's academic integrity policy and required students to print out - on the cover page of their papers - and sign an affirmation that theirs was an original work. In return, my promise was to put in equal effort and from, with the student, a coordinated effort to improve.
..... With the exception of two guys - who plagiarized, got caught and then did it again, leading to their expulsion - it worked every time.
..... Everyone who ever came into my class improved because they accepted the self-responsibility and committed to do the work.
..... That's what could fall apart with AI. The temptation to sue a tool that could do better or more original work is irresistibly strong. And in the appropriate situations, AI will deliver on its potential, and then some. But before we start in, we need to set up a series of criteria that govern our own personal use of this limitless power. Here's what that might look like.
..... On April 6, 1992, Isaac ?Asimov died. By far the most prolific and influential science fiction writer ever, he authored or contributed to more than 500 books, most prominently "I, Robot" in 1950. Since his death, much of his science fiction - the product of one of the most and fertile minds - has become science, most notably robotics and artificial intelligence.
..... With stunning prescience, Asimov devised his "three Laws of Robotics" in 1942 and reintroduced them in"I Robot" in 1950. Here they are, in all their simplicity, grandeur, and durability:
1. A robot may not injure a human being or, tho=rough-inaction, allow a human begin to come to harm.
2. A robot must obey the orders given it by human beings except where such orders would conflict with the First Law
3. A robot must protect its now existence as long as such protection does not conflict with the First or Second Law
..... To adopt such a set of organizing principles would be wise, even more so now than in 1942. Or we'll be handling the tool our own decay or even destruction.

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