Original artwork, not a still
Computing Machinery and Intelligence • 1950
We can only see a short distance ahead, but we can see plenty there that needs to be done.
Behind the line
What it means
Our interpretation.
It is Turing's modest handover: no roadmap, only the observation that the problem is large and that there is plenty of work already in view. Research labs, AI course openings and conference keynotes quote it when they want humility and momentum together, and its stock rises with every wave of machine learning, since the learning-machine route the paper sketches is the one that came to dominate.
Context reviewed
In context
Spoilers for Computing Machinery and IntelligenceShow the scene
These are the last words of Alan Turing's paper "Computing Machinery and Intelligence," published in the journal Mind in 1950 (pages 433 to 460). They close the section on learning machines, where Turing suggests building a child-like machine and teaching it, perhaps starting with abstract games such as chess and then moving toward understanding and speaking English. He admits he does not know the right approach and says both should be tried, then ends with this sentence on page 460.
Sources (2)
- Turing, Computing Machinery and Intelligence (Mind 1950), text mirrorFinal paragraph of the paperReference checked
- Wikiquote: Alan TuringComputing Machinery and Intelligence (1950) sectionReference checked
Context reviewed
