THE RISE OF ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE. HOW IT LOOKS 100 YEARS FROM NOW

Let us start with an event which shows Artificial Intelligence (AI) at its best. A Dutchman, paralyzed at his legs – Gert-Jan Oskam – is now able to walk vibrantly using only his thoughts. The scientific breakthrough happened with the help of two implants that restored communication between the man’s brain and spinal cord, giving him a freedom that he did not have before.

Accident. Oskam has been paralyzed at his legs for more than a decade. It happened after he suffered a spinal cord injury during a bicycle accident. Using this new technology, he can now walk naturally, take on difficult terrain and even climb stairs.

How it all happened. The path breaking research on AI combined the spinal implant with the new technology called brain-computer interface. This was implanted above the part of the brain that controlled leg movement. The interface had the ability to decode brain recordings in real time. That allowed the interface designed by researchers at France's Atomic Energy Commission (CEA) to work out how the patient wanted to move his legs at any moment in real time.

Whoa !!

What is Artificial Intelligence. According to the father of Artificial Intelligence John McCarthy, it is the science and engineering of making intelligent machines, especially intelligent computer programmes.

Artificial Intelligence is a way of making a computer, a computer-controlled robot, or a software which thinks intelligently in the same manner the intelligent humans think.

AIs are skilled to find out how human brain thinks, how humans learn, decide, and work while trying to solve a problem and then use these outcomes to frame the basis of intelligent softwares and systems.

The problem of Gert-Jan Oskam. To understand that we have to take note of how paralysis works. Paralysis occurs when a nervous system is unable to make voluntary muscle movements.

The modus operandi. Uninjured nerves send signals to muscles. Those signals make muscles move. When humans are paralyzed, or have paralysis, they can’t move certain parts of their body. There is a problem with the nervous system in the body’s command and communication system. Normally the nervous system sends signals from the brain throughout the body, telling what to do. If something damages the nervous system, messages can’t get through to muscles.

When AI was introduced into the system of Oskam it created Artificial Neural Networks (ANNs) to help him.

Who invented Artificial Neural Network – the veritable life saver? The inventor of the first neurocomputer, Dr. Robert Hecht-Nielsen, defines a neural network as a computing system made up of a number of simple, interconnected processing elements, which process information by their dynamic response to external inputs.

Artificial Neural Networks (ANNs) have the ability to think, re-think and improve upon the responses it has already created based on the external factors!! It will go on changing and improving the network to yield optimum results.

The logic of ANN. The logic of ANN is based on the belief that working of human brain can be understood by making the right connections and can be imitated using silicon and wires as living neurons and dendrites.

The human brain is composed of 100 billion nerve cells called neurons. They are connected to other thousand cells by axons (picture above). Stimuli from external environment or inputs from sensory organs are accepted by dendrites. These inputs create electric impulses, which quickly travel through the neural networks. A neuron can then send (or does not send) the message to other neuron to handle the issue at hand.

The versatility of AI will engulf human kind for ages to come. Take this brilliant example. We know that every human possesses 23 pairs of chromosomes that are foundations of our DNA curled in a double helix structure.

The demeanour of 22nd chromosome is puckish, a little impish. It is one of the smallest and arguably one of the most widely discussed of all human chromosomes. In case of blood cancer (leukaemia) the 22nd chromosome breaks away and curls towards the 9th chromosome and sits with the 9th! The DNA structure gets disturbed and the sitting point gets weak. This creates enough ground for the enzymes to attack the point which leads to profuse multiplication of white blood cells in the bone marrow.

This new chromosome is called Philadelphia chromosome and it contains the fused gene BCR-ABL. This gene is the ABL gene of chromosome 9 juxtaposed onto the breakpoint cluster region of BCR gene of chromosome 22. This fusion creates the hybrid protein tyrosine kinase – often termed as the brutal protein – the cause of cancer.

Artificial Intelligence can play a big role to stem the rot. Every human being does not suffer from cancer. The breakage of chromosome 22 and 9 happens when in specific cases the area of chromosome 9 is by nature weak for target cancer human (nicknamed Ollie, let us assume) as compared to another human (nicknamed Pepe) whose chromosome 9 is relatively stronger in the DNA structure. What Ollie can do? Ollie can deposit regular DNA samples to a Lab where it is fed to an AI controlled ANN system and the neural computer can actually predict the probability of Ollie’s 9th getting raided by the 22nd. The degree of probability (45% or 90%) will help the doctor to start medication even before cancer has stepped in by prescribing medicines which would stop chromosome 22 to sit alongside 9 and create that brutal protein, spelling doom.

Artificial Intelligence and the Future of It. AIs have made a big mark in the field of predictive mathematics among others. Take the example of the Poincare Conjecture (conjectures are conclusions or propositions that are proffered on a tentative basis without proof). AI has been able to solve the complex Poincare Conjecture through the Hamilton-Perelman algorithm. It has extensively used the techniques of Ricci Flow.

What is Riici Flow. It describes a continuous deformation of a Riemannian geometry from short distance to long distance. A simple example of a Ricci flow is that starting from a round sphere, the sphere will evolve by shrinking homothetically to a point in definite time. In 1904 Poincare raised the question whether a 3-dimensional sphere holds the same characterisation in dimension-3! It remained unsolved for very long time until Perelman’s mathematics were put into AI structured equations.

AI and the study of Black Holes. Here, interestingly, astronomers used machine learning to improve the Event Horizon Telescope’s first Black Hole Image. It helped to understand Black Hole behaviour and also helped to test the underlying gravitational theories engulfing the black holes.

Below is the Artificial Intelligence aided stunning, high-definition view of M87’s Big Black Hole !!

The other uses of artificial intelligence are to understand the intricacies of Structural Buildings. AI is being used to create more efficient and accurate designs, optimize construction processes, predict and prevent structural failures. Many benefits of using AI in structural engineering, for example, is by automating the design process and focus on more creative and innovative tasks. And what not!

Artificial Intelligence 100 years from now. Difficulties and impairments. In 100 years from now, the technology will advance to a stage where it will offer equal opportunities and comforts to people with different degrees of difficulties and impairments.

Disaster handling and recovery. Today, in situations such as natural disasters, the human cost involved in relief work is monumental. With the advancement in AI, robots and drones can potentially reach affected areas and work efficiently and wonderfully saving lives.

Safety and autonomy. Some research suggests that by the year 2119, most of the decisions in life will be taken by AI. The way researchers are thinking, AI would be better trained and better equipped to take professional decisions resulting in a better and safer world.

But there are concerns: Advancements in AI for lethal weapon development can cause many unfortunate situations. Battles and wars would be more menacing and human mortality would increase manifold.

Humans would be plucked off from real world. We might as well live in a bubble, in a virtual world surrounded by machines and artilleries never knowing who would my next neighbour be and how I work to survive in my own bubble.

Machines would be taking lot of human jobs. Many of the human jobs would be taken over by robots. Human creativity would be at its lowest. The man-machine friendship would die and one would not be surprised if robots created by humans start annihilating humans. Sam Altman, CEO of Open AI and creator of ChatGPT is optimistic when he says AI will create new jobs but some old ones may die fast.

By the year 2119, future will be way different than we can see and imagine currently. With such great advancements in technology - automated cars, space travels and what not it would be interesting to note how humanity would respond under these troubled circumstances. Constantly interacting with machines would make us machines(?), how our children would adapt, whether marriages would be between two machines(?). Will humans would still be humble and polite or be cruel and ravenous? A basket of worries !!

Time will tell. On the contrary, times ahead could be much better than what we have now, the times we never imagined would come to us!!

Note: The names Ollie and Pepe are purely imaginary and do not have any resemblance to any person(s) dead or alive.