The gift of creative thinking
Written by: George Derksen on Feb 19, 2010
They said it couldn’t be done. But on May 11, 1997, a computer beat the world chess champion in what many considered the ultimate challenge of man vs. machine. The match pitted Russian chess legend Garry Kasparov against Deep Blue, an IBM supercomputer. Deep Blue won, 3.5 to 2.5.
The match was called a victory for artificial intelligence (AI), a branch of science attempting to create computer systems that emulate human abilities to perceive, reason, and act. And Deep Blue isn’t AI’s only triumph.
AI systems are able to learn and use their knowledge to solve problems on their own. They can mimic human thought, understand speech, diagnose medical conditions, and countless other feats never before thought possible. They are the tools that bring the power of computing technology into our lives. Examples include smart appliances, robotics, and virtual reality.
What potential! Many see artificial intelligence as the means by which people can reach their goal of a scientifically achieved utopia.
But just because computers can sometimes think like humans, it doesn’t mean they are human. Indeed they are not.
With all the fuss over the possiblities and potential of artificial intelligence, we tend to overlook God’s supreme feat – the intelligence of the human brain.
While a machine brain can outstrip a human brain in terms of speed and storage space, there are some areas where a machine brain will never rival the human intelligence.
A machine brain will never have a sense of right and wrong, never write a great novel, never understand love, and never feel pain. The distinctly human qualities of creativity and emotion remain elusive to the electronic beast. A machine brain, no matter what its capabiltiies, will never know God. It will never have a soul.
The human brain is where the whole mystery of life comes into focus. When the intangible spirit links up with the mechanism of tangible matter, created thought can be put into action.
That created thought is done at the will of the brain, which makes human beings creative thinkers. Here is the greatest gift God has given to humanity – the freedom of thought and response. Without this gift, we would be nothing more than robots.
(Reprinted from Why Am I on This Earth? with kind permission of Fleet Publications)
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