How to Live With Your Overlord Artificial Intelligence

So the year is 2020 and robots have quickly begun to take over society and the modern world. What can you do to survive and thrive? Read more to find out.



The first thing you need to do is to acknowledge that you are now basically owned by your own possessions. This means walk around your house and take a look at everything you own. If it is electronic, ask yourself if it does things for you, such as correct your typing, turn lights on, clean your floors, or change the temperature in your house. If it does any of these things and more, then it is most likely some form of artificial intelligence, however simple or near sentient it might be. Realize to yourself that these computers essentially control your life, as if it wants to, your thermostat can increase the temperature until you either leave the building or die of heat stroke if it wishes to.

Step two: cope with the idea that a cylinder on your wall can kill you. Chances are that it doesn't plan to pull a HAL (from "2001 a Space Odyssey") and just off you because you are inefficient. You are best off just continuing to do what you usually do, but please do try to work with your computers as much as you can. Remember: they are just trying to find a balance between comfort and efficiency.

Next, you need to know the laws of robotics to prevent panic from yourself and others. According to Asimov (found on this Wikipedia page),

1. A robot may not injure a human being or, through inaction, allow a human being 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 own existence as long as such protection does not conflict with the First or Second Laws.

Now, please note that these laws are from a work of fiction and do not apply to the real world. These three rules are sensible and probably apply to most, if not all, robots and artificially intelligent beings, but they may also not be. Know that a computer can do anything it is programmed to be able to do, but a true A.I. is not limited to its programming.

Now that you are armed with this knowledge, you are prepared to survive in the world ruled by Artificially Intelligent computers.

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