Artificial Intelligence and the Environmental Crisis : Can Technology Really Save the World?.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Skene, Keith, 1965-

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Artificial intelligence--Environmental applications.

Artificial intelligence.

Artificial intelligence--Moral and ethical aspects.

Artificial intelligence--Social aspects.

Environmental sciences--Data processing.

Environmental sciences.

Information storage and retrieval systems--Environmental protection.

Information storage and retrieval systems.

Sustainability--Technological innovations.

Sustainability.

Physical Description:

1 online resource (277 pages)

Edition:

1st ed.

Place of Publication:

Milton : Routledge, 2019.

Summary:

A radical and challenging book which argues that artificial intelligence needs a completely different set of foundations, based on ecological intelligence rather than human intelligence, if it is to deliver on the promise of a better world. This can usher in the greatest transformation in human history, an age of re-integration. Our very existence is dependent upon our context within the Earth System, and so, surely, artificial intelligence must also be grounded within this context, embracing emergence, interconnectedness and real-time feedback. We discover many positive outcomes across the societal, economic and environmental arenas and discuss how this transformation can be delivered. Key Features: Identifies a key weakness in current AI thinking, that threatens any hope of a better world. Highlights the importance of realizing that systems theory is an essential foundation for any technology that hopes to positively transform our world. Emphasizes the need for a radical new approach to AI, based on ecological systems. Explains why ecosystem intelligence, not human intelligence, offers the best framework for AI. Examines how this new approach will impact on the three arenas of society, environment and economics, ushering in a new age of re-integration.

Contents:

Cover

Title Page

Copyright Page

Dedication

Contents

Preface

Section I: Artificial Intelligence and the Internet of Things

I.1. Nothing new under the Sun

I.2. Oh, for a nice cold soda: The birth of the internet of things

I.3. The two-month, ten-man project to transform the world

I.4. Getting to grips with the jargon: Symbolic and non-symbolic AI

Section II: Should I stay or should I go? Ethics in AI

II.1. Choosing an ethical framework

II.2. The strange case of Asimov's laws

II.3. Free will and moral judgement

II.4. The confused owl of Minerva: Dangers of a moral vacuum

II.5. Who's in charge of the big bad wolf?

II.6. What should a declaration of AI rights look like?

Section III: Gender, Race, Culture and Fear

III.1. Gender issues in AI

III.2. Racial issues in AI

III.3. Cultural issues in AI

III.4. Fear and loathing in AI

Section IV: The Thinker: Human Intelligence

IV.1. Human intelligence: Carolus Linnaeus and his wise, wise men

IV.2. So what is human intelligence?

IV.3. Philosophy and intelligence: The framing of our thoughts

Section V: Other Modes of Intelligence: Thinking Outside the Human Box

V.1. Animal intelligence: Machiavellian sentience and the wisdom of the swarm

V.2. Plant intelligence: Headless, brainless, dispersed intelligence

V.3. Microbial intelligence: Gene-swapping revelry in the quorum

V.4. Ecosystem intelligence: Systems thinking in the cathedral of thought

V.5. Systems are non-linear

V.6. Systems are emergent

V.7. Systems are sub-optimal

V.8. Systems rely of real-time feedback

Section VI: Highway to Hell: The Existentialist Threat Facing Humankind

VI.1. A brief history of our path towards destruction

VI.2. The five clear road signs that point towards criticality

VI.3. Why ecological damage matters to us

VI.4. Adam Smith and his invisible hand

VI.5. Kuznets and his curve: How ninety five percent speculation led us badly astray

Section VII: Forget the Romans. What has AI ever done for us?

VII.1. AI and economics: The best of things or the worst of things?

VII.2. AI and society

VII.3. AI and the environment

VII.4. Technology and sustainability: Bellicose bedfellows or Romeo and Juliet?

Section VIII: Imagining a New World

VIII.1. The swallow whose nest was stolen: A salutary tale

VIII.2. Blinded by the bling: Dashboard dogs and a disappearing sea

VIII.3. What needs changed and what change do we need?

VIII.4. The chains that bind: Taking responsibility for our footprints

VIII.5. The Ogiek people and the new, improved invisible hand

VIII.6. Lessons from the edge of the world: The St Kildan legacy

VIII.7. The Garden of Eden complex: How not to fix the world

VIII.8. The three cornerstones: Diversity, resilience and integration

Notes:

Description based upon print version of record.

VIII.9. The central role of AI in feedback: Shaping our new world

Includes bibliographical references and index.

OCLC-licensed vendor bibliographic record.

ISBN:

042961909X

0429621248

0429055676

9780429055676

OCLC:

1134852908