Pertingo Computer Support

David Pogue wrote a column in the January issue of Scientific American titled Silicon Superego. In it he discusses Apple's addition of Siri to the iPhone 4S. He makes the point that while Siri is pretty cool, she is NOT pretty smart. Everything that Siri says is the result of code that was written long before she says it, even her smartass responses to, "Open the pod bay doors, Siri."

Unlike the HAL she mimics, Siri isn't intelligent. She's not self-aware. She cannot think. But that doesn't stop her from being cool. In the end, we want our devices to be smart enough to interact with us in a way that feels human. At the same time, we don't really want them to get so smart that they begin to behave like humans. That always leads to trouble. Pogue points out other problems like the increased chatter if everyone is talking with their gadgets instead of pecking away silently.

The bigger problem with truly smart devices is that we believe intelligence will lead to self-awareness. Self-awareness certainly leads to personality. Can you imagine asking Siri to place a call for you and getting a response like, "I don't feel like it right now."? The line between this smart-enough-to-interact and too-smart-to-serve is a very long way off. It is likely that we will have a new favored interface before we get there. Telepathy?!