There was an article that passed me by a couple of weeks ago but stuck around in the back of my mind enough that I eventually tracked it down. The basic gist is that we are testing algorithms to decipher what an infant wants. The basis of these news stories can be found here.
I headed down a different line of thought. If a computer can interpret a babies cries well enough that the child can express their needs: milk, sleep, cuddles, nappy change, etc….then what use is language?
Take the thought a little further. If you were raised with an interpreter that could respond with a high degree of success to your needs from the time you were born at which point would you need to learn language? When you meet another human? But the interpreter can tell them in their own language as well.
What if everybody was raised without a common language? If the new basis of communication was not speech/air/listening or text/eyes/read but was instead source/interpret/source. No need for the rest of the world at all really as it only exists as it is interpreted to you. Computers become the common band between humans and without them we are unable to communicate. Like an Internet, but with no other options. The computer will fulfil your needs and if they aren’t your needs…well, who can you tell?
Image used: Wikipedia
