JMJ Marist Brothers

NOTRE DAME OF MARBEL UNIVERSITY

College of Arts and Sciences
Al Alunan Ave., City of Koronadal, South Cotabato 9506

Title: Descartes and Turing on Artificial Intelligence (AI): Compare and contrast

Introduction
Life and works

I. Descartes’ Philosophy and its implications about AI

A. Dualism - mind and body as separate entities /
B. Cogito, ergo sum (I think, therefore I am) /
II. Turing’s approach to AI /
A. Turing test /
B. Turing’s definition of intelligence /
C. Turing’s optimism about the possibility of artificial intelligence
III. Compare and contrast: the two notions

Conclusion

References

Scruton, Roger. A Short History of Modern Philosophy. 2nd ed. 11 New Fetter Lane,
London: Routledge, 2002.
 JMJ Marist Brothers
NOTRE DAME OF MARBEL UNIVERSITY
College of Arts and Sciences
Al Alunan Ave., City of Koronadal, South Cotabato 9506

Life and works

René Descartes (1596-1650) was a French philosopher and mathematician who

is considered to be one of the founders of modern philosophy. He is best known for his
methodological doubt, which involved questioning everything that he believed to be true
in order to find a foundation for knowledge that could not be doubted1.
Descartes's most famous work is Meditations on First Philosophy, in which he argues
that the only thing that he can be certain of is his own existence, which he famously
expressed in the phrase "I think, therefore I am." He also argued that the mind and body
are two distinct substances, and that the mind is immaterial and non-physical. It was in
his work the Meditations in which he laid his proof of his own existence, and in doing so
he identified that there are only two distinct substances which he identified as mind and
body.
Alan Turing (1912-1954) was a British mathematician and computer scientist who is
considered to be one of the fathers of theoretical computer science and artificial
intelligence. He is best known for his Turing test, which is a test of a machine's ability to
exhibit intelligent behavior equivalent to, or indistinguishable from, that of a human 2.
Turing's work on artificial intelligence was groundbreaking, and he is considered to be
one of the most influential thinkers in the field. His work has helped to shape our
understanding of what it means to be intelligent, and it has inspired generations of AI
researchers.

1 Williams, Bernard. Descartes: The Project of Pure Enquiry. Routledge, 2005.

2 Shor, Peter. Turing and the Universal Computer. Springer, 2012.
 JMJ Marist Brothers
NOTRE DAME OF MARBEL UNIVERSITY
College of Arts and Sciences
Al Alunan Ave., City of Koronadal, South Cotabato 9506

Descartes implications about the Artificial intelligence

 JMJ Marist Brothers
NOTRE DAME OF MARBEL UNIVERSITY
College of Arts and Sciences
Al Alunan Ave., City of Koronadal, South Cotabato 9506

C. Cogito, ergo sum (I think, therefore I am)

 JMJ Marist Brothers
NOTRE DAME OF MARBEL UNIVERSITY
College of Arts and Sciences
Al Alunan Ave., City of Koronadal, South Cotabato 9506

In his pursuit of certainty, Descartes arrived at his famous cogito ergo sum. He
recognized that even if he doubted everything else, the very act of doubting itself
required a doubting subject, an "I" that engaged in the process of questioning. This "I,"
the thinking subject, could not be doubted away.3 The cogito provides a firm foundation
for building a system of knowledge. Descartes argued that even if we doubt everything
else, we cannot doubt the existence of our own minds. This is because the very act of
doubting requires a thinker, and that thinker is our own self. Therefore, the self is the
most certain of all things.
Moreover, the cogito signifies more than mere existence; it reveals the nature of
the self. Descartes asserted that the self is not a physical entity but rather an immaterial
substance capable of thought, consciousness, and self-awareness. In his philosophy,
the mind (res cogitans) is distinct from the body (res extensa), giving rise to the concept
of Cartesian dualism. This duality has profound implications for the nature of human
identity and the relationship between the mind and the body. The cogito ergo sum
highlights that thought is fundamental to the self. It suggests that the self is not a
passive observer but an active participant in the world, engaging in thinking,
questioning, and making sense of experiences. This ability to think, to reflect on one's
own thoughts and actions, makes the self a unique and conscious entity.
Through his method of doubt, Descartes sought to establish a foundation of
knowledge that could withstand any challenge. He systematically questioned everything
he could possibly doubt, including his own senses, memories, and even the existence of
the external world.Even if Descartes doubted everything else, he could not doubt the
very act of doubting itself. The act of doubting required a doubting subject, an "I" that
was engaged in the process of questioning. This "I," the thinking subject, could not be
doubted away.

3 McGinn, Colin. The Character of Mind: An Introduction to the Philosophy of Mind. Oxford: Oxford
University Press, 2004.
 JMJ Marist Brothers
NOTRE DAME OF MARBEL UNIVERSITY
College of Arts and Sciences
Al Alunan Ave., City of Koronadal, South Cotabato 9506

D. Dualism - mind and body as separate entities

Rene Descartes' conception of dualism postulates the existence of two distinct

substances: the immaterial mind (res cogitans) and the physical body (res extensa).
This profound conceptual divide, known as the mind-body problem. And this could
better be understood by way of analogy. Imagine you are a driver, and your car is like
your body. You, the driver, are like your mind. You are separate from the car, but you
can control it using the steering wheel, pedals, and other controls. This is similar to how
Descartes thought the mind and body interacted. He believed that the mind was a
separate, non-physical substance that could control the body through the pineal gland,
a small structure in the brain.
Descartes' dualistic framework emerged from his skepticism, a fundamental
method in his philosophy.He questioned the reliability of sensory perceptions,
recognizing their potential to deceive. To establish a firm foundation for knowledge,
Descartes embarked on a quest for an indubitable truth, an absolute certainty that could
withstand the scrutiny of doubt.
He found his answer in the famous cogito ergo sum, "I think, therefore I am." This
simple yet profound statement asserted the existence of the thinking subject, the "I" that
engages in the act of thinking. For Descartes, this self-awareness, the realization of
one's own existence, was the bedrock of knowledge.
However, the mind, as Descartes conceived it, was not bound by the confines of the
physical world. He believed that the mind, an immaterial substance, was distinct from
the body, a material entity governed by the laws of physics. This separation gave rise to
the mind-body problem, the question of how these two fundamentally different
substances could interact.
 JMJ Marist Brothers
NOTRE DAME OF MARBEL UNIVERSITY
College of Arts and Sciences
Al Alunan Ave., City of Koronadal, South Cotabato 9506

Descartes proposed a solution known as interactionism. He suggested that the mind

interacted with the body through the pineal gland, a small structure located in the center
of the brain. The mind, through its immaterial nature, could exert influence on the pineal
gland, which in turn would affect the body's physical movements and sensations.

Turing’s approach to Artificial intelligence (AI)

Turing proposes a test for machine intelligence, known as the Turing test, and
discusses the possibility of creating machines that are capable of exhibiting intelligent
behavior.It was in a way to determine whether machines are capable of being sentient
similar to human intelligence. He challenges the existence of machines during his time
whether they are already capable of equalling natural intelligence. He then uses the
Turing test to assess whether Artificial intelligence or human made intelligence can
exhibit intelligent behavior
The Turing test is a thought experiment in which a human evaluator engages in a
natural language conversation with a human and a machine designed to generate
human-like responses.4 If the evaluator is unable to distinguish between the human and
the machine based on the conversation, then the machine is said to have passed the
Turing test.

Turing believed that the Turing test was a good measure of machine intelligence
because it required the machine to be able to understand and generate human
language, which is a complex and challenging task. He also believed that the Turing
test was a fair test because it did not require the machine to have any specific
knowledge or abilities beyond the ability to communicate effectively with humans.

4 Turing, Allan M. “Mind .” Essay. In Computing Machinery and Intelligence. , 433–460. North Kettering
Business Park, Hipwell Road, Kettering, Northamptonshire: Oxford University Press, 1950.
 JMJ Marist Brothers
NOTRE DAME OF MARBEL UNIVERSITY
College of Arts and Sciences
Al Alunan Ave., City of Koronadal, South Cotabato 9506

Turing test

The Turing test is a test of a machine's ability to exhibit intelligent behavior

equivalent to, or indistinguishable from that of a human. It follows a method, first it
begins with A human evaluator engages in a natural language conversation with two
other parties, one of whom is a human and the other of whom is a machine designed to
generate human-like responses. The evaluator is unable to see or hear the other two
parties, and can only communicate with them through a text-based interface. And then
the evaluator's task is to try to determine which of the other two parties is the machine.
And finally if the evaluator is unable to distinguish between the human and the machine
based on the conversation, then the machine is said to have passed the Turing test.
The Turing test was designed to address the question of whether or not
machines can think. Turing argued that the question of whether or not a machine can
think is too vague to be meaningful, and that it is more useful to focus on whether or not
a machine can exhibit intelligent behavior.

Turing also believed that the Turing test was a good way to determine whether or
not machines were capable of being sentient, or having subjective experiences. He
argued that if a machine could pass the Turing test, then it would be reasonable to
assume that it was capable of experiencing the world in a similar way to humans.

Turing’s definition of intelligence

Turing's definition of intelligence revolved around the idea that if a machine could
successfully imitate a human in a conversation without being detected, it could be
considered intelligent. This approach focused on the observable outputs of intelligence
rather than attempting to define or understand the underlying mechanisms. It suggests
 JMJ Marist Brothers
NOTRE DAME OF MARBEL UNIVERSITY
College of Arts and Sciences
Al Alunan Ave., City of Koronadal, South Cotabato 9506

that if a machine can convincingly mimic human conversation, it can be considered

intelligent.
Turing's definition of intelligence had several significant implications for AI
research. Firstly, it introduced a clear and measurable criterion for evaluating machine
intelligence, replacing subjective and often ambiguous assessments. Secondly, it
shifted the focus away from internal mental processes, which were difficult to study and
replicate, and towards observable outputs, which could be more directly assessed and
replicated5. In short he similarly to other thinkers has made a breakthrough or made a
paradigm shift in Artificial intelligence. By proposing that a machine could be considered
as intelligent if it could imitate human conversation, and unlike other thinkers he shifted
from mental processes, to observable outputs which can be more directly assessed and
replicated.
Turing's definition of intelligence has also had broader implications for our
understanding of intelligence itself. It challenged traditional notions of intelligence as an
inherent human trait and suggested that it could be replicated in machines. This raised
questions about the nature of consciousness, the possibility of artificial general
intelligence, and the ethical implications of creating intelligent machines.

D. Turing’s optimism about the possibility of artificial intelligence

Alan Turing was an optimist about the possibility of AI because he believed in the
power of technology to solve complex problems. He was also a pioneer in the field of
computer science, and he developed many of the fundamental concepts that are used
in AI today.
Turing's optimism about AI was based on a number of factors. First, he believed
that machines could be programmed to perform any task that a human can do. He

5 Boden, Margaret A. “What Is Artificial Intelligence.” Essay. In Artificial Intelligence: A Very Short
Introduction. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2018.
 JMJ Marist Brothers
NOTRE DAME OF MARBEL UNIVERSITY
College of Arts and Sciences
Al Alunan Ave., City of Koronadal, South Cotabato 9506

argued that this was because the human mind is essentially a computer, and that all
thought processes can be broken down into logical steps that can be executed by a
machine.
Second, Turing believed that machines could learn and adapt. He argued that
this could be done by feeding machines large amounts of data and allowing them to
learn from their mistakes. Over time, machines would become better at solving
problems and making decisions.
Third, Turing believed that machines could be creative. He argued that creativity
is simply the ability to generate new ideas, and that machines could be programmed to
do this by using algorithms. For example, a machine could be programmed to generate
new musical compositions or to write new poems.
Turing's vision of AI was very different from the way that AI is often portrayed in
popular culture. He did not believe that machines would eventually become self-aware
or take over the world. Instead, he believed that machines would be tools that humans
could use to solve problems and make their lives better.
Turing's optimism about AI has been vindicated to a certain extent. In recent
years, there has been tremendous progress in the field of AI. AI systems can now
perform many tasks that were once thought to be the exclusive domain of humans, such
as playing chess at a grandmaster level and identifying objects in images with greater
accuracy than humans.
However, Turing's vision of AI has not yet been fully realized. AI systems are still
limited in their capabilities, and they often require large amounts of data and training to
be effective. Additionally, AI systems are often vulnerable to adversarial attacks, which
can cause them to make mistakes or generate incorrect results.
 JMJ Marist Brothers
NOTRE DAME OF MARBEL UNIVERSITY
College of Arts and Sciences
Al Alunan Ave., City of Koronadal, South Cotabato 9506
 JMJ Marist Brothers
NOTRE DAME OF MARBEL UNIVERSITY
College of Arts and Sciences
Al Alunan Ave., City of Koronadal, South Cotabato 9506

Reference:

Turing, Allan M. “Mind .” Essay. In Computing Machinery and Intelligence. , 433–

460. North Kettering Business Park, Hipwell Road, Kettering, Northamptonshire:
Oxford University Press, 1950.