Research 2.0

"There is no reason and no way that a human mind can keep up with an artificial intelligence machine by 2035.” ~ Gray Scott

A warm summer morning, the rays of the sun seeped in through the curtains and gently caressed Kamalini's face. There she was, tired and asleep after three days of continuous shifts at her lab. The sunlight woke her up but she shut her eyes tighter in protest. Soon, her alarm went off and her smart-home system played the wake-up message - "Wake up, you sleepy head! We've to get to the airport in an hour. Grandpa's coming!" Isn't it weird to listen to instructions in one's own voice? But that's something Kamalini loved to do. After all, who's a better friend than oneself? And that's why she named it after herself. She jumped out of her bed in excitement. She had almost forgotten her plans, thanks to the exhaustion from work. But her home system came to the rescue! It did not forget anything. She went to get ready for the big day. Her grandfather used to be a biology professor at a university in Delhi. He headed a lab over there. He was the main reason why Kamalini wanted to become a biologist. Watching him go to work every day with the same, never dwindling amount of passion inspired her. She loved listening to him talk about his work, though she never understood. She had been to his lab a few times and she remembered every trip vividly. And today, it was her chance to show him her lab and talk to him about all her work. She couldn't wait to meet him. As she got ready, she had her home-system assistant read out emails for her. She had to address replies to a couple of them but chose to do it on her car ride. She had a Tesla, you see.

She reached the airport just as she finished the emails. Her grandfather was waiting for her like a child waiting to be picked up after school, all excited to go home. One could see how delighted he was, even beyond the wrinkles on his face.

"How was your flight, thatha?"

"I enjoyed it. I will never say no to a chance to look at the clouds up so close."

"I know." She smiled, remembering all the time she'd spent with him, looking up at the sky and singing to the clouds. Simpler times. They got into the car and she directed it to take them home.

"So, aren't you going to take me to your lab?"

"Of course, I will. I thought you'd like to get some rest first."

"Your old man is fit as ever. Let's go to the lab now!"

"Sure thatha!"

She changed the directions on the map and the car quickly switched routes. Initially, he seemed a little perplexed about the auto-pilot mode. Not having someone sit behind the steering wheel sent a chill down his spine. It took him a while to get accustomed to it. He was soon enjoying it like a fun ride at the carnival.

The lab was bustling with activity - scientists running tests and analyzing samples and talking about all things biology. Kamalini led her grandpa to another room - filled with computers and big screens. He stood there marveling at all the computers. They seemed to be more in number than all the other equipment in the other room.

"So many computers in a biology lab? I know you use computers, but so many of them?"

Kamalini chuckled.

"These systems can do all the tedious grunt work leaving you to do the cool, interesting science on your own."

"Isn't the tedious grunt work the main part of the process?", he asked.

"Of course, it is. And these machines get it done in no time."

"How?" He asked, taken away by surprise.

"Thatha, listen. When you look in the mirror, what are the things that tell you that you're old?"

"My grey hair and wrinkled skin", he muttered in annoyance, for he didn't believe he was that old yet. Kamalini laughed out loud, gently pinching her grandfather's cheeks and he laughed too. "The computer does not know what grey hair or wrinkled skin is. But then, when I show our pictures to the computer and I name yours as old and mine as young, it tries to deduce a connection. And that's how it helps segregate information."

"What kind of information?"

"All kinds of information. Experimental readings, observations and what not."

"And how does the computer know what to do with this information?"

"We teach the computer. It is similar to teaching a child how to do a sum. The computer pretty much mimics the human brain. That’s why it’s called Artificial Intelligence. Once the computer is trained, we can feed all sorts of data into it. It can analyze huge amounts of experimental data quickly. This enables us to go through mounds of data in an efficient, error-free manner."

He took a few seconds to process this - the fact that a computer could think like a human being was a little too much for him. He could not help but think of all the things he and his team would have accomplished had this technology existed back then.

"A computer that can do everything a human could do. Kamalini, I have a question. Doesn't this thought scare you?" "A chilling thought, isn't it? It can do almost everything, almost."

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Artificial Intelligence is transforming life. Things that seemed impossible a few decades ago seem closer than ever now. Not only has Artificial Intelligence made our daily lives easier, it has enabled us to simulate and visualize situations far different from what we see in reality. It goes without saying, with great power comes great responsibility. Artificial Intelligence has definitely helped improve the quality of life, but it all comes with the underlying threat of being overpowered by machines. ‘AI is likely to be either the best or the worst thing to happen to humanity’ said Stephen Hawking. Let’s wait for the future to tell us the truth.