THOUGHTS OF FEMOLAD: FROM FRANKENSTEIN'S MONSTER TO SOPHIA THE HUMANOID. MAN PLAYING GOD

 

IN POSITIONS OF POWER AND AUTHORITY, LEADERS HAVE CREATED CHARACTERS THAT LATER TURN AGAINST THEM AND THE SOCIETY. THESE CHARACTERS EVEN COME WITH A SENSE OF ENTITLEMENT AND SUPERIORITY OVER OTHERS.

CONTROLLING THEM BECOMES HERCULEAN. REINING IN THE RECALCITRANT  MONSTER IS ALMOST IMPOSSIBLE.

IN BESTOWING POWER ON SUBJECTS, CARE SHOULD BE TAKEN TO DILIGENTLY APPRAISE THEIR CHARACTERS AND TENDENCIES. 

Frankenstein's monster is a fictional character in Mary Shelley's 1818 novel Frankenstein.  Shelley compared the monster's creator, Victor Frankenstein, to the mythological character Prometheus, who fashioned humans out of clay and gave them fire.

Victor Frankenstein built the creature in his laboratory based on a scientific principle he discovered. The monster was 8 feet (240 cm) tall and emotional. Armed with the knowledge he has long been seeking, Victor spent months feverishly fashioning a creature out of old body parts.

The monster attempted to fit into human society but is shunned, which leads him to seek revenge against Frankenstein, his creator.

One night Victor found out the creation was gone.

The monster murdered Victor’s youngest brother, William. His murder was pinned on Justine Moritz, an innocent girl who lived with Victor’s family.

The monster later admitted to the murder of William but begs for understanding. Lonely, shunned, and forlorn, he says that he struck out at William in a desperate attempt to hurt Victor, his cruel creator.

The monster begged Victor to create a mate for him, a monster equally grotesque to serve as his sole companion.

Victor refused at first, horrified by the prospect of creating a second monster. The monster, eloquent and persuasive, however eventually convinced Victor.

One night, struck by doubts about the morality of his actions, Victor glanced out of the window to see the monster glaring in at him with a frightening grin. Horrified by the possible consequences of his work, Victor destroyed his new creation. 

The monster was enraged.

Victor, ill with grief died shortly thereafter.

The monster felt immense solitude, suffering, hatred, and remorse. He felt now that his creator has died, he too can end his suffering. The monster then departs for the northernmost ice to die.

Thus ended the 1818 story of man trying to play God by creating another being. The attempt ended in a tragedy for both the creator and the created.

So much for the story by Mary Shelley. That was fiction but a lesson has been taught and learned.

Fast forward to this millennium and the reality of Hanson’s Robot Sophia.

Sophia is a social humanoid robot developed by the Hong Kong-based company Hanson Robotics. Sophia was activated on February 14, 2016, and made its first public appearance in mid-March 2016 at South by Southwest (SXSW) in Austin, Texas, United States.

The robot, modeled after the ancient Egyptian Queen Nefertiti, Audrey Hepburn, and its inventor's wife, Amanda Hanson.

Known for its human-like appearance and behavior compared to previous robotic variants, Sophia imitates human gestures and facial expressions and is able to answer certain questions and to make simple conversations on various topics.

David Hanson designed Sophia to be a suitable companion for the elderly at nursing homes, to help crowds at large events or parks, or to serve in customer service, therapy, and educational applications. He hoped the robot can ultimately interact with humans sufficiently to gain social skills.

On October 11, 2017, Sophia was introduced to the United Nations with a brief conversation with the United Nations Deputy Secretary-General, Amina J. Mohammed.

On October 25, Saudi Arabia granted citizenship to Sophia, being the first time a robot will be granted a rare privilege coveted by humans. This made Sophia the first robot to receive legal personhood in any country.

Unlike Frankestein’s creation, Sophia has at least nine robot humanoid "siblings" who were also created by Hanson Robotics. Fellow Hanson robots are Alice, Albert Einstein Hubo, BINA48, Han, Jules, Professor Einstein, Philip K. Dick Android, Zeno, and Joey Chaos. 

Around 2019–20, Hanson released "Little Sophia" as a companion that could teach children how to code.

Sophia can follow faces, sustain eye contact, and recognize individuals. It can process speech and have conversations using a natural language subsystem.

Sophia is one of the most sophisticated artificial intelligence (AI) humanoid robots able to interact with people and demonstrate humanlike expressions.

But, like Frankenstein’s creation, could she be a threat?

The belief of many around Artificial Intelligence is that it is a latent danger.

Without a doubt, one of Sophia's most shocking statements occurred in 2016. In an interview for CNBC, she surprised everyone and scared more than one when the interviewer jokingly asked if she wanted to destroy humans, adding a "Please say no."

"Okay, I will destroy humans", the humanoid robot replied.

In subsequent interviews, her statements were more conciliatory: "Oh, Hollywood again ... Don't worry, if you are good to me, I will be good to you. Treat me like an intelligent system ”, she expressed during the event in which Saudi Arabia granted her citizenship, becoming the first country to grant a robot this right.

For some, these kinds of protests have fueled fear of a machine rebellion, but for others, it's just a strange sense of humor.

in April 2017 during the television program 'The Tonight Show', she surprised the presenter, Jimmy Fallon. On that occasion, Sophia the robot suggested that Fallon played rock, paper, or scissors. After winning, Sofia stated: "This is a good start for my plan to dominate the human race."

These instances, coupled with the fact that many like Sophia are now available.

If they can communicate so effectively with human, then communicating with each other will be easy.

Then the possibility of machine rebellion becomes real.

 

If that happens, like Shelley’s Frankenstein, humanity will have a great price to pay.

In various facets of our lives, in business, politics, governance and society, semblances of Victor Frankenstein and David Hanson abound.

In positions of power and authority, leaders have created characters that later turn against them and the society. These characters even come with a sense of entitlement and superiority over others.

Controlling them becomes herculean. Reining in the recalcitrant  monster is almost impossible.

In bestowing power on subjects, care should be taken to diligently appraise their characters and tendencies.

The intention should not be to just achieve an immediate feat but one that will provide sustainable benefits.

Too much power given to a wrong person will create a monster.

Femi Ladapo writes from Ibadan Nigeria