Location
Old Dominion University, Learning Commons at Perry Library, Room 1311
Start Date
4-8-2017 1:30 PM
End Date
4-8-2017 1:50 PM
Description
While the subject of personhood has been exhaustively debated regarding the unborn, personhood for sentient animals and artificial intelligences is a concept that is rarely deliberated. Humanity has learned that there are multiple animal species which are very similar to humans in their self-awareness, emotional capacity, and free will. These traits have been partially developed for artificial intelligences as well, and those characteristics will evolve alongside human and technological development. As stratified societies emerged, there have been multiple occurrences where individuals were deemed lesser but then later acquired equal standing. Dr. Daniel Wilson, roboticist, wrote in his novel Robopocalypse, “It is not enough to live together in peace, with one race on its knees.” Because groups have been and still are being marginalized, this paper proposes that personhood should be legally granted now for current and future sentient beings, as exemplified by animals’ and artificial intelligences’ sentience.
Presentation Type
Presentation
Final Paper, November 26, 2016
Included in
Animals Commons, Artificial Intelligence and Robotics Commons, Civil Rights and Discrimination Commons
Granting Personhood for Sentient Non-Human Animals and Sentient Artificial Intelligences: A Demonstrative Argument
Old Dominion University, Learning Commons at Perry Library, Room 1311
While the subject of personhood has been exhaustively debated regarding the unborn, personhood for sentient animals and artificial intelligences is a concept that is rarely deliberated. Humanity has learned that there are multiple animal species which are very similar to humans in their self-awareness, emotional capacity, and free will. These traits have been partially developed for artificial intelligences as well, and those characteristics will evolve alongside human and technological development. As stratified societies emerged, there have been multiple occurrences where individuals were deemed lesser but then later acquired equal standing. Dr. Daniel Wilson, roboticist, wrote in his novel Robopocalypse, “It is not enough to live together in peace, with one race on its knees.” Because groups have been and still are being marginalized, this paper proposes that personhood should be legally granted now for current and future sentient beings, as exemplified by animals’ and artificial intelligences’ sentience.
Comments
Keywords: Animal, Animals, Artificial Intelligence, AI, Sentient, Sentience, Conscious, Consciousness, Self-aware, Person, Personhood, Juridicial, Law, Legal, Rights, Civil Rights, Future, Futurism
Research Mentors/Advisors: Joshua N. Watson, Professor, J. Sargeant Reynolds Community College, Richmond, VA
A PDF of the powerpoint presentation is available for download above. A video of the live presentation is available on YouTube: https://youtu.be/lL2aumQg2Tc The final paper is available as an additional file below.