Why do scientists want to teach robots to feel pain?

The presence of feelings is hardly ever characterizedcarriers of artificial intelligence. At least in their modern manifestation. Be that as it may, the new generation robots, which may be presented to the general public in the near future, will be able to “feel” the pain or even sympathize with the pains of their comrades. The presence of such human qualities sharply blurs the line between the machine and the living organism, providing science fiction writers with a lot of useful material for thought. However, will the training of robots such a “skill” humane? Let's try to reason together in this article.

Why does a robot need feelings?

Can a robot be taught to feel?

Progress in developing more advancedRobotic sensory perception is moving us closer to the day when we can see with our own eyes a “human” robot capable of empathy and empathy. In order for the pile of iron to once learn to experience emotions, scientists are already working on creating soft artificial skin that can hold both a gentle touch and a painful blow. Sensors built into such material will allow the artificial body to process incoming tactile information by analogy with the body’s nervous system, allowing the human plastic companion to learn how to “empathize” with the suffering of others, says sciencenews.org.

See also: Iranian humanoid robot learned to drill walls and take selfies

It is now known that specialists inRobotics at Osaka University in Japan have developed touch sensors that reliably pick up various types of touch. In a robotic system called Affetto, which is a frighteningly realistic baby's head, these touch and pain signals can be converted into emotional facial expressions. Due to the fact that the material developed by Japanese scientists is incredibly sensitive, artificial leather allows the robot to better interact with the world around it.

Affetto system in its modernized form may be the first robot that can respond to touch and pain

Researchers say Affetto could becomeThe first step in creating truly humanoid robots. Mechanisms that can understand and listen can become reliable assistants in caring for the sick and elderly.

What do you think about this? Share your ideas with like-minded people in our Telegram chat.

However, in what way are the concepts of pain relatedand empathy? Antonio Damasio, a neuroscientist at the University of Southern California, believes that despite the important differences in the perception of physical pain and emotional shock, an artificial sensation of sympathy can occur even when the robot is programmed with knowledge about the existence of pain. Be that as it may, if one day one really succeeds in depriving a humanoid machine of its only advantage, the result of such an experiment is unlikely to be humane. A machine that is capable of possessing emotions can eventually become not just a meek performer of human orders, but also a suffering victim of a vicious, although somewhat unique, experiment of its creator. So, if you and I once begin to relate to such a creature, even if it is nonliving, with aggression, it is unlikely that humanity will be able to maintain its moral character for a long time, the particles of which still stop us from world anarchy.