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About The daily Nebraskan. ([Lincoln, Neb.) 1901-current | View Entire Issue (Oct. 9, 1998)
Go outside and play Computer technology threatens basic interaction AARON COOPER is a senior English major and a Daily Nebraskan colum nist. In February 1996, an unprece dented event occurred. For the first time in history, an IBM-built super computer known as Deep Blue became the first computer to partici pate in world chess tournament com petition. Its opponent, Gary Kasparov, is revered by many chess experts as the greatest player in his tory. In a six-game bout for Master of the Universe, Kasparov emerged vic torious with a score of 4-2 spread over three wins, two draws, and one loss. Many people in the computer industry were stunned. An article in Popular Science had predicted Kasparov would be defeated by the IBM supercomputer. As scholars, scientists and com puter aficionados chewed on the results of this first battle, IBM and Kasparov wasted no time in schedul ing a rematch for May 1997. i ne rematch tavored the IBM supercomputer and its large team of technicians and programmers in a second six-game bout. With a score of 3.5-2.5, Deep Blue emerged vic torious after game six on May 11, 1997, after pulling off two wins, three draws (at half a point each) and one loss. IBM was awarded a first prize of $700,000 by tournament heads to Kasparov’s mere $400,000. Somewhere in the middle of the excitement, buried beneath debates between chess enthusiasts and heads of large computer conglomerates, the meaning of the competition got lost. It’s important to understand the nature of die matchup. On one hand, there was the human - a single man with superior talent and understand ing of the game of chess, who repre sented the preservation of human intelligence and its place in society. On the other hand, there was Deep Blue - a supercomputer built by dozens of computer technicians and programmers, which implement ed advanced properties of parallel processing and operated on a master control program with the following compo nents: ■ A brute force search for mate positions ■ Defensive target programming and threat detection ■ Delta discard logic based on the “Encyclopedia of Chess Openings” ■ The added logic provided by anonymous Grandmasters of chess ■ Additional heuristic (discovery) methods allowing the supercomputer to be modified between games by the pro gramming staff in the attempt to defeat the opponent’s chessplay. Where did the advantage lie? You be the judge. I felt that something, a truly humanistic quality, was lost - not only in the original idea of spending years to build a “chess” computer designed solely to beat a Grandmaster, but also in the fact that Kasparov lost the rematch. Technology was used to abuse a portion of humanity. It was taken too far. IBM proved computers can, bar ring certain variants and conditions, outperform humans in such basic and traditional rituals as chess. What does this prove? Involving ( such substantial resources to build Deep Blue, the entire competition seems worthless unless we have gained something from it. One of the earliest purposes for the design and perfection of parallel processing supercomputers was for military intent. Deep Blue was thought by industry experts to have been based on the SP/4-x Supercomputer Complex which was designed by contractors working for the United States Air Force and Space Command, also built by IBM miyyj. It was designed with intent of analyzing tens of thousands of strate gic moves in warfare and combat sit uations for potential use in a state of battle. I can award greater merit in the use of supercomputers for this pur pose, albeit one of possible defeat and destruction. Yet, there seems to be an underlying danger even in this scenario. The goverament/military might rely too heavily on computers in combat situations, and, in the process, spend less time drawing from and perfecting human theories and tactics. If supercomputers and personal computers (which perhaps are more relevant to us) govern too many aspects of our daily lives, we risk reaching the point where we may cease to function without the Internet or personal and business related financial programs that only function through the use of comput ers. Think of all the things Deep Blue’s programmers and computer scientists could have spent their immeasurable time and energy °n IL Perhaps they could have worked with NASA in perfecting the func tion and detailed mathematical pro cedures required to safely pilot and maintain an operating spaqe shuttle. Sure, there are many people dedicat ed to these tasks, but like cancer and AIDS research, the more people involved the better. A lot of people dismiss aspects of pure scientific research such as that carried out by S.E.T.I., the Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence, to be worthless and a waste of time. To me, that seems a far more ambitious and centrally human pursuit of information and increased understanding than a bunch of people building a glorified chess robot. At least listening and scanning for extraterrestrial life has the poten tial to increase our knowledge of the universe and build human (or unknown) connections we have yet to comprehend. computer science ana tecrmolo gy move quickly and set things such as the Internet, super-fast computers and DVD videos in our laps. Do you want to see the day when you don’t have to leave your living room to do your grocery shopping, pick up your mail, talk to your neigh bor, or even have your children get an education without physically attending school? It could be a reality faster than we think and, in some cases, already is. Personally, I want my children to be able to speed through supermar ket aisles on shopping carts and bang into my heels. I want them to know what a playground is and learn how to write letters. I want them to experience and interact with the world outside their front door, talk to their neighborhood friends and citizens in their commu nity, and interact with their peers face-to-face so that “going out to play” doesn’t turn into staying in and interacting merely through video phones, interconnected video games and pagers. Cooper’s Law: We owe it to future generations to improve our world without bulldozing through common logic and losing a sense of who we are. We owe it to ourselves. Robb Blum/DN ME vs 1 TEXAS A&M $2.99 fttcher 20 ceqtDNGS BIGGEST BfG SCREEN IN TOWN *^-**'^ ***** ****,mr* *,* +* Outback Doors Ooon at^*"*'” SWING KITE - ^w[a/g~panc[ng^ Admission Only $10 per couple Don & Polly will be your dance instructors from 6:30 - 7:30. Dance to the Big Band Sound from 7:30- 10:30 pm Phase IV and More Swinging Gently Sunday October 18th Sunday, December 6 Sunday November 22nd _SWING IS THE_ 7mm Pulliam Journalism Fellowships Graduating college seniors are invited to apply for the 26th annual Pulliam Journalism Fellowships. We will grant 10-week summer internships to 20 journalism or liberal arts majors in the August 1998 June 1999 graduating classes. , -;5 • . . . _ ! ? ! Previous internship or part-time experience at a newspaper is desired. Winners will receive a $5,250 stipend and will work at either The Indianapolis Star and The Indianapolis News or The Arizona Republic. Early-admissions application postmark deadline is Nov. 15, 1998. By Dec. 15, 1998, up to five early-admissions winners will be notified. All other entries must be postmarked by March 1, 1999. To request an application packet, write: Russell B. Pulliam Fellowships Director The Indianapolis News P.O. Box 145 Indianapolis, IN 46206-0145 - . . ' ■