

The artificial morality of the robot warrior - timf
http://www.roughtype.com/archives/2009/02/the_artificial.php

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lionheart
I don't buy it. This isn't sci-fi where we're in danger of our soldier robots
developing consciousness and turning on their creators.

The robots are complex pieces of software, not any different from many other
complex pieces of mission critical military or healthcare software that can
lead to human deaths if it fails.

All we need is a hard-wired kill switch.

~~~
jacoblyles
In the near future, I doubt the accidental deaths from military robots will
exceed the accidental deaths from other pieces of military hardware.

Helicopter, plane, and jeep malfunctions kill people all the time. Not to
mention human error! We already have control devices installed in aircraft
(pilots) that accidentally bomb civilian weddings.

War is a messy business.

~~~
electromagnetic
You have to account for the fact that there has been numerous IFF errors,
including the US military firing on British troops. IIRC at the beginning of
the Afghanistan invasion a British plane was shot down by the US because the
IFF incorrectly identified the plane as hostile.

I don't see how when there's so many accidental deaths of soldiers and
civilians, how any accidental firing of a robot would exceed this. I mean
there's been ~95,000 civilian deaths and ~4500 military deaths in Iraq alone.
Most of those civilian deaths wouldn't be reduced as they're the result of
suicide attacks, however those 4500 coalition soldiers would _all_ have
survived if they'd have been replaced with robots, in fact the military
presence in Iraq could be ten-fold what it is with no protests of soldiers
dying.

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yummyfajitas
Not to mention that robots can run at a lower action level (right term?) than
soldiers.

Soldier logic: "Is that a suicide bomber approaching the checkpoint? Holy shit
I'm scared. Better not take the chance. BOMB!" [Shoots the possible suicide
bomber.]

Robot logic: Possible bomb sighting! P(Bomber) = 0.6, 0 civilians in blast
radius. Might as well take the chance, worst case he blows up himself and
causes $50,000 property damage (dead robot).

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noonespecial
The very ironic thing about all of this in my opinion is that if we were ever
to truly succeed in creating a "moral" robot, it would throw down its arms and
refuse to fight.

~~~
jacoblyles
For some value of morality.

