Can Machines Know Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Can Machines Know - Essay Example There are also several ways of citing what makes up knowledge, some of them are more or less â€Å"internalist† and some are also â€Å"externalist.† I would like to follow the internalist point of view which says that knowledge is a justified belief that requires the believer to be aware of the cognitive process of the given belief. If this is the case, internalism, then, requires consciousness in the justification of a belief. So if we ask whether a machine can achieve consciousness, for me, the answer is no. There are several notions in explaining the criteria of consciousness. For example, functionalism theory states that consciousness comes about when all the parts are put together in the right sort of a whole. However, I would like to believe that personal experience or ability to experience is important in determining consciousness along with the ability to think and interpret. To experience â€Å"experiencing† one needs the skill of perception and intelligence. While one may argue that a computer with sensors could function in this manner, the concept of human independence, feelings and ethics or moral capacity is missing in the whole process.