Mad Old Lu
Super Freak
Really great conversation going on! I have to fess up and say that I skimmed a few posts here and there just to keep up.
One thing I’m not sure if it has been brought up is the idea of what a soul actually is. I see both sides to the theories about JOI. Personally I believe she is just a program and all those “hints” that suggest she has a soul are all part of her code. The love, the compassion, the jealousy, etc., are all part of a complex program that was written for the “product”. I believe these AI’s could learn and evolve, but that was all part of their design—they were made to evolve and learn.
But even if these “emotions” or responses were written in code, how is that any different than how real humans operate? We all learn and evolve and have common, universal responses to how we react to external stimuli. Our genetic code gives us our baseline of feelings and emotions. The AI’s have their base programming. As we all grow up we learn how to react to people, situations, etc. The AI’s learn and evolve the same way.
Perhaps the main difference is that the AI’s in the BR world have a much narrower focus to their existences. Pleasure robots main goal is to love and be loved. Blade runners’ main goal are to be good cops/detectives. So whereas a human can choose to do and be anything in life, the AI’s have basically one purpose.
But within that narrow channel of existence, I believe the replicants and JOIs of that world have sentience. They are able to “feel” (even if it’s a program). They are self aware. They care whether they live or die.
Some could even argue that a soul is unrealistic to begin with, particularly if you don’t believe in a higher power. Humans are just sacks of meat driven by chemical responses and self preservation and the need to eat, sleep and make babies. Replicants were finally able to achieve everything a human could by being able to procreate.
So I don’t know if whether JOI’s behavior was programmed or genuine is really the point. Honestly I haven’t entirely formed a solid point about this yet. But that’s part of what makes this movie and the original such great sci-fi. It raises these great questions about our own humanity.
One thing I’m not sure if it has been brought up is the idea of what a soul actually is. I see both sides to the theories about JOI. Personally I believe she is just a program and all those “hints” that suggest she has a soul are all part of her code. The love, the compassion, the jealousy, etc., are all part of a complex program that was written for the “product”. I believe these AI’s could learn and evolve, but that was all part of their design—they were made to evolve and learn.
But even if these “emotions” or responses were written in code, how is that any different than how real humans operate? We all learn and evolve and have common, universal responses to how we react to external stimuli. Our genetic code gives us our baseline of feelings and emotions. The AI’s have their base programming. As we all grow up we learn how to react to people, situations, etc. The AI’s learn and evolve the same way.
Perhaps the main difference is that the AI’s in the BR world have a much narrower focus to their existences. Pleasure robots main goal is to love and be loved. Blade runners’ main goal are to be good cops/detectives. So whereas a human can choose to do and be anything in life, the AI’s have basically one purpose.
But within that narrow channel of existence, I believe the replicants and JOIs of that world have sentience. They are able to “feel” (even if it’s a program). They are self aware. They care whether they live or die.
Some could even argue that a soul is unrealistic to begin with, particularly if you don’t believe in a higher power. Humans are just sacks of meat driven by chemical responses and self preservation and the need to eat, sleep and make babies. Replicants were finally able to achieve everything a human could by being able to procreate.
So I don’t know if whether JOI’s behavior was programmed or genuine is really the point. Honestly I haven’t entirely formed a solid point about this yet. But that’s part of what makes this movie and the original such great sci-fi. It raises these great questions about our own humanity.
no seriously, I cant recall ever talking to you in here. 
