讨论困难，但同样有趣 (Difficult to Discuss, but Just as Fun)

Ever since I was little, I was always fascinated with consciousness.

从小我就一直对意识着迷。

I was drawn just how utterly mysterious the nature of this phenomenon was.

我被吸引住了，这种现象的本质是多么的神秘。

To me, I always saw it as the most mysterious phenomenon, its mysteries ran deeper than even the origin of the universe.

对我而言，我一直将其视为最神秘的现象，其奥秘甚至比宇宙起源还要深。

At least with the origin of the universe, I felt that it might be explained given a more comprehensive understanding of physics…

至少从宇宙的起源来看，我觉得可以对物理学有更全面的理解来解释它。

Yet for consciousness, we don’t even have basic scientific tools to ask any questions whether or not something is conscious. Some even consider a mosquito or a rock to be conscious, and currently, there is no way to prove or disprove it.

但是对于意识，我们甚至没有基本的科学工具来问任何问题，无论某个事物是否具有意识。 有些人甚至认为蚊子或岩石是有意识的 ，目前，没有任何方法可以证明或反驳它。

This thought naturally led my younger-self to ponder: “Could machines have subjective experience? Could they have consciousness?”

这种想法自然使我的年轻人开始思考：“机器能有主观经验吗？ 他们能有意识吗？”

Well, this is my attempt to answer that.

好吧，这是我试图回答的问题。

The following are my conclusions after contemplating the matter endlessly, binging countless books, and observing many parallels in the AI field where I work (I am a co-founder of a well-recognized research organization called OpenAI).

以下是我对问题的无休止的思考，浏览了无数的书籍，并观察了我工作所在的AI领域的许多相似之处(我是一个知名的研究组织OpenAI的共同创始人)，这是我的结论。

I have asked myself what is needed for these “thinking” machines to have subjective experience — to be conscious. Versus what would make them intelligent but not having the internal world at all, not feeling, nor smelling, but just intelligently acting. What would make them “Philosophical Zombies”? (more about it later).

我问自己，要使这些“思维”机器具有主观经验，需要具备什么意识。 与什么使他们变得聪明，却根本没有内部世界，没有感觉，没有气味，而只是聪明地行动相比。 是什么使它们成为“哲学僵尸” ？ (稍后会详细介绍)。

I don’t fully understand the nature of consciousness, nor am I suggesting that AI is conscious (today, we have no tools to prove it even if it really was).

我没有完全了解意识的本质，也没有暗示AI是有意识的(今天，即使它确实是有意识的，我们也没有工具来证明它)。

But, I’m noting the many parallels of the two and drawing a simple conclusion from it based on my knowledge of the nature of consciousness.

但是，我注意到两者的许多相似之处，并根据我对意识本质的了解从中得出一个简单的结论。

So to start, let’s begin by clarifying what I mean by “consciousness”…

因此，首先，让我们开始澄清我的“意识”的意思……

什么是意识？ (What is Consciousness?)

This is a question with an answer that is as important as it is difficult.

这个问题的答案同困难一样重要。

The concept has resisted all attempts at conclusive definition throughout history. Despite countless philosophies, religions, and scientific examinations — it continues to defy clear understanding.

这个概念在整个历史上都抵制了所有对结论性定义的尝试。 尽管有无数的哲学，宗教和科学考试，它仍然无视清晰的理解。

“Official” definitions of consciousness exist (in dictionaries for example), but these run into the same problems of lacking concrete clarity. But, instead of trying to give an academic definition of what consciousness is, I think a simpler way to look at it is by seeing consciousness as equivalent to one’s subjective experiences.

存在意识的“官方”定义(例如，在词典中)，但是它们遇到了缺乏具体清晰度的相同问题。 但是，我认为，不是试图对意识是什么进行学术上的定义，而是一种更简单的看待意识的方法，就是将意识视为等同于一个人的主观经验。

Think about it, what you experience from moment to moment is completely tied to your consciousness. Every experience you have cannot exceed your consciousness. Inversely, your consciousness is bound by your experiences (no matter how strange or subjective they might be).

想想看，您不时体验到的东西与您的意识完全相关。 您拥有的每一次经验都不能超出您的意识。 相反，您的意识受您的经验的束缚(无论它们多么奇怪或主观)。

If you were void of consciousness (AKA dead) you can’t have any more experiences (as far as we know), and conversely all experiences in your life whether awake, asleep, on drugs or comatose requires consciousness, no matter how rudimentary.

如果您没有意识(也就是死了)，您将再也没有经验了(据我们所知)，相反，无论您多么清醒，睡着，吸毒或昏迷，您生命中的所有经验都需要意识。

Again, I’m not trying to define consciousness in itself (I’ll leave that to the philosophers of the World), but making the claim that consciousness is equivalent to the totality of your experience at any given moment.

再一次，我不是要自己定义意识(我会把它留给世界的哲学家)，而是声称意识在任何给定的时刻都等于你的全部经验。

What you experience IS your consciousness — and your consciousness IS your experience. One cannot exist without the other.

您所体验的就是您的意识-而您的意识就是您的体验。 一个不能没有另一个而存在。

But if consciousness is your subjective experience, what does that do? How can this relate to AI?

但是，如果意识是您的主观体验，那会做什么？ 这与AI有什么关系？

Well before I tie those ideas together, it’s important that we first dig deeper into what makes a subjective experience different from an objective one.

在将这些想法结合在一起之前，很重要的一点是，我们首先要深入研究使主观体验与客观体验不同的因素。

您从未体验过现实 (You’ve Never Experienced Reality)

Subjective experience is simple on the surface.

表面上来说，主观经验很简单。

These are the experiences we have as individuals that are felt, perceived, understood in our own ways. However, most of us think that within the realm of experiences one can undertake in a lifetime, at least some of it is objective, that at the very least a small portion is a true reflection of the real world.

这些就是我们作为个体所经历的，以我们自己的方式被感知，感知和理解的经历。 但是，我们大多数人认为，在一生中可以经历的人生境界中，至少有一部分是客观的，至少一小部分是对现实世界的真实反映。

Well, I have some bad news for you: we can’t actually have objective experiences.

好吧，我有个坏消息要告诉我们：我们实际上没有客观的经验。

In fact, this limitation is something you cannot escape, or turn off — it is something that takes place by definition of having experiences as a living organism.

实际上，这种局限性是您无法逃脱或关闭的东西-它是根据将生命体定义为体验而发生的。

But how can this be?

但是怎么可能呢？

Well, everything about your experience — sounds, sights, tastes, smell, feelings, moods — every single thing — is passed through a very complex, yet imperfect filter, your mind. Therefore, the reality you are so familiar with isn’t and can’t be the objective reality.

好吧，关于您的经历的所有内容-声音，视觉，味觉，气味，感觉，心情-每一件事情-都会经过一个非常复杂但不完美的过滤器，即您的思维。 因此，您如此熟悉的现实不是客观现实，也不可能成为客观现实。

It is by definition a model of reality.

根据定义，它是现实的模型 。

现实模型：终极啤酒护目镜？ (Models of Reality: The Ultimate Beer Goggles?)

Take the simple example of the Australian jewel beetle.

以澳大利亚珠宝甲虫为例。

Researchers became interested in this beetle’s behavior when they observed a series of peculiar behaviors where some beetles would consistently clustered around discarded beer bottles in the Outback.

当研究人员观察到一系列奇特的行为时，研究人员对这种甲虫的行为产生了兴趣，在这种行为中，一些甲虫会不断地聚集在内陆的废弃啤酒瓶周围。

Upon further research, it became clear to the scientists what produced this strange behavior pattern…

经过进一步的研究，科学家们清楚地知道是什么导致了这种奇怪的行为模式……

You see, these congregating beetles were actually males of the species and had clustered around the beer bottles because they confused it for a female member of their species.

您会看到，这些会聚的甲虫实际上是该物种的雄性，并且聚集在啤酒瓶周围，因为它们将其与该物种的雌性成员混淆了。

The color, shape, as well as the texture of the bottles resembled the female of their species enough that, to the male Jewel Bettle, it was in every way a member of the opposite sex, ready to mate.

瓶子的颜色，形状和质感与它们的雌性十分相似，以至于雄性Jewel Bettle认为它在任何方面都是异性，准备交配。

The beer bottles on the ground provided the correct input to satisfy the male beetle’s model of the world to trigger the idea:

地面上的啤酒瓶提供了正确的输入，可以满足雄性甲虫的世界模型触发的想法：

“This is a mate — now go do what you need to do”

“这是一个伴侣-现在去做你需要做的事”

As funny as this example might be, it reveals that these beetles are operating according to their model of reality; and their model has specific processes that helped them identify a mate.

就像这个例子可能有趣的是，它揭示了这些甲虫是根据它们的现实模型运行的。 他们的模型具有帮助他们确定伴侣的特定过程。

More importantly, their model is an imperfect rending of the objective world.

更重要的是，他们的模型是客观世界的不完善趋势。

But what about us? What about humans?

但是我们呢？ 那人类呢？

我们自己丢弃的啤酒瓶 (Our Own Discarded Beer Bottle)

Well, not unlike the Australian jewel beetle, our experiences are also based on our human models of reality. And not unlike their model, our model is also imperfect.

好吧，与澳大利亚的甲虫一样，我们的体验也基于人类的现实模型。 与他们的模型一样，我们的模型也不完美。

Of course, we aren’t going to confuse a discarded beer bottle for a potential mate any day soon, but we interact with reality in the same way — that is, through a model.

当然，我们不会很快将废弃的啤酒瓶与潜在的伴侣混淆，但是我们以相同的方式(即通过模型)与现实互动。

And this is the most important idea that I’m presenting here: that you live your life through a model of reality and never directly in contact with it.

这是我在这里提出的最重要的想法：您通过现实模型过上自己的生活，并且永远不要直接与它接触。

Every experience you’ve ever had was the end result of your mind taking sensory information from the various input sources first (eyes, nose, skin, ears, etc…), then processing it, before finally delivering this experience.

您曾经经历过的每一次体验都是您从各种输入源(眼睛，鼻子，皮肤，耳朵等)首先获取感官信息，然后进行处理，然后最终交付这种体验的最终结果。

Each moment of our lives presents us with an incredible volume of information, which our minds then process and condense to fit the model of the world we have.

我们生命中的每一个时刻都为我们提供了令人难以置信的信息量，然后我们的思想进行处理和浓缩，以适应我们所拥有的世界的模型。

The benefit of this is that it allows us to view the world in a comprehensible and structured way. The “downside” (if you will) is that by definition, it means we cannot directly interact with the real world.

这样做的好处是，它使我们能够以一种可理解的，结构化的方式查看世界。 “缺点”(如果您愿意)是，根据定义，这意味着我们无法直接与现实世界互动。

Can our model of reality sometimes closely (or precisely) represent the objective world? Perhaps.

我们的现实模型有时可以紧密地(或精确地)代表客观世界吗？ 也许。

But this is a question that also can’t be verified.

但这是一个无法验证的问题。

However, we can easily verify the contrary — that our model of the world is imperfect.

但是，我们可以很容易地验证相反的事实-我们的世界模型是不完善的。

I’ll show you here and now that not only do you interpret the world through a model, but that it has glaring gaps.

现在，我将向您展示，您不仅可以通过模型来解释世界，而且还存在明显的差距。

Take a look at the image below and especially note the squares marked with “A” and “B”.

看一下下面的图片，尤其要注意标有“ A”和“ B”的正方形。

This image is a popular optical illusion, and rightly so.

该图像是一种流行的光学错觉，这是正确的。

The two squares denoted with “A” and “B” are actually the same exact shade and color. Yet, their placements, color contrasts, and shapes warp the modeling machine that is your brain. You cannot help but see them as two different shades.

用“ A”和“ B”表示的两个正方形实际上是相同的确切阴影和颜色。 但是，它们的位置，颜色对比和形状会扭曲您的大脑。 您不禁将它们视为两种不同的阴影。

When your brain receives all the information presented in the image, your model of reality presents an experience that is divergent from objective reality.

当您的大脑收到图像中显示的所有信息时，您的现实模型将呈现与客观现实有所不同的体验。

But what is objective reality in this case?

但是在这种情况下，客观现实是什么？

Well, it’s quite easy to measure — you can verify it yourself.

好吧，这很容易测量-您可以自己进行验证。

If you have the appropriate tools, you can measure the RGB values of both the “A” and “B” squares and you can see that they are identical. Yet even knowing this empirical fact, you can’t help but see them as two very different shades.

如果您拥有适当的工具，则可以测量“ A”和“ B”正方形的RGB值，并且可以看到它们是相同的。 然而，即使知道这一经验事实，您也不禁将它们视为两种截然不同的阴影。

This is but just one of many examples that show how our subjective experience is not an exact representation of reality, but a model of it as best put together as our brains will allow.

这只是说明我们的主观体验如何不是现实的精确表示而已的许多例子之一，而是我们大脑所允许的最佳模型。

Despite the inherent flaws of our modeling systems producing subjective experiences that — at times — clearly go against measurable objective facts, our model of the world is still an incredibly complex one.

尽管我们的建模系统存在固有的缺陷，有时会产生主观体验，有时甚至明显与可测量的客观事实背道而驰，但我们的世界模型仍然是一个极其复杂的模型。

But this complexity was not granted to us from the start, it’s origins are notable as we see very similar parallels during the advancement of AI.

但是这种复杂性并不是一开始就授予我们的，它的起源是值得注意的，因为我们在AI的发展过程中看到了非常相似的相似之处。

How did we get our model of the world?

我们如何获得世界模型？

This is quite a complex question and I am by no means an expert.

这是一个非常复杂的问题，我绝不是专家。

That said, I believe our ability to model the world is largely a direct product of evolution and all that it shapes within us.

就是说，我相信我们对世界建模的能力在很大程度上是进化及其在我们内部形成的一切的直接产物。

As bold as this statement might be, hear me out.

这个陈述可能会大胆，请听我说。

Evolution is the force and mechanism that allows organisms (like us) to pass on hereditary traits across successive generations. Now I’m sure I’m doing a great disservice to the complexity of evolution by distilling it down to a single sentence, but bear with me here…

进化是使生物体(像我们一样)在世代之间传递遗传特征的力量和机制。 现在，我可以肯定的是，通过将其精简为一个句子，我对进化的复杂性大有裨益，但请在这里忍受……

As a product of evolution, the DNA of all living beings is continually shaped and reshaped into ever more efficient ways to allow the organism to not just survive…but also thrive.

作为进化的产物，所有生物的DNA不断地被塑造和重塑为更加有效的方式，以使生物体不仅能够生存……而且能够蓬勃发展 。

It is this continuous and iterative process that slowly creates our model of the world until it is what we have today.

正是这种连续而反复的过程缓慢地建立了我们的世界模型，直到今天为止。

Really, if you think about it, the model is a way for us to distill all the information we constantly get, then provide it in a way that allows us to navigate this incredibly complex world efficiently.

确实，如果您考虑一下，该模型就是我们提取不断获得的所有信息的一种方式，然后以一种使我们能够高效地导航这个难以置信的复杂世界的方式提供它。

Thanks to this evolving model, we as a species, have (largely) succeeded in avoiding being eaten by animals, or being more attentive to bright colors for ripe fruit, or detecting minor movements in facial features. All of the things that make our perception of the world what it is today is because of this model in our minds.

由于这种进化的模型，我们作为一个物种，(在很大程度上)成功避免了被动物吃掉，或者更注意鲜艳的色彩来获取成熟的水果，或者检测到面部特征的微小运动。 所有使我们对当今世界有所了解的事物都是因为我们心目中的这种模式。

Make no mistake — this was a long journey to get here.

没错-这是到达这里的漫长旅程。

But each step of the iterative improvement to our model of reality was oriented towards what can best be perceived to help us survive and thrive.

但是，对我们的现实模型进行迭代式改进的每个步骤都以最能帮助我们生存和发展的方式为导向。

Therefore, even when starting with a very basic model of the world, given a basic drive and enough iteration, we are living proof that very complex models of the world can emerge over time.

因此，即使从一个非常基本的世界模型开始，经过基本的驱动和足够的迭代，我们仍在不断地证明，随着时间的推移，世界上可能会出现非常复杂的模型。

It’s important to remember that I’m not trying to explain the origin of humans, nor am I making a claim about what intelligence really is. Instead, I am broadly remarking on the mechanisms that allow ever more complex models of reality to emerge.

重要的是要记住，我不是在解释人类的起源，也不是在宣称真正的智力是什么。 相反，我广泛地评论了允许出现越来越复杂的现实模型的机制。

And what is most remarkable about this process is that we are seeing many of the same mechanisms and processes taking place within the work we’ve been doing with AI.

这个过程最引人注目的是，我们看到在与AI一起进行的工作中发生了许多相同的机制和过程。

人工智能的主观模型 (AI’s Subjective Model)

When it comes to artificial intelligence, we’ve been able to observe many similar patterns of development when it comes to the models of the world produced based on the “objective” worlds AI inhabit.

当涉及到人工智能时，基于“客观”世界AI习惯而产生的世界模型，我们已经能够观察到许多类似的发展模式。

One of the most notable examples can be seen here:

在这里可以看到最著名的例子之一：

This image comes from an AI used for simulated car driving. The AI agent here is being trained to recognize important features in the world it will operate in.

该图像来自用于模拟汽车驾驶的AI。 此处的AI代理正在接受培训以识别将要运行的世界中的重要功能。

On the left you see what information was fed to the agent — there are typical features outlined here like roads, the “grass” or what is not the road, and other obstacles on the road.

在左侧，您看到什么信息被馈送到代理程序–这里概述了一些典型特征，例如道路，“草丛”或什么不是道路，以及道路上的其他障碍。

Over many iterations of learning, the AI agent has produced its own model of the world that is a representation but not an exact copy of the “real world” that it will inhabit. In other words, if the world in which the Agent will inhabit is the objective reality, then what you see on the right, is how the Agent sees its world based on the model.

经过多次学习，AI代理已经生成了自己的世界模型，该模型只是表示形式，而不是其将要居住的“真实世界”的精确副本。 换句话说，如果Agent所居住的世界是客观现实，那么您在右边看到的就是Agent根据模型如何看待其世界。

But even if we can see the agent’s model of the world clearly differing from its objective reality, how does it arrive at this model?

但是，即使我们可以看到代理人的世界模型明显不同于其客观现实，它如何到达这个模型？

Well much like how humans develop ever more complex models of the world we inhabit, AI Agents function much in the same way. And perhaps the most striking example of this whole process was the work we did when training agents play the game of DOTA 2.

就像人类如何发展我们所居住的世界的更加复杂的模型一样，人工智能代理也以相同的方式发挥作用。 整个过程中最引人注目的例子可能是我们在培训代理商玩DOTA 2游戏时所做的工作。

DOTA 2：AI零到AI英雄 (DOTA 2: AI Zero to AI Hero)

DOTA 2, or “Defense Against the Ancients 2” is a very popular competitive computer game.

DOTA 2或“ Defense Against the Ancients 2”是一种非常流行的竞争性计算机游戏。

In DOTA, two opposing teams are positioned inside a map with boundaries at opposite ends. Each team is tasked with trying to bring down the base of the other team. To accomplish this, each team must fight their way through a number of defensive structures and the members of the opposing team.

在DOTA中，两个相对的团队位于地图内，边界在两端。 每个团队的任务都是试图降低另一个团队的基础。 为了做到这一点，每个团队都必须通过许多防御结构和对立团队的成员进行战斗。

Each team consists of 5 players and the members work together to achieve the same high level objective — to defeat the other team while protecting your own base.

每个团队由5名球员组成，成员共同努力以达到相同的高级目标-在保护自己的基地的同时击败另一支团队。

Every player selects and controls one unit, known as a “hero” — each hero is unique in both how they play and what they can do — and there are 119 of them (for now).

每个玩家都选择并控制一个单位，称为“英雄”(每个英雄在玩法和功能上都是独一无二的)(目前有119个)。

Therefore each team of 5 heroes will work together, utilizing their unique strengths to try and overpower the other team of 5 with the defeat of the opponent’s base being the end goal.

因此，由5名英雄组成的每支球队将一起努力，利用自身的独特优势，以击败对手的基地为最终目标，以击败另一支5名英雄。

There are many nuances I’m leaving out here, but even with these parameters, you can already see that the game itself is quite complex. In fact, the game has such a high skill ceiling that yearly international tournaments are held with the best teams in the world competing for massive cash prizes (in 2019, with a prize pool of $30 million!)

我在这里遗漏了许多细微差别，但是即使有了这些参数，您已经可以看到游戏本身非常复杂。 实际上，该游戏具有很高的技能上限，以至于每年举行国际比赛，世界上最好的球队争夺巨额现金奖金(2019年，奖金池为3000万美元！)

So, seeing the complex domain this game occupies — we set out with an ambitious goal to have an AI Agent try and master it. Given the sheer number of considerations and possibilities, the only way was to have the AI learn the game by itself and develop strategies on its own.

因此，看到这个游戏占据了复杂的领域，我们就设定了一个雄心勃勃的目标，那就是让AI Agent尝试并掌握它。 考虑到大量的考虑和可能性，唯一的方法是让AI自己学习游戏并自行制定策略。

尝试尝试再试一次 (Try Try Try Again)

We began by giving agents a basic set of parameters and incentives.

我们从为代理商提供基本的参数和激励措施入手。

They could get information that would only be available to a human player at any moment, and they were incentivized to win and decentivized from losing.

他们可以获得随时只能供人类玩家使用的信息，并且他们被激励赢得胜利，而被激励失去利益。

Then with the help of reinforcement learning, these agents were trained over thousands of years of simulated gameplay that continually helped shape their model of the game world to ever more complex forms from which advanced strategies would be used.

然后，在强化学习的帮助下，这些代理人接受了数千年的模拟游戏玩法训练，这些模拟游戏玩法不断地将他们的游戏世界模型塑造为更复杂的形式，从而可以使用高级策略。

Over the course of our training, we saw the AI agents go from doing totally random things to being able to play this game at the highest levels, and the journey was incredible.

在我们的培训过程中，我们看到了AI代理人从完全随机的事情变成了能够以最高水平玩游戏的过程，并且旅途非常艰辛。

At the very start, the agent controlled heroes were essentially wandering aimlessly, not really “playing” the game. They had some basic incentives to win, but achieving this objective was not something the agents knew how to do…yet.

从一开始，由代理商控制的英雄就基本上是漫无目的地游荡，而不是真正地“玩”游戏。 他们有一些基本的获胜动机，但是实现这个目标并不是代理商知道的。。。

At this point, it would be fair to say that the agent’s model of the game world was primitive and not-at-all suited for the task of victory. However, this changed and it changed fast.

在这一点上，可以公平地说，代理人的游戏世界模型是原始的，并不完全适合胜利的任务。 但是，这种情况发生了变化，并且变化很快。

As we trained the agents more and more, we could observe that the agent’s model of its world grew increasingly more sophisticated. Before long, iterations of the AI agent began to exhibit behavior that was only possible if its model of the world allowed for such complexities.

随着我们对代理人的培训越来越多，我们可以观察到代理人的世界模型变得越来越复杂。 不久之后，AI代理的迭代开始表现出只有在其世界模型允许这种复杂性的情况下才可能出现的行为。

For instance, there came a time when the agents knew when to attack a weaker enemy and when to back off in the face of superior force. This shows a fundamental grasp of the enemies in the game.

例如，曾经有一段时间，特工知道何时攻击较弱的敌人，何时面对优势力量退却。 这显示了游戏中敌人的基本掌握。

Soon after, we observed agents coordinating with other agents to execute exceptionally complex strategies — going as far as “tricking” the opponents by feigning weakness or leading them into traps.

不久之后，我们观察到特工与其他特工协作执行异常复杂的策略-甚至通过装扮虚弱或带领他们陷入陷阱来“欺骗”对手。

Each of these strategic moves first required the agent’s model of reality to grow to a point where these concepts could be understood, and only after this point could these strategies be made.

这些战略举措中的每一个首先都要求代理人的现实模型发展到可以理解这些概念的地步，只有在这一点之后才能制定这些策略。

These days the AI Agents playing DOTA have such sophisticated models of their world that they are able to play competitively against the best players in the world — a far cry from the unimpressive early strategies of “wandering aimlessly”.

如今，玩DOTA的AI特工拥有如此复杂的世界模型，可以与世界上最好的玩家竞争，而这与“漫无目的游荡”的令人印象深刻的早期策略相去甚远。

And though these agents are bound by the game world of DOTA, the process that shaped their models has striking resemblance to our own.

尽管这些特工受DOTA游戏世界的束缚，但塑造他们的模型的过程却与我们自己的相似。

AI有意识(或可能没有意识) (AI Has Consciousness (or maybe not))

So what’s my point with all of this?

那么我对这一切有什么看法？

Well, it’s that AI might already be conscious, and we don’t even know it yet.

好吧，这是因为AI可能已经有意识了，我们甚至还不知道。

If consciousness is the totality of our subjective experience of the world, and if this subjective experience is produced through a model, and if we assume this model rises in complexity over time…

如果意识是我们对世界的主观经验的总和，并且这种主观经验是通过模型产生的，并且我们假设该模型随着时间的流逝而变得越来越复杂……

Then AI could have a very basic form of consciousness already.

然后，人工智能可能已经具有非常基本的意识形式。

Notice how I emphasized “could”?

注意我如何强调“可以”？

We actually can’t confirm this in the AI systems we’ve built today.

实际上，我们在今天构建的AI系统中无法确认这一点。

But, this problem isn’t anything new, this is an age old conundrum affecting humans for as long as we’ve been conscious. It has actually been wrapped up into a nice thought experiment known as “Philosophical Zombie.”

但是，这个问题并不是什么新问题，只要我们一直保持意识，这就是一个影响人类的古老难题。 实际上，它已被包裹在一个名为“ 哲学僵尸 ”的不错的思想实验中。

The quick summary of the idea is that every person you meet could appear, feel and respond indistinguishable from a human, yet lack any real consciousness, thereby making them a “zombie” of sorts.

这个想法的快速总结是，您遇到的每个人都可以出现，感觉到和做出与人类没有区别的React，但缺乏任何真正的意识，从而使他们成为某种“僵尸”。

Take for example the experience of seeing the color red.

以看到红色为例。

Assume that I find that color very appealing and therefore feel joy when viewing it. Well, it’s quite easy to verify the stimulus and my expected response (show me something red, and check if I’m feeling joy), but it’s impossible to verify if I actually experienced the color red.

假设我发现该颜色非常吸引人，因此在观看时会感到愉悦。 好吧，很容易验证刺激和我的预期React(给我看一些红色的东西，并检查我是否感到高兴)，但是无法验证我是否真的经历了红色。

This experiencing part is known as the “phenomenal consciousness” while the stimulus/response part is known as “functional consciousness.” The difficulty in determining the existence of phenomenal consciousness has been dubbed as the hard problem of consciousness by David Chalmers.

这个经历部分被称为“现象意识”，而刺激/React部分被称为“功能意识”。 大卫•查默斯 ( David Chalmers)将确定现象意识存在的困难称为意识的难题 。

This inability to prove consciousness is the same problem we face with AI. Despite being able to verify that the input matches the output, and that behavior patterns are showing signs of “intelligence”, we cannot measure whether the AI agent has actually experienced it…or is just some sort of robotic zombie.

这种无法证明意识的问题与AI面临的问题相同。 尽管能够验证输入与输出匹配，并且行为模式正在显示“智能”迹象，但我们无法衡量AI代理是否确实经历过……或者仅仅是某种机器人僵尸。

But the similarities between consciousness in humans and AI doesn’t end there, because even the steps taken to develop our advanced models of the world also has parallels in AI.

但是，人类意识与人工智能之间的相似之处还不止于此，因为即使开发我们先进的世界模型所采取的步骤在人工智能方面也具有相似之处。

AI has already shown us many times that extremely complex behaviors can arise from very simple inputs. Given enough iterations, a simple model of a world can grow ever more complex — continuously forming more advanced concepts as time goes on.

人工智能已经多次向我们表明，非常简单的输入可能会导致极其复杂的行为。 有了足够的迭代，一个简单的世界模型就可以变得越来越复杂-随着时间的流逝不断形成更高级的概念。

It is from this advanced model of the world that we can observe progressively more complex behaviors that ultimately achieve the underlying goals (sometimes in totally unprecedented ways).

正是从这个先进的世界模型中，我们可以观察到越来越复杂的行为，这些行为最终实现了基本目标(有时以完全史无前例的方式)。

You can probably already see how this development closely parallels our own.

您可能已经知道这种发展与我们自己的发展紧密相关。

Starting with our original ancestors as single-celled bacterium “aimlessly wandering” the primordial sea; and propelled by their sole mission to thrive and survive. Given enough iterations (in this case 4.54 billion years worth), it is easy to imagine that the models of the world that our ancient ancestors used to navigate their world continuously grew to what we have today.

从我们最初的祖先开始，就是单细胞细菌“无目的地游荡”原始海域； 并以自己的mission壮成长和生存为己任。 有了足够的迭代(在这种情况下，价值45.4亿年)，就可以想象我们的远古祖先用来导航世界的世界模型不断发展壮大到今天。

没有什么是神圣的 (Nothing is Sacred)

In fact “the concept of self”- one of the bastions that humans hold dear as something uniquely human — is just another rung on the ladder of complex world models. Although this concept sits atop the peak of “the things that make us human”, it’s origins aren’t as mysterious as one might think.

实际上，“自我的概念”(人类作为独特的人类所拥有的重要堡垒之一)只是复杂世界模型阶梯上的另一梯级。 尽管这个概念位于“使我们成为人类的事物”的顶峰，但它的起源并没有人们想象的那么神秘。

If we take the example of an ancient single celled organism having the most basic model of the world, then it would only be a matter of time before it’s model grew more complex in response to the rising complexity of the world it dealt with.

如果我们以具有世界上最基本模型的古老单细胞生物为例，那么随着所处理的世界的日益复杂化，模型变得更加复杂只是时间问题。

For instance, at some point depth perception (distinguishing foreground from background) became necessary in the model for survival, and after many iterations the model grew to distinguish predators from prey, then the model could handle 3D vision, then color perception, etc…

例如，为了生存，在某个点上必须有深度感知(将前景与背景区分开)，并且经过多次迭代，模型逐渐发展起来，可以将捕食者与猎物区分开，然后该模型可以处理3D视觉，然后进行色彩感知等等。

It is then conceivable (and very probable) that our model’s concept of “self” developed as a necessity to help us survive and thrive in an ever more complex world. As having the idea of “self” enables us to solve incredibly complex problems.

因此可以想象(而且很可能)我们模型的“自我”概念发展成为帮助我们在一个更加复杂的世界中生存和发展的必要条件。 拥有“自我”的思想使我们能够解决难以置信的复杂问题。

最后的想法 (Final Thoughts)

So where are we now? What was my point in all of this?

那么我们现在在哪里？ 在这一切中我有什么意思？

Well simply to run through some ideas I had bouncing in my mind for some time now and lay it out in a (hopefully) organized manner.

好吧，只是想了解一下我已经想了一段时间的一些想法，并以(希望的)有组织的方式进行阐述。

If there’s anything to be taken away from the reading it’s that:

如果要从阅读中删除任何东西，那就是：

Consciousness and especially the concept of self are fixtures of what makes humans “special”; and our very complex and still flawed model of the world gives us these gifts, as well as shape how we perceive and interact with the world.

意识，尤其是自我概念，是使人类成为“特殊”事物的基础。 我们非常复杂且仍然存在缺陷的世界模型为我们提供了这些天赋，并塑造了我们如何感知和与世界互动。

Yet, the biological mechanism working underneath to produce these features seemingly function the same (or very similar) to how an AI’s model develops. And therefore it is not inconceivable that AI already has a rudimentary form of consciousness.

然而，产生这些特征的生物学机制似乎与AI模型的开发功能相同(或非常相似)。 因此，人工智能已经具有基本的意识形式，这并非不可想象。

However, the inability to prove consciousness in others leaves this an open question for discussion and further thought. And the inner child in me looks forward to every new development in this regard.

但是，由于无法在他人身上证明自己的意识，这成为一个尚待讨论和进一步思考的悬而未决的问题。 我内心的孩子期待着这方面的每个新发展。

Thanks for reading.

谢谢阅读。