The study of using machines to mimic human thought and logic is much older than 50. Some could argue it goes back to the days of Descartes who pictured the bodies of animals as complex but reducible machines — the beginnings of a mechanistic theory. But the term "Artificial Intelligence" was popularized after a Dartmouth workshop only 50 years ago. Science fiction hasn’t been the same since… err… I mean the studies of neuroscience, computer science and robotics hasn’t been the same since, yea, that’s what I meant.
In commemoration, the American Association of Artificial Intelligence (say that 10 times fast) is having a big conference in Boston next week. I’ll be going to cover the story for Wired.
I’m working on a deadline for the next two days to get the lead story out. After that, I’ll be in Boston looking for interesting and odd things to report on (looking at the schedule I won’t have to look far). Blogging might be light, but it’ll eventually pay off with a good round-up post.
Currently reading: The Singularity is Near