#151, Go
AlphaGo is a computer program designed by the Google DeepMind team to play the board game Go. The DeepMind team taught AlphaGo to play the game using a deep neural network that mimics the neurons in the human brain. The result is artificial intelligence, or intelligence exhibited by machines. As AlphaGo plays other humans (and sometimes other versions of itself), it "teaches" itself about the game and human behavior. However, it was not until 2015 that AlphaGo was able to beat a human.
This past week, AlphaGo faced its most fearsome competitor yet, Lee Sedol. Lee is a 9-dan professional, the highest achievable rank, and one of the best Go players in the world. Experts predicted that artificial intelligence would not be able to defeat a top ranked professional for another decade. The showdown between the robot menace and mankind's hero attracted attention worldwide. And despite being the underdog, AlphaGo soundly defeated Lee 4-1.
Beyond just the game of Go, the DeepMind team hopes that this artificial intelligence can be used in other endeavors to help find solutions that humans may not be able to think of.
To complete this Journal,
- Respond to one of the following: (a) How should the Google DeepMind team use their artificial intelligence programs? (b) Should we, as humans, be afraid of AlphaGo? (c) What can be taken away from Lee Sedol's game 4 victory over AlphaGo?
- Comment on one of your peer's responses.
-Brenden Lee Teacher
mindset