Artificial Life Possibilities: A Star Trek Perspective (Computer Sciences) [Paperback]

Penny Baillie-de Byl (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 1584504145 | ISBN-13: 978-1584504146 | Publication Date: January 12, 2006 | Edition: 1

The Star Trek series has inspired not only armchair fans, but also the researchers who are trying to better the human race, developing the devices of the future, and struggling to conquer space travel. The Star Trek series was also the inspiration for this book, which examines the artificial intelligences portrayed in the shows. The question we'll be asking throughout this book is, "How do we get from where we are now to the point where we are able to create truly exceptional artificial beings such as Holodeck characters, Lieutenant Commander Data, and the Emergency Medical Hologram?" In order to answer this, we'll examine where we are right now and extrapolate where we are heading. Throughout the book a passion for Star Trek is integrated with academic research from the AI, A-Life, and Robotics domains, which are presented in an easy to understand way-- bypassing the technobabble and mind-blowing mathematics. The book examines the characteristics and capabilities of Star Trek's artificial life forms and compares them with current technologies in an attempt to predict if we'll ever create such advanced beings. It is written to provide both the serious Trekker and the occasional voyeur with a handbook of the current techniques and devices available in the fields of artificial intelligence, robotics, and artificial life. It examines the development of artificial life forms such as Data and the EMH from the bottom up, including their physical creation programming, and metaphysical aspects such as personality and emotions to determine if such beings might some day be a reality. If you have ever wanted to know what a positronic brain is or how to write a personality subroutine then this is the book for you!

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

DR. PENNY BAILLIE-DE BYL (Australia) has been researching in the area of artificial intelligence since 1995. She has had a number of international conference papers, journal papers, several book chapters, and a book published in this area. During her twelve-year career as a university lecturer she has consulted as a computer programmer, systems simulator, and Web site application engineer. Dr. Baillie-de Byl currently works at the University of Southern Queensland in Australia where she teaches computer programming, computer graphics and computer game development.

Product Details

• Paperback: 178 pages
• Publisher: Charles River Media; 1 edition (January 12, 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1584504145
• ISBN-13: 978-1584504146
• Product Dimensions: 8.8 x 6 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 13.4 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,777,868 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Good for Fans and AI Researchers, January 18, 2010

By 

M-Azlan - See all my reviews

This review is from: Artificial Life Possibilities: A Star Trek Perspective (Computer Sciences) (Paperback)

As a fan of the Star Trek series and as someone working in AI, this book was the obvious choice for me when I noticed it during a casual trip to the bookstore. There are 14 chapters on the characteristics we tend to associate with intelligent beings (e.g. sensing the environment, thinking and reasoning, imagination and creativity). In each, the author relates to episodes from the entire Star Trek series to date (i.e. the original series, The Next Generation, Deep Space Nine, Voyager and Enterprise). Since I have seen all of them (except the original series), the explanations were familiar to me. It was also a nice refresher of certain episodes that I might just watch again. There is very little in this book in terms of technical information (thankfully, as AI can be quite complicated and mathematical) but a lot in terms of ideas and basic concepts. Dilettantes and fans of Star Trek would therefore enjoy this book more than academics and researchers. I have nothing against science fiction or television and I think many times, directions for further research can be inspired by it. This is why I still consider this book a contribution to the field. Overall, a worthwhile and light read.

Some minor errors in case there is a 2nd edition.

1. pg. 46, para 2, "pheromone trails" (not 'trials').
2. pg. 81, the second formula is the same as the first when it should be different i.e. p(success) cannot be the same as p(failure).
3. pg. 88, based on the second premise (i.e. It's temperate is always 50 degrees or above), the sentence in the following paragraph should be, "...any planet with a temperature of *less than* 50 degrees..." (not "50 degrees or less").
4. pg. 120, para 3, it's "Bajorans" (not Bajorians).
5. pg. 126, para 3, line 5, "...don't tend to always enjoy..." (missing 's'); same line, the endnote indicator should be after the period.
6. pg. 126, last line, "jokes...." (three periods are customary in an unfinished sentence, not four).

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Interesting Way to Discuss Artificial Intelligence, March 6, 2006

By 

John Matlock "Gunny" (Winnemucca, NV) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Artificial Life Possibilities: A Star Trek Perspective (Computer Sciences) (Paperback)

The author has picked an interesting way to examine the state of the art in artificial intelligence. It is an interesting turn around. The originators of the TV series Star Trek looked at the research that was being done and extrapolated this research into their characters. In turn, these characters were looked at by researchers to see how their research might really be carried forward.

In this book, Dr. Penny Baillie-de Byl, an Australian university lecturer has in turned looked at the research being conducted and tied it back to the TV show characters. She looks at androids and at purely projection characters such as those that are generated on the holodeck.

The chapter I liked best was her discussion of the Turing Test, a test Alan Turing devised to determine if a machine could think - (what's think, what's a machine). Have we passed the test yet? Then again, I see some humans once in a while that I don't think could pass the test.

5.0 out of 5 stars The future of AI systems, April 13, 2006

By 

D. Donovan, Editor/Sr. Reviewer "California B... (California, USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Artificial Life Possibilities: A Star Trek Perspective (Computer Sciences) (Paperback)

Penny Baillie-De Byl's ARTIFICIAL LIFE POSSIBILITIES: A STAR TREK PERSPECTIVE examines what the future might bring in creating exceptional artificial environments such as Star Trek has featured. Using Star Trek's innovative concepts as a foundation, artificial intelligence researcher Dr. Penmny Baillie-De Byl considers artificial life forms depicted in the TV series and the state of current technology to consider the potentials behind creating advanced AI systems.