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T
HE TERM ARTIFICIAL
intelligence (AI) was first coined at
Dartmouth Conference in 1956, and since then AI has
expanded because of the theories and principles developed
by its dedicated researchers. Through its short modern history,
advancement in the fields of AI have been slower than first esti-
mated, progress continues to be made. From its birth four decades
ago, there has been a variety of AI programmes, and they have
impacted other technological advancements.
Nevertheless, this does not mean that all researchers in this
domain agree on what AI stands for. What does it mean, in fact,
to build an intelligent machine?
We can essentially envision two types of answer:
• A machine will be considered as intelligent if it reproduces the
behaviour of a human being in a specific domain or not
• A machine will be considered as intelligent if it models the func-
tioning of a human being.
Currently, it seems that the dichotomy between these two
approaches to AI is becoming less and less relevant for two
reasons:
• The strength of the computer alone is never insufficient to
resolve the most difficult problems
• The cognitive theory seems to gain strength.
What is artificial intelligence?
It is the branch of computer science concerned with making
computers behave like humans. AI is simply the application of
artificial or non-naturally occurring systems that use the knowl-
edge-level to achieve goals. A more practical definition that has
been used for AI is attempting to build artificial systems that will
perform better on tasks that humans currently do better. It is the
capability of a device to perform functions that are normally asso-
ciated with human intelligence, such as reasoning and
optimization through experience and to attempt to approximate
the results of human reasoning by organizing and manipulating
factual and heuristic knowledge.
It includes:
Expert systems
– Programming computers to make decisions in
real-life situations (for example, some expert systems help doctors
diagnose diseases based on symptoms)
Artificial intelligence
Faryal Mouria Beji, Chief Executive, INBMI;
Professor Researcher-ENSI, Tunis University;
Head of Artificial Intelligence Laboratory;
Member of the Working Group on Internet Governance
Young girls under the spell of the computer world