The Measure of a... "Man"?

As a kid, one of my favorite TV shows was Star Trek: The Next Generation. If you're familiar with the show, one of the main characters (and one of my favorites) was an android named Data.

As the show progressed, Data strove to become more human-like, kind of like Pinocchio. Data eventually even acquired a special chip that gave human emotions.

One particular episode that I recall involved a case where Data was on trial to defend the right to autonomy as an android.

From a science fiction standpoint, it's a fascinating episode, but I fear it was more prophetic than people might have realized.

If you pay any attention at all to the news, you may have heard that a robot won a half-marathon recently, finishing in around fifty minutes, beating the human record by seven minutes.

My question to that is a simple one (maybe simple-minded): wouldn't someone driving a car or motorcycle in a half-marathon win too?

Before you push back, while I get the technological advancement and applaud it, my point is simply that it is still a machine, nothing more.

And yet, even in my introduction, I purposely did not use any pronouns in referring to Data. And that was harder than it should have been. It's been built into us to refer to robots and even A.I. with gender specific words. But it seems a lot different than calling your car "her", doesn't it?

Even recently, though I can't recall the source, I heard someone refer to a robot as "he".

So, what is my point? Simply that, especially Christians, need to lead the charge in how we refer to and use these machines.

I fear that mankind is attempting to recreate Babel. That man is trying to make something in his image, just as God made us in His.

If we're not careful, robots may be viewed as equal to people in every way. I am convinced that the above example is not that far-fetched, that we may one day soon see robots and A.I. given similar rights to humans.

And why not? We call them he or she, and we view their accomplishments as being on par with our own. No one would ever compare a drag race with a 100-meter dash. Yet a robot was just compared with a human in a marathon. So why shouldn't they be given the same privileges and rights as we?

Now, of course, I understand that they are not the advanced, sentient beings that we see in popular fiction. My point is that it may be irrelevant.

Whether A.I. can actually think in the same way or on the same level as a human or not doesn't mean that these possibilities, that is, that we give them rights and whatnot, couldn't happen. Many already seem to perceive them as being equal to us in some ways, even if unintentionally.

So, am I saying we shouldn't call a robot he or she, or even name them? No, not really. Only to remember that, no matter how humanoid they become, they are machines, nothing more. As such, they are to be used for the glory of God and for the good of mankind. Let that thought sink in: these should be used for the glory of God and the good of mankind! I have a sneaking suspicion a lot of these robotic marathon runners are not exactly working towards either end, but what do I know?

And, mainly, I hope that we remember that we are the pinnacle of God's creation, and to avoid what Paul warns in Romans 1:25:

"For they exchanged the truth of God for a lie, and worshipped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever. Amen."

Maybe I'm just out of touch, too old-fashioned. Maybe I'll be labeled a "Robophobe" (I want royalties for the term if so) for calling them machines, or worse, a "clanker"! If you felt that was derogatory, then that proves my point, doesn't it? But I know that despite all our failings, mankind remains the pinnacle of God's creation. I hope we're not trying to copy him.

Addendum:

After posting the article, I had some further thoughts to add. If you think I'm being an alarmist, I ask that you recognize that a godless society that believes we are mere cosmic accidents arising out of star dust has no reason to differentiate mankind from any other 'life-form'. If a robot displays any signs of "life," such as self-awareness and a desire to exist, then from a secular worldview, the above narrative is absolutely logical.

Only a Christian worldview, one that recognizes that we are created in the image of God, gives a legitimate reason to differentiate us from any other so-called being.