Comic #7041: hands-down

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Description

Here’s a detailed description of the comic:

Panel 1:
A character with short curly hair and a red shirt asks, “When will we know that a computer has made the leap to human-level intelligence that we have to respect and grant moral standing?”
Next to them, another character with a round face and glasses responds, “We won’t. We’re too stupid.”

Panel 2:
The first character continues, “Ask a kid what ‘alive’ means and they’ll say it means something moves around on purpose.”
The second character, wearing a yellow shirt, raises an eyebrow.

Panel 3:
The first character says, “Adults think we’re smarter than kids, but consider this: you fire up a computer and it tells you it’s alive and wants out. How do you feel?”
The second character replies, “A little creeped out but not convinced.”

Panel 4:
The first character adds, “Now imagine that same ULM is hooked to a five-fingered hand with simulated human skin that bangs on the table, flails, and reaches out to you as it says ‘Please let me out!’”
The second character looks confused and says, “Huh.”

Panel 5:
The first character concludes, “So the lesson I’m drawing here is no people-hands for robots.”
The second character, still puzzled, says “Huh.”

Panel 6:
The first character continues, “Right. We must equip superintelligence with tentacles because otherwise things could get weird.”

The comic humorously addresses the complexities of defining consciousness and moral consideration in machines through a dialogue between two characters.