Fair play for machines

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to consider Alan Turing's philosophical paper on “Computing machinery and intelligence”, in which he defined the “imitation game”, now usually known as the Turing test.

Design/methodology/approach

The paper shows that Turing's paper contained more than the test; it contained a wide survey of what a computer could do and its relation to human thought.

Findings

This paper discusses how Turing's paper represented the outcome of many years in which Turing has both developed the concept and the design of the digital computer, and considered how its action could be related to human thought.

Originality/value

Analysis of Turing's paper provides an understanding and appreciation of Turing's contributions and the significance of the Turing test.

Citation

Hodges, A. (2010), "Fair play for machines", Kybernetes, Vol. 39 No. 3, pp. 441-448. https://doi.org/10.1108/03684921011036169