Stelarc's Ability To Be Human

Being human is as much about the ability to think and communicate as it is the about the emotional attributes that comprise the inner workings of the brain and the physical shape that forms the body. The Prosthetic Head by the artist Stelarc is an example of a machine attempting to be human. The computer generated head responds to questions and pulls from a base of possible answers but does not actually “feel”. The ability to have emotions and feelings is one characteristic that truly differentiates humans from machines. The technology of artificial life and the advancements associated with the media could one day develop into a form capable of that one thing. At that point the machine will be an “artificial human” as it will still be difficult to ever replicate the physical form of skin, blood and tissue.
While the Prosthetic Head and other artificial life pieces have not gained the capability to formulate an emotional connection or response, the similarity in other aspects is hard to ignore. Some functions of humanity is evident when the head goes to “sleep” like a human or when it is activated “awake” through sensors much like hearing and sight do to the human brain. The piece “Autopoeisis” by Kenneth Rinaldo is another …show more content…
According to an interview done with Stelarc, he ascertains that “...if you define intelligence as appropriate and effective behavior…” then the artificial life of today is not quite intelligent (Face). These pieces perform via the use of human developed and computer controlled algorithms that determine the behaviors, actions and reactions with questionable appropriateness in response (Paul, 145). They lack the free thinking aspect that is part of the human psyche. It is probably one reason they are incapable of emotionally reacting to a situation: the inability to think outside of what is programmed in their

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