alt Hacker NewsA robot can certainly be programmed to behave in a self-aware way, but making a conclusion about its actual self-awareness would be unfounded.
In general, behaviorism wasn't a very productive theory in humans and animals either.
A robot can certainly be programmed to behave in a self-aware way, but making a conclusion about its actual self-awareness would be unfounded.
In general, behaviorism wasn't a very productive theory in humans and animals either.
By behaving in a self-aware way, it practices self awareness.
It would only be unfounded if the robot is programmed in a way that seemingly appears to be self-aware but actually isn't (It would need to occasionally act in a non-self aware way, like a manchurian candidate). But if you keep increasing scrutiny, it converges on being self aware because the best way to appear self-aware is to be self-aware.
It's not clear to me what the intrinsic goals of a robot would be if it did practice self-awareness in the first place. But in living things it's to grow and reproduce.