One of the "characters" in the 1968 film 2001: A Space Odyssey (directed by Stanley Kubrick) is a computer called HAL 9000. In addition to having a highly developed artificial intelligence, this computer is shown to have certain human emotions. The computer has a great deal of pride in its own abilities, and this leads to it having feelings of jealousy. At one point in the film, HAL lies about a malfunction on the outside of the spaceship. The computer then proceeds to kill all of the crewmembers except one, who is able to kill HAL by disconnecting it. The characterization of HAL in the film raises an interesting question regarding artificial intelligence: Can a computer lie? In order for this question to be answered, it needs to be rephrased. First, we must consider what factors enable human beings to lie. In my opinion, human beings lie because they have emotions. More specifically, people are motivated to lie to one another because of their desires. In this regard, people who lie generally do so either because they want to get something out of another person or because they want to avoid getting something from another person. The next issue to consider is where desires come from. I feel that desires arise because people have a particular kind of consciousness, which can be called self-awareness. Before desires can arise, a being must have awareness of itself as being distinct from other beings. Furthermore, the being must have a sense that other beings have things that it lacks. Emotions, desires and self-awareness are obviously things which are found in human beings and not in machines. Therefore, the question to be considered is whether or not computers with artificial intelligence will be able to imitate these types of human behaviors in the future. If we can answer this question, we will be able to determine whether or not a computer can have the capability for lying. Unfortunately, this is not an easy questi...
