Humans, new series

[Slartybartfast]

Just seen this is back. Anyone else watching?

@IWannaSeeHowItEnds one would hope so! The search goes on....

They are essentially machines but they do have consciousness. When I said that the old man would be dead in a few years it probably came out wrong. It doesn't make his life less valuable but Sam has years of life ahead of him. The old man has had the chance to live his life, have a family etc... It's a difficult one and hopefully one i will never have to make.

@Crinkle77 you know Sam will always be Dottie boy and won't have a family or career. So I can't see that his life experience will be that different to the old man!

True if he was an adult synth he might have a job and a relationship and possibly even adopt with a human partner or have a child via surrogacy.

In series 2, that company was making child synths, where the consciousness could be downloaded into different bodies, so the chold could 'grow'. What happened to that story line?

@Crinkle77 do you think ha ing a job makes a person more important?

Why would a synth want to adopt a hunan child?

@IWannaSeeHowItEnds I am guessing they drop that story line because it was so grim. But Sam is the continuation of that story.

If his mind could be downloaded into another body then would it be the real him?

Ooh, have you met the stanley actor in RL Crinkle77?

It’d be amazing to have a domestic synth. Laura, a single parent, can swan in from work knowing that laundry, cleaning and dinner are handled!

loopy i wish. I looked him up on the internet.

italian why wouldn't a synth want to adopt. I was thinking if they got in to a relationship with a human and the human wanted a child then it could be a possibility. And no I don't think having a job makes someone more important. What I was trying to say is that synths are also able to live a 'normal' life (for want of a better word) and contribute to society. Does the fact that their bodies are synthetic make them any less deserving of a life? I am not saying that it does but it's just got me thinking that's all

"It’d be amazing to have a domestic synth. Laura, a single parent, can swan in from work knowing that laundry, cleaning and dinner are handled!" And wonder if he synth is going to go mad and kill her!

@Crinkle77 'italian why wouldn't a synth want to adopt. I was thinking if they got in to a relationship with a human and the human wanted a child then it could be a possibility.'

To have a child who would grow and change and develop while you would be exactly the same, not moving on physically would be, I think, quite painful, and a constant reminder that you were human.

Because the desire to take in and adopt a creature' is a very human instinct and I would argue to some extent a very 'animal' one. Not something a machine would normally do. I grant you 'Karen' effectively did that with Sam. And i would maybe argue that was built into her nature as she was meant to be a parent for Leo. Unlike Mia who was meant to be a sister or nanny to him, yet also acted like a mum too! (Complex much!)

'What I was trying to say is that synths are also able to live a 'normal' life (for want of a better word) and contribute to society.' You see, and I am not being argumentative, that you are trying to judge the synths on their human-like-ness but seem to not see that what makes us human is not our ability to work or reproduce.

You seem to want to view the synths as human because they look human. If they looked like a toaster oven would you still be so keen to swap one for a pensioner?

'Does the fact that their bodies are synthetic make them any less deserving of a life?' Yes. Because they are not alive, any more than your washing machine is alive.

'I am not saying that it does but it's just got me thinking that's all.' It's got me thinkng too. But I have watched a lot of things like this - Bicentennial man, AI, Star Trek and ultimately, for me, they are not alive, they are not human, they merely look human. The programme is called 'Humans' and I think it is there to provoke us and make us think.

So I think our debating it is totally appropriate. And of course you are completely entitled to your opinions as I am to mine. It is just interesting to see how we all come at this slightly differently, and for me it is quite scary because it feels like their is nothing distinct about being human.

that you no were human - this is assuming the synth felt those human emotions, which I believe they are meant to feel. Although mostly it is the female synths who are shown expressing emotion - Mia to Leo (sisterly love), Karen with Pete (sexual love), Nyska in the brothel and after the bombing (anger), and Agnes left in confined spaces (fear).

If my humanity were judged on my writing ability I would fail!!!!!!!!

One more time.. 'I think, quite painful, and a constant reminder that you were not human.'

yes, italian, guess it’s true, I’d be being unreasonable to put myself and family at the risk of violent death at the hands of a synth in exchange for domestic help and nutrituous meals. Bah.

@Loopytiles have you seen I, robot?

Does Deep Blue have more right to life than a pensioner?

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Deep_Blue_(chess_computer)

Just remember that scene for season one of Humans where Pete's wife, Gill, is some walking issues and gets a synth. He is very sexy but then it goes mad and tries to have sex wiht her. And it says to Pete 'I am trying to penetrate your wife.' I think Pete knocked it out!

wellamarke.tumblr.com/post/137541737605/humans-screenshots-18366-january-18th-jill-and

Italian I am referring mainly to the conscious synths. You can't really say that they are like a toaster because they do think and feel emotions.

However, it was pointed out that in 50 years time they will all be gone.

Deep Mind isn’t “conscious”.

@Crinkle77 I down't say a toaster oven was like a synth. I said if a synth looked like a toaster oven would you feel the same? If a toaster oven could talk and appeared conscious.

I also wonder what we mean about being conscious.

@Loopytiles I don't think Deep Blue is conciliatory but I do think it can learn.

I am wondering what the definition of conscious is (I think there might be a variety of meanings).

Can I ask you both, if this technology existed now, and you could afford it, would you buy one?

I meant - I don't think Deep Blue is conscious...

No I don't think I would buy one.

@Crinkle77 I once went to a museum with statues of famous people (wax, I think). One was so lifelike it was really scary and they were, of course, just statues. So one that could move and talk would scare me.

The whole thinking it was a body guard and then it pulled her upstairs was so scary.

I do wonder if we will have synths one day, I think if you watch the sex robots documentary you will see we are getting closer to this as a reality, very scary IMHO.

For me it's like having this presence in the house that is watching and listening to everything you do and you don't know someone could hack in to them and make them malfunction. Also we are becoming more and more reliant on technology to do things for us. Soon we will become the brain dead ones.

I wouldn't have chosen the boy or the old man. I would have chosen Anatole. Shame he wasn't one of the options on who should be killed. I am so disappointed that he turned out to be the way he is.

You seem to want to view the synths as human because they look human. If they looked like a toaster oven would you still be so keen to swap one for a pensioner? This is quite interesting. It reminds me of the Black Mirror episode where they altered soldiers' perceptions so they thought they were fighting against monsters and killing them, when in reality the enemy was other human people just like them. It was easier to kill them without feeling remorse or doubts when they didn't look like humans.

The toaster example also made me think of the movie "Batteries not included", where despite the saucer machines not looking human, they were cute and "alive" and it was possible to empathise with them and not want them to come to any harm.

Ah yes, Batteries Not Included: a great film! Must show it to the DC. And very relevant here.

No, I wouldn’t buy an “orange eye” synth and would fear them and the green eyed ones! But I do think that unless you would seek to destroy them all, like the military types on the show obviously want to, that their life has value.