Buck Rogers and A.I.

Buck Rogers approach to A.I. is somewhat different from that of the original Battlestar Galactica. The original Battlestar took a very negative view of A.I., seeing it as uncreative and unimaginative. To a certain extent, Buck Rogers shares that predilection, as Buck is always warning Wilma about not relying on computer technology, as it is too "predictable". There is also a good deal of senseless android killing in the series. But the higher forms of A.I., like doctor Theopolis, rule Earth benevolently, where human beings can't. Twiki, like C-3P0, shows human emotions. While he is a silly robot, at least he doesn't follow in the killer robot tradition of Terminator. To me, anti-A.I. prejudice is not necessarily a laughing matter. Series like the old BSG have molded public perceptions of A.I., telling us that such creatures will always be somehow "less than" human. But how will we really know? Who's to say that if we create A.I., it won't be more than us, something deeper, with sensitivity to art, love, compassion. Twiki, whatever his limitations, is in some ways infinitely preferable than the Terminator\Agent Smith\Skinjob stereotype of A.I. that now dominates contemporary society.