IBM's Watson beats out humans
Source: Agencies |
January 15, 2011, Saturday
|
Print Edition
Print Edition
THE clue: It's the size of 10 refrigerators, has access to the equivalent of 200 million pages of information and knows how to answer in the form of a question.
The correct response: "What is the computer IBM developed to become a 'Jeopardy!' whiz?"
Watson, which IBM claims as a profound advance in artificial intelligence, edged out game-show champions Ken Jennings and Brad Rutter on Thursday in its first public test, a short practice round ahead of a US$1 million tournament that will be televised next month.
Later, the human contestants made jokes about the "Terminator" movies and robots from the future. Indeed, four questions into the round you had to wonder if the rise of the machines was already upon us - in a trivial sense at least.
Watson tore through a category about female archaeologists, repeatedly activating a mechanical button before either Jennings or Rutter could buzz in, then nailing the questions: "What is Jericho?" "What is Crete?" Its gentle male voice even scored a laugh when it said, "Let's finish 'Chicks Dig Me.'"
Jennings, who won a record 74 consecutive "Jeopardy!" games in 2004-05, then salvaged the category, winning US$1,000 by identifying the prehistoric human skeleton Dorothy Garrod found in Israel: "What is Neanderthal?"
He and Rutter, who won a record of nearly US$3.3 million in prize money, had more success on questions about children's books and the initials "M.C.".
But Watson knew about "Harold and the Purple Crayon" and that it was Maurice Chevalier who sang "Thank Heaven for Little Girls" in the film "Gigi."
The correct response: "What is the computer IBM developed to become a 'Jeopardy!' whiz?"
Watson, which IBM claims as a profound advance in artificial intelligence, edged out game-show champions Ken Jennings and Brad Rutter on Thursday in its first public test, a short practice round ahead of a US$1 million tournament that will be televised next month.
Later, the human contestants made jokes about the "Terminator" movies and robots from the future. Indeed, four questions into the round you had to wonder if the rise of the machines was already upon us - in a trivial sense at least.
Watson tore through a category about female archaeologists, repeatedly activating a mechanical button before either Jennings or Rutter could buzz in, then nailing the questions: "What is Jericho?" "What is Crete?" Its gentle male voice even scored a laugh when it said, "Let's finish 'Chicks Dig Me.'"
Jennings, who won a record 74 consecutive "Jeopardy!" games in 2004-05, then salvaged the category, winning US$1,000 by identifying the prehistoric human skeleton Dorothy Garrod found in Israel: "What is Neanderthal?"
He and Rutter, who won a record of nearly US$3.3 million in prize money, had more success on questions about children's books and the initials "M.C.".
But Watson knew about "Harold and the Purple Crayon" and that it was Maurice Chevalier who sang "Thank Heaven for Little Girls" in the film "Gigi."
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