. 24/7 Space News .
ROBO SPACE
Programming autonomous machines ahead of time promotes selfless decision-making
by Staff Writers
Aberdeen Proving Ground MD (SPX) Feb 12, 2019

"We were surprised by these findings," Gratch said. "By thinking about one's choices in advance, people actually show more regard for cooperation and fairness. It is as if by being forced to carefully consider their decisions, people placed more weight on prosocial goals. When making decisions moment-to-moment, in contrast, they become more driven by self-interest." (file image only)

A new study suggests the use of autonomous machines increases cooperation among individuals.

Researchers from the U.S. Combat Capabilities Development Command's Army Research Laboratory, the Army's Institute for Creative Technologies and Northeastern University collaborated on a paper published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

The research team, led by Dr. Celso de Melo, ARL, in collaboration with Drs. Jonathan Gratch, ICT, and Stacy Marsella, NU, conducted a study of 1,225 volunteers who participated in computerized experiments involving a social dilemma with autonomous vehicles.

"Autonomous machines that act on people's behalf - such as robots, drones and autonomous vehicles - are quickly becoming a reality and are expected to play an increasingly important role in the battlefield of the future," de Melo said.

"People are more likely to make unselfish decisions to favor collective interest when asked to program autonomous machines ahead of time versus making the decision in real-time on a moment-to-moment basis."

De Melo said that despite promises of increased efficiency, it is not clear whether this paradigm shift will change how people decide when their self-interest is pitted against the collective interest.

"For instance, should a recognition drone prioritize intelligence gathering that is relevant to the squad's immediate needs or the platoon's overall mission?" de Melo asked. "Should a search-and-rescue robot prioritize local civilians or focus on mission-critical assets?"

"Our research in PNAS starts to examine how these transformations might alter human organizations and relationships," Gratch said. "Our expectation, based on some prior work on human-intermediaries, was that AI representatives might make people more selfish and show less concern for others."

In the paper, results indicate the volunteers programmed their autonomous vehicles to behave more cooperatively than if they were driving themselves. According to the evidence, this happens because programming machines causes selfish short-term rewards to become less salient, leading to considerations of broader societal goals.

"We were surprised by these findings," Gratch said. "By thinking about one's choices in advance, people actually show more regard for cooperation and fairness. It is as if by being forced to carefully consider their decisions, people placed more weight on prosocial goals. When making decisions moment-to-moment, in contrast, they become more driven by self-interest."

The results further show this effect occurs in an abstract version of the social dilemma, which they say indicates it generalizes beyond the domain of autonomous vehicles.

"The decision of how to program autonomous machines, in practice, is likely to be distributed across multiple stakeholders with competing interests, including government, manufacturers and controllers," de Melo said.

"In moral dilemmas, for instance, research indicates that people would prefer other people's autonomous vehicles to maximize preservation of life (even if that meant sacrificing the driver), whereas their own vehicle to maximize preservation of the driver's life."

As these issues are debated, researchers say it is important to understand that in the possibly more prevalent case of social dilemmas - where individual interest is pitted against collective interest - autonomous machines have the potential to shape how the dilemmas are solved and, thus, these stakeholders have an opportunity to promote a more cooperative society.

Research Report: "Human cooperation when acting through autonomous machines"


Related Links
US Army Research Laboratory
All about the robots on Earth and beyond!


Thanks for being there;
We need your help. The SpaceDaily news network continues to grow but revenues have never been harder to maintain.

With the rise of Ad Blockers, and Facebook - our traditional revenue sources via quality network advertising continues to decline. And unlike so many other news sites, we don't have a paywall - with those annoying usernames and passwords.

Our news coverage takes time and effort to publish 365 days a year.

If you find our news sites informative and useful then please consider becoming a regular supporter or for now make a one off contribution.
SpaceDaily Monthly Supporter
$5+ Billed Monthly


paypal only
SpaceDaily Contributor
$5 Billed Once


credit card or paypal


ROBO SPACE
Trumps orders government to prioritize artificial intelligence
Washington (AFP) Feb 11, 2019
President Donald Trump on Monday ordered the US administration to give greater priority to artificial intelligence, a move seen as firing up a battle for leadership with China. The American AI Initiative executive order calls for the administration to "devote the full resources of the federal government" to help fuel AI innovation. "Americans have profited tremendously from being the early developers and international leaders in AI," a White House statement said. "However, as the pace of AI ... read more

Comment using your Disqus, Facebook, Google or Twitter login.



Share this article via these popular social media networks
del.icio.usdel.icio.us DiggDigg RedditReddit GoogleGoogle

ROBO SPACE
US to extend use of Russia's Soyuz for ISS missions until April 2020

The case for leaving Earth

Ex-Marine pilot dreams of ferrying folks into space

The future of human spaceflight in America

ROBO SPACE
Raptor engine beats Russian RD-180 record in combustion chamber pressure says Musk

Arianespace orbits two telecommunications satellites on first Ariane 5 launch of 2019

SpaceX no-load test delayed

Launch of Unmanned US Dragon 2 Spacecraft to ISS Set for March 2

ROBO SPACE
NASA to make final attempt to contact Mars Opportunity Rover

New study suggests possibility of recent underground volcanism on Mars

Developing a flight strategy to land heavier vehicles on Mars

NASA's MAVEN spacecraft shrinking its Mars orbit to prepare for Mars 2020 Rover

ROBO SPACE
China improves Long March-6 rocket for growing commercial launches

Seed of moon's first sprout: Chinese scientists' endeavor

China to send over 50 spacecraft into space via over 30 launches in 2019

China to deepen lunar exploration: space expert

ROBO SPACE
UAE to Host Conference for Heads of Arab States' Space Agencies in March

Space exploration educators conference makes education accessible for all teachers

Aerojet Rocketdyne's affordability and efficiency drive achieves success

Egypt to Host African Space Agency's Headquarters - Foreign Ministry

ROBO SPACE
Scientists discover new type of magnet

New fabric automatically cools or insulates depending on conditions

Raytheon contract ceiling for Silent Knight development upped by $15M

Northrop Grumman awarded $17.4M for space tracking system

ROBO SPACE
Scientists discover oldest evidence of mobility on Earth

NASA Selects New Mission to Explore Origins of Universe

Better to dry a rocky planet before use

Study shows unusual microbes hold clues to early life

ROBO SPACE
Ultima Thule is more pancake than snowman, NASA scientists discover

New Horizons' evocative farewell glance at Ultima Thule

Sodium, Not Heat, Reveals Volcanic Activity on Jupiter's Moon Io

New Horizons' Newest and Best-Yet View of Ultima Thule









The content herein, unless otherwise known to be public domain, are Copyright 1995-2024 - Space Media Network. All websites are published in Australia and are solely subject to Australian law and governed by Fair Use principals for news reporting and research purposes. AFP, UPI and IANS news wire stories are copyright Agence France-Presse, United Press International and Indo-Asia News Service. ESA news reports are copyright European Space Agency. All NASA sourced material is public domain. Additional copyrights may apply in whole or part to other bona fide parties. All articles labeled "by Staff Writers" include reports supplied to Space Media Network by industry news wires, PR agencies, corporate press officers and the like. Such articles are individually curated and edited by Space Media Network staff on the basis of the report's information value to our industry and professional readership. Advertising does not imply endorsement, agreement or approval of any opinions, statements or information provided by Space Media Network on any Web page published or hosted by Space Media Network. General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) Statement Our advertisers use various cookies and the like to deliver the best ad banner available at one time. All network advertising suppliers have GDPR policies (Legitimate Interest) that conform with EU regulations for data collection. By using our websites you consent to cookie based advertising. If you do not agree with this then you must stop using the websites from May 25, 2018. Privacy Statement. Additional information can be found here at About Us.