[grey_whiskers]

Self-awareness is not the most important question. consider, they already have developed a computer/computer program combination that can play pretty much equal with the best human chess player in the world. Chess used to be considered one of the highest measures of human intelligence. In a short while (if they choose to do it) they can make a computer that can crush any person in chess.

Methinks the programs were and are semi-empirical, based on human knowledge of principles (weighting various configurations as more advantageous), rather than from ab initio.

Cheers!

[Mr. Jeeves]

Methinks the programs were and are semi-empirical, based on human knowledge of principles (weighting various configurations as more advantageous), rather than from ab initio.

Oh, absolutely. Deep Blue had a huge opening book of lines thoroughly worked out in grandmaster-level analysis, and the machine was co-operated by American Grandmaster Joel Benjamin. It took a coordinated team effort to beat Kasparov. If Deep Blue had had to work out its opening play on its own, it is likely Kasparov would have won every game handily.