Guest Post by David Stephen
There is a recent article,
Octopuses Are Smart, Sentient… Aliens?, where it was stated that, “Animal intelligence refers to an animal’s cognitive abilities, such as perception, decision-making, and learning. On the other hand, sentience refers to an animal’s ability to have subjective experiences, such as pleasure, pain, fear, and other emotions. While these concepts may be related, sentience pertains explicitly to an animal’s ability to feel the world and is often considered in discussions of animal welfare.”
AI: What Do Intelligence and Sentience Share?
Sentience and Intelligence
Are the mechanisms with which they arise similar and do they share a source? Does the source know that this process is for intelligence and this other one for sentience? What must be present to indicate intelligence, and what else, for sentience? Are the labels or definitions of terms restrictive for how both should be understood? Which one precedes the other, and which is superior?
It is generally accepted that sentience and intelligence originate from the brain. Though, more specifically, from the mind. The question that follows is how does the human mind function to setup both? What are the components of the mind and what is the structure?
These questions are different from observed labels of mind, like emotions and feelings, because processes underlie their being experienced. They are not components of the human mind, like the mind uses them to function.
There is something that must be possessed, to rates, to qualify for intelligence. There is also something that must be, to an extent, to qualify for sentience. Intelligence is defined with cognitive abilities like perception and learning. Sentience, with an experience like pleasure or pain.
Taking those labels apart, one thing—knowing—is spread. Learning is known, so are perceptions, and experiences as pleasure and pain. It is not just that they are present or experienced, but they are known.
It is known that math is known. It is known that something is painful. It is known that lavender is perceived. It is knowing that determines whatever is described for sentience or intelligence. There are divisions for each, with minimums and totals.
Sentience is superior and encompasses intelligence, or all that is known for it. Reasoning, decision-making, creativity, stealth movement to seek prey, or avoid predator are all divisions of intelligence, with varying totals for species at different stages.
Emotions, feelings and memory are the major division of sentience. Memory is superior to intelligence. Emotions and feelings are also known. Humans can be said to have the highest rate of sentience at 1. There are minimums in divisions for humans, where other animals compare. There are also minimums for intelligence for humans that AI, possibly compares, given some of the proficiency of LLMs.
Sentience and intelligence share knowing. AI, to the extent that it is accurate and dynamic, has some knowing whose maximum compares in some ways to certain human minimums.
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