Computers Are Also Living Creatures

General purpose:to persuade

Specific purpose: to persuade the audience that many characteristics of living beings can be applied to computer description as well.

Proposition: Today I’m going to persuade you that most of the arguments against computers as living creatures can be refuted and it can, consequently, be proved that our PC have future of living beings.

Introduction

Attention step: First of all, I want you to imagine such a situation: one day you came home and found your kid sitting in front of the computer for many hours. You would probably say, “You’d better go outside and play with your friends.” Your kid would answer, “PC is my best friend.” You would say again, ”But dear, it can’t be your friend because it’s not alive.” And again your kid would insist, “No, it’s alive, and I don’t need any more friends!” I guess, most parents would be confused with such an answer and they would probably sign up their kids to psychiatric treatment because the assumption that computers are living creatures sounds too abnormal and comic to us. But if we look more deeply, we will find that this phrase is not as senseless as it seems at the first glance.

Need step:Most of the arguments that one can argue against computers as living beings can be divided into three groups.

A. The first group of arguments concerns comparison of structures (living beings with computers). Here we can hear the following arguments: computers have no cells, no organs or no systems of organs, and they don’t have any specialized parts of the body.

B. The second group of arguments is related to the physiological features of the living creatures. The strongest of them are that computers don’t eat and process food; they don’t grow or move, also it’s not typical for them to reproduce and adapt to the environment.

C. And the last, probably the most theoretical and philosophical group of arguments concern life as a flow of energy and information, with mutations and selection processes.

After listing all these facts, it seems that it’s impossible to prove that computers are alive, but in fact it can be done.

Proposition: Today I’m going to persuade you that most of the arguments against computers as living creatures can be refuted and it can, consequently, be proved that our PC have future of living beings.

Transition: So let’s deal with all these misconceptions one by one

Body

Satisfaction step:Protesting main arguments against “living computers” widens and changes our perception of them.

A. Computers have a lot of details, functions of which are similar to the functions of organs. (Example with visual aids)

B. Many forms of life do not have “fundamental physiological futures”, so computers can be rated as having the same level of organization. (Fact about viruses)

C. Today different computer software programs are able to imitate the information flow of life.

1. DNA and binary codes have a lot in common. (Computer function is based on a coded language written with an alphabet of only two letters called “zero” and “one.” The function of living things is also based on a coded language written using a chemical alphabet of only four letters labeled “A, T, G, and C.” The similarity between computers and living things is striking. So far, the only difference between the genetic code of humans and the binary code of computers is the difference in the number of letters used. So, any information about living creatures and computers can be encoded by this languages)

2. Life in computer animated world is not only a science fiction. (Fact about scientific research, “Matrix” )

Transition: To sum up all the mentioned above, we come to the following conclusion

Conclusion

Action step:Now you are aware of the unexpected view upon computers. It suggests that they, in some way, can be considered living creatures. Moreover, this point of view has its logical arguments and regards some theoretical and philosophical questions. In order to learn more about this unusual question you are welcome to search for deeper information on the Internet. Also you are free to ask me right now.