The assumption underneath

The proposal treated intelligence as something people could describe precisely.

In that view, you build a mind by working out what it does and writing the procedure down. Find the procedure and you have found the thing.

That approach works when the necessary steps can be stated clearly. A calculator can follow written instructions for arithmetic because people know the procedure.

Many early AI systems used related approaches. People wrote procedures for searching possible moves, manipulating symbols, or making decisions in a narrow setting.

Written procedures work well when people can state the necessary steps. They are a poor fit when people can perform a skill but cannot describe every step.

The assumption underneath

The proposal treated intelligence as something people could describe precisely.

In that view, you build a mind by working out what it does and writing the procedure down. Find the procedure and you have found the thing.

That approach works when the necessary steps can be stated clearly. A calculator can follow written instructions for arithmetic because people know the procedure.

Many early AI systems used related approaches. People wrote procedures for searching possible moves, manipulating symbols, or making decisions in a narrow setting.

Written procedures work well when people can state the necessary steps. They are a poor fit when people can perform a skill but cannot describe every step.