As the title suggests, GILA will be a poisonous threat to man and since it certainly qualifies as the predecessor to Skynet, I wonder why there is no EL Vulture trademarked "RoTM" symbol next to the article so humanoids everywhere are warned of our impending doom.

I for one, welcome our self aware silicon overlords.

So how many planes need to slam into each other before it has gathered enough data to work out it's not a good thing?

A mistake doesnt necessarily need to be a catastrophic one - any violation of pre-programmed 'golden rules', such as maintenance of separation could be considered a 'mistake'.

Not really. As far as I can remember it usally is flicked into learning mode, then presented a training set which then calibrates the neural network.

Then it is flipped back into a operating mode, where it no longer learns.

(note: "learning mode", "calibrates" and "operating mode" are probably not the actual names...)

"The company believes that GILA will become a true expert system, able to build up knowledge in a continual process"-and eventually it will realize that it no longer needs it's carbon based handlers.

-insert Terminator2 first scene clip here-

i remember the strange predictions of timothy leary and alain jourgenson [rev-co/ministry/lard/2000hdjs]

from 1993's rev-co hit "Gila Copter" no less

http://www.lyricsmania.com/lyrics/revolting_cocks_lyrics_33341/other_lyrics_64247/gila_copter_lyrics_636231.html

and crashes in sympathy, whenever the French air traffic controllers, or Spanish baggage handlers, go on strike. now thats intelligence .

Gila, as a Malay word, means crazy in English. How apt.

(Why no "Wibble" icon?)

Hum this one sounds even more like the Governator, its trained then sent out to fight in non learning mode, To teach it something new you must cut off it's hair and open its head.......

the end is near......

If they'd put $22M into the ATC as-is, wouldn't that have improved efficiency and improved job security...

Maybe you need to flip into learning mode and re read the article. It's an expert system, not a neural net.

The "Lockheed GILA bigwig" is named Ken Whitebread? If I were an alien cyborg trying to conquer the Earthlings with remotely controlled machine intelligence (and I'm not, I swear), that is exactly the sort of name I would choose to try and blend in with unsuspecting humans.

I wonder what Corbin Dallas would have to say about that.

"YOU HAVE JUST HAD.. AN ACCIDENT!"

"Yes, I know, I know, I just had an accident!"

"YOU HAVE ONE POINT REMAINING ON YOUR LICENSE..."

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Just for anyone who might be bored...

`Those` zealots are going to ruin it for everyone... WTF LETHAL ARMED DRONES?! Smartbombs/Missiles? At a SPORTING event? In the UK? And we are just going to accept this?! Combine this with the absolute scandal that is the ID Card, no, sorry `National Identity Scheme` ..https://secure.wikileaks.org/leak/nis-options-analysis-outcome.pdf And as soon as they can coerce us into it we will be wearing RFID tags, they already offer them on a voluntary basis in the states to `protect your loved one` (VeriChip). Everything about you, what you do, where you are, how much money you have, your transactions, your signature... Accessible on demand by ? Corporations and Government departments.

I dunno... doesn't this `bigger picture` concern anyone? How long now before we have armed (probably private/corporate, who knows, maybe we'll be lucky enough to share Blackwater with the Americans) police patrolling our streets... Unspecified RAF sources describe as "a God's-eye view of the battlefield". (http://www.theherald.co.uk/news/other/display.var.1951327.0.RAF_drones_to_be_used_for_2012_Olympics_security.php)

Interesting...http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eye_of_Providence

'Nuff said.