An Essay Concerning Machine Understanding

For the future

If you hit the paywall and can’t afford it use this! ❤️

John Locke’s seminal work, “An Essay Concerning Human Understanding,” laid the foundational principles of Empiricism by proposing that all knowledge originates from sensory experience and that the mind begins as a “tabula rasa” or blank slate. This concept profoundly influenced the scientific method and technological advancement. But how does this 336-year-old philosophical premise hold up in the dawn of synthetic intelligence?

Challenging the Blank Slate Theory

Locke’s “blank state” assumption (an strict interpretation of it) has been progressively challenged by our growing understanding of biological and cognitive processes. Even before the advent of artificial intelligence, we can recognize that humans — and indeed all living organisms — are born with inherent, pre-programmed knowledge.

Consider the remarkable capabilities of different species:

• Horses emerge from the womb capable of walking and running within hours
• Sea turtles navigate vast oceanic distances using innate navigational mechanisms, and walk towards the ocean almost immediately after hatching.
• Newborn humans instinctively know…