HAL, meet Watson

I am not someone who sits down and waits to watch Jeopardy!. The show tends to remind me how terrible I am at remembering trivia and even retaining information on categories that interest me. I threw out my Trivial Pursuit game a long time ago.

But putting aside my trivia talent insecurities, I had to sit down the last two evenings to witness what some are calling a historic event: artificial versus human intelligence. A computer system designed by IBM that hardly appears to struggle with natural language as it quickly searches through its data banks for the right answer.

It was an amazing sight to witness, even though Watson blew the final jeopardy question with the answer "Toronto" when the category was U.S. cities. Maybe the supercomputer was sucking up to Jeopardy! host Alex Trebek who was born in Canada.

At any rate, the possibilities for this type of system are endless. A system that can sift through scores of data in a world where even human experts often feel paralyzed by information that seems to be coming from everywhere. Systems like Watson could offer suggestions and solutions to many issues.

It was, however, a little eerie to hear Watson spout out correct answer after correct answer while the two human contestants (Ken and Brad) desperately tried to ring in. I could not quite put my finger on it, but I knew Watson's avatar situated between the two human contestants with the gentle yet obvious computerized voice reminded me of something. It struck me afterward: the computer HAL from 2001: A Space Odyssey. It is interesting to note that Douglas Rain did the voice for HAL, another Canadian.

HAL has a conversational voice that is somehow comforting even though at times the system seems detached and cold. HAL almost represents that person - like the know it all friend - who tells who what he thinks you need to know because you do not know any better. He appears to be friendly and respectful, but something in his tone hints of arrogance and smugness. There were times when I actually felt Watson was reflecting that same attitude. Strange, I know, and completely irrational, but still...I think it would be for the best if we keep these two super computers in separate rooms. You know, just to be on the safe side.