Autore
Gunkel, David J.

Titolo
Nominal Problems: From Artificial Intelligence to Cybernetics
Periodico
Reti, saperi, linguaggi
Anno: 2025 - Volume: 28 - Fascicolo: 2 - Pagina iniziale: 253 - Pagina finale: 261

The act of naming represents a decisive exercise of power, yet the discipline of «artificial intelligence» (AI) is currently undergoing an identity crisis regarding its own moniker. Leading experts have increasingly characterized the term «AI» as a misleading misnomer that creates obstacles to accurate understanding. This essay investigates the historical origins of the term from the 1956 Dartmouth meeting and evaluates recent proposals to rename the discipline using neologisms such as «applied statistics» or «SALAMI». Arguing that these alternatives are insufficient, the author advocates for paleonymy – the reuse of an old name – by proposing a return to «cybernetics». The shift is justified by identifying three distinct advantages: cybernetics focuses on communication and control rather than an ill-defined concept of «intelligence»; it avoids the epistemological «problem of other minds» by decoupling language use from thought; and it rejects human exceptionalism in favor of a holistic, posthuman framework. Ultimately, the essay contends that because the original choice of the phrase «artificial intelligence» was a political strategy to avoid association with Norbert Wiener, it may be prudent to reverse course and reclaim what is called AI as a communication science.



SICI: 2279-7777(2025)28:2<253:NPFAIT>2.0.ZU;2-Y
Testo completo: https://www.rivisteweb.it/download/article/10.12832/119459
Testo completo alternativo: https://www.rivisteweb.it/doi/10.12832/119459

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