lcp
We have detected you are using Internet Explorer. To provide the best and most secure experience, please use a modern browser as we do not support Internet Explorer.

Are we smarter than machines?

24 February 2015 - A/Prof Stephen Barnett

So, the Theory of Everything won an Oscar yesterday. As a result, I had a great discussion with Dr Malcolm Ireland today (Director of Training at Wentwest). We were discussing Stephen Hawking's recent comment that artificial intelligence will be 'the end of mankind'. 

Malcolm made two great points:

1. Expert systems have historically worked deductively... start with a large amount of information, then try to reduce the number of possibilities through iterative questioning until you arrive at the likely answer. And yet expert humans don't do that. We don't really know how they do it... some call it pattern recognition, or intuition... but a great clinician works in reverse. "A 67 year old man presents with cough, haemoptysis..." and they are already deducing that it may be TB, Ca Lung, acute pneumonia. They then work backwords, hypothesis testing against the likely outcomes, rather than starting with an exhaustive list and testing each one. Maybe that is what it is to master an art. It may be a while before machines are there (but they are getting smarter every day!!)

2. Malcolm also thought that, whilst machines rely on large data stores, so much of that data has been created by humans, is incomplete, is stored in inaccessible places, is not interoperable and is, essentially, human and messy. As a result, machines will have trouble for quite some time becoming highly accurate in some of the 'greyer' areas of human knowledge. In effect, our own human messiness and incompetence may save us yet!!

What do you think? Are the machines coming?...

A/Prof Stephen Barnett
A/Prof Stephen Barnett

Stephen is a GP Supervisor, Medical Educator, GP academic and Medical Director of Medcast. He has completed a PhD on Virtual Communities of Practice in GP Training.

Related Tags
Get Medcast Plus

Become a member and get unlimited access to 100s of hours of premium education.

Learn more
Related News
Business skills: bulk-billing practice incentive program updates

Medcast Medical Education Team

Brand icon

From 1 Nov 2025, the Australian government is making important changes with the Bulk Billing Practice Incentive Program (BBPIP). This FastTrack is a concise summary of how to make the most of the BBPIP, from registration, eligibility considerations, and a step-by-step approach to preparing your practice for the changes.

15 mins READ
Genomics in general practice: the PRECISE path forward

PRECISE Education Team

Brand icon

Explore the PRECISE project and how genomics is shaping general practice, with insights on reproductive screening, general genetic testing, and practical tools to support GPs in everyday care.

20 mins READ
Terminal care: management of anxiety and emesis - clinical fact sheet and MCQ

Medcast Medical Education Team

Brand icon

Two of the four core palliative care medicines are clonazepam and haloperidol, used respectively to manage anxiety and emesis in end-of-life patients. This FastTrack highlights the role of the GP in treating these two common symptoms, focusing on pharmacological strategies. 30mins each of RP and EA CPD available with the quiz.

10 mins READ