The argument has been raised by a number of people that there is no way to determine whether a computer is conscious, that there is no companion to the Turing test to do so. Here is one idea. An entity is conscious if it defecates. By my definition
defecation is the elimination of solid waste, not just off gassing as might be said of trees and plants. Insects would qualify as defecators but machines (computers) would not. While machines consume energy, so does everything in the cosmos, even rocks
when they heat up, or black holes when they absorb anything that passes into their event horizon. Energy consumption is not a distinguishing characteristic of anything. To take a page out of the O.J. Simpson trial, if it shits it fits.
This distinction has no moral implications, at least not for me. It does not oblige me to respect the consciousness of insects, nor does it oblige me to eradicate them. It is silent on the matter.
Bob Meyerson

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