> So the question is, if a motorcycle or a robodog *simulated* gratitude at the care it received, would that be enough? I still say no, at least for most people -- deep down, you still "know" it's a simulation and not something an actual consciousness is feeling, and that's enough to break the illusion.

If a robodog simulated emotions so well that it was impossible to tell that they were not real (and isn't that the level of sophistication we're talking about?), would it make sense to say that they were not real emotions?

Why would someone "know" that there was a difference between true conciousness and an exact facsimile of it?

Personally, I'm of the opinion that conciousness is a product of a complex processing system, and I don't see why a manufactured computer couldn't eventually be as complex (and thus as concious) as a human brain. I doubt that you're of the same opinion, but even if conciousness is a gift from God, would people truely "know" that the robodog hadn't been so endowed?

wintermute