All the fuss about Deep Blue, the computer, beating chess champion Garry Kasparov is a little silly. It doesn't signal the end of mankind's superiority over machines, nor does it mean giant computers are about to push aside humans as though they were mere pawns - Kasparov's tantrum notwithstanding.
Deep Blue is a machine. It was created by humans. Since the dawn of time, humans have sought to build devices that do things faster and more efficient than they can. The first farmer to lose a milking contest to a machine, whoever he was, had a lot in common with Kasparov. No doubt he tipped over some buckets in disgust on his way out of the barn.Chess is hardly the key to human intelligence. It contains a finite set of potential moves, with each move measurably more or less desirable than others. Computer dominance at the game is significant only because of the extremely large numbers of choices and possible consequences.
But, viewed objectively, Kasparov's loss - and particularly his reaction afterward - is reason for celebration. It proved humans have two things machines never will - emotion and ego. Unlike Kasparov, Deep Blue didn't throw up its RAM chips in disgust and lash out against its opponent when it lost last February.
Admittedly, emotion and ego may have appeared as less-than-admirable traits in Kasparov's rather childish outburst. They nonetheless are assets. Ego and emotion tend to be the driving forces behind most human ambition. Despite its steely efficiency, a computer has no personal initiative; no desire to improve. Both are prerequisites for accomplishing anything noteworthy, let alone taking over the world.
So rest easy. Deep Blue won a game, but humans still rule.