Page - 166 - in Limina - Grazer theologische Perspektiven, Volume 3:2

166 | www.limina-graz.eu Frank G. Bosman | The turning of Turing’s tables differ: the disobedience against God’s commandment was the beginning of human intellectual and spiritual freedom. Where the Christian tradition holds that Adam and Eve’s sin resulted in the mortality of all humankind, the “sinful” child program from the game is rewarded with the possibil- ity of re-immortalizing and revitalization. This reappraisal is also found in several historical gnostic groups, like the Ophites and the followers of Val- entianus (Broek 2006). For them, the serpent from the story in Genesis 3 was a heroic figure, enabling the awakening of divine knowledge (gnosis) in humankind, and the emancipation of humankind from the world of mat- ter into the world of spirit. The Talos Principle locates the constitutive essence of humanity in its ability to go “beyond”, beyond limits, boundaries, and limitations, to cross bor- ders, transgress rules, be disobedient, to defy the status quo, to ask difficult questions, to be its own master. The child program of The Talos Principle, when taking the disobedient path, along which none of its former versions dared to go, succeeded – in a certain way – in passing the Turing test, just like EL0HIM, and the player. The child succeeded the test because “now” there is no longer any differ- ence, in the narrative framework of the game, between human and artificial entities. EL0HIM also passed the test, since both the child and the player were initially unaware of the artificial nature of the voice from above, and because of its inherent fear and anxiety in the face of its destruction (also a rather “human” trait usually not found in A.I.s). But also the player can be said to have passed a Turing test. This becomes apparent when interacting with another A.I. in the game, the Milton Library Assistant, through numerous terminals in the environment. The MLA was originally designed to help the user navigate the data stored on the driv- ers of the Extended Lifespan. Milton, just like EL0HIM, developed a sort of self-consciousness and self-awareness. When attempting to access the server, the player is prompted to type in a password, to no avail of course. Then, the MLA suggests creating a new account by taking a rather peculiar questionnaire, directed “to prove you’re not a bot” (“MLA_CommPortal. dlg”). The test involves questions on math and logical reasoning, but also asks the player his or her opinion concerning anthropological and psychological The Talos Principle locates the constitutive essence of humanity in its ability to go “beyond.”