Algorithms & Endeavors

Do all of our endeavors lend themselves to be described as algorithms, or do some of them not fit into an algorithm?

I believe that everything happens for a reason. I believe in sciences and try to apply laws of science while analyzing everything. Sometimes it doesn't make sense to do so maybe, especially in relationships, but some other times you would be surprised of the patterns and algorithms that you discover, be it by coincidence or on purpose, that applies in similar situations.

Enough about me lets go a bit scientific. I believe to answer such question, one must think of its consequences. If all our endeavors can be lent to be described as algorithms, and algorithms can be programmed, then we will be admitting that computers will reach a stage at which they can have the same intelligence as humans and therefore passing the Turing test.
For this to happen, lots of issues are to be solved including but not limited to: Natural Language Processing, Knowledge Representation,…
Therefore the question is really if computers will ever be as smart as humans? Here I have to refer to what Alan Turing says: “We can only see a short distance ahead, but we can see plenty there that needs to be done” (Turing, n.d.).
If I am asked to answer with yes or no, I have to say yes. It is our job (scientists) to make this happen. I know it is not in the near future, but it is not that far away. Just think of the fact that people dreamt about studying in a virtual classroom some ten years ago, while today it seems like a normal result of the technology evolution.

Going back to the main question, it is illogical to say that some things cannot be lent to be described as algorithms. If this was the case, then there are things that happen for no reason or better say no “known” reason. If the reasoning is not obvious now, doesn’t mean it doesn’t exist. It is mainly because of the shortcomings of our knowledge of the world that some things cannot be explained.
Digging deeper into this thought, I researched in order to find some unanswered questions or endeavors that cannot be related to an algorithm in any field. I found lots. Most of these, however, were related to mathematics, medicine, religion, and surely computer science. My thought on this is as follows: mathematics, medicine and computer science are fields that still are evolving and therefore it is a normal thing to find such. In other words, algorithms will be found sooner or later. As for religion, it seems a bit more difficult to categorize with others. It is maybe the field which is most controversial.

Miracles! Can you explain miracles? How Jesus gave life back to one of the people as mentioned in the bible? How the Prophet Mohammed “disappeared” or was drawn up to heavens? Lots of these questions started popping up.
Well, I am also a believer and I think some things are not meant to be discovered. Some mighty power, known as “GOD” to most, has the answers to such questions and only time will reveal how much more are humans allowed to evolve.

In short, I believe in algorithms controlling even the simplest interaction in the world. All uncovered “mysteries” will someday be simple facts. After all, “without mysteries, life would be very dull indeed. What would be left to strive for if everything were known?” (Lint, n.d.)

References:

1. Turing Alan (n.d.) Alan Turing Quotes [Online] Available from: http://thinkexist.com/quotes/alan_turing/

2. De Lint Charles (n.d.) Charles de Lint Quotes [Online] Available from: http://thinkexist.com/quotes/charles_de_lint/