Questioning the Turing Test

I think the Turing Test is NOT a reliable way to test intelligence, as intelligence is so much more than being able to respond to what someone is saying. As I learned when I was working with Python, it is easy to program a computer to respond to a set of commands. While it is impressive that some contemporary programs are able to adapt to different conversational prompts, the ability to communicate exclusively does not dictate how we measure intelligence. Several factors must be taken into consideration.

What classifies intelligence? I think the primary litmus test must be considering what makes humans intelligent. What makes us superior to animals? Besides the presence of opposable thumbs, the ability to create makes us intellectually superior to most animals. There will always be arguments to this assertion (like that elephant who paints). However, en masse, most animals have not proven the ability to create in the same way humans have. In addition, I believe some animals have displayed a less intellectual level of creativity and imagination. For example, I have four large dogs at home in Arizona. If you watch any of them sleep, you can see them act out their dreams: paws twitch, snouts growl and whimper, etc. As far as I know, no artificial intelligence has demonstrated an ability to create, dream, etc, an essential part of measuring intelligence in my opinion.

There is also something to be said for emotional intelligence. Sure the Turing Test measures a program's ability to respond and communicate with other humans, but can these programs emote? You could argue that there are plenty of bachelor's that cannot emote so surely this cannot be a measurement of intelligence. However all of humanity has emotional potential, the diversity of experiences in our lives is what determines how we maximize this potential. Computer programs on the other hand, do not have this kind of potential and therefore do not have emotional intelligence. Both emotional and creative intelligence must be acknowledged in determine what programs do or do not have intelligence.