Biological,computational and robotic connections with Kant's theory of mathematical knowledge

Abstract

In my research I meander through various disciplines, using fragments of AI that I regard as relevant, willing to learn from anyone whose ideas contribute. This makes me unfit to write the history of European collaboration on some area of AI research as originally intended for this collection. However, by interpreting the topic rather loosely, I can regard some European philosophers who were interested in Philosophy of mathematics as early AI researchers from whom I learnt much, such as Kant and Frege. Hume's work is also relevant. Moreover, more recent work by Annette Karmiloff-Smith, begun in Geneva with Piaget then developed independently, helps to identify important challenges for AI (and theoretical neuroscience), that also connect with philosophy of mathematics and the future, rather than the history, of robotics. So this paper presents an idiosyncratic survey of a subset of AI stretching back in time, and deep into other disciplines, including philosophy, psychology and biology, and possibly also deep into the future.