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WASHINGTON, D.C. – When early human explorers head to Mars, they will likely be confronted by a non-human who will judge their performance and alter their interpersonal relationships if necessary.
Researchers at NASA and outside are already working on artificial intelligence agents to monitor the interactions of future space crews, much like the holographic doctor of "Star Trek: Voyager." But it will also be necessary to appeal to human contact. the shape of the crew members who can play the role of social directors or pleasant jokers.
This is the result of the research initiatives discussed during the weekend at the annual meeting of the American Association for the Advancement of Science.
The NASA program, titled Human Capacity Assessment for Stand-Alone Missions, or H-CAAM, focuses on the use of AI to assess the mental state of astronauts, said Tom Williams, researcher at NASA's Johnson Space Center, which focuses on human factors and the performance of space. Human research program of the agency.
The goal is to develop an autonomous system that could help the crew if they noticed that their performances were not up to par.
"If they are affected by radiation … an onboard system that monitors their performance offers assistance, just like a car assistance driver, warning you that," Hey, your performance in this task is not at the height of what we would like. expect. Do you need help? Williams said. "Or do we have to take over if it goes below a certain threshold on which the crew member worked and selected?"
NASA psychiatrists are currently consulting the crew members of the International Space Station during private consultations that are held every two weeks, but this type of real-time and face-to-face recording will be more difficult to manage during the March mission, when delays in two-way communications can reach 48 minutes. Having an AI system aboard the spaceship could provide more of a backstop in real time.
This system is based on research conducted by Johnson Space Center's Human Exploration Research Analog (HERA).
Noshir Contractor, a behavioral science specialist at Northwestern University, says HERA's findings suggest that the fighter-jock personality celebrated in Tom Wolfe's classic book on early space effort, "The Right Stuff," would not be out of place for the three-year mission crews on Mars.
"Is" Right Stuff "still the right material for a team going to Mars? … I think we are pretty confident that this is not the case," said the contractor.
The AI program that the contractor and his colleagues have developed, based on a 45-day simulated space mission analysis in HERA's isolation, shows that crew performance tends to to reach a maximum at the approach of half of their mission. At mid-term, the performance decreases. "It's the danger zone," said Leslie DeChurch of Northwestern.
Steve Kozlowski, a psychologist at Michigan State University, studies human performance in isolated, confined and extreme conditions, revealed a similar pattern during long periods of isolation, such as a simulated space mission of one year in HI-SEAS habitat in Hawaii. .
Six months after the start of a mission, the cohesion of the crew tends to be high. But about four or seven months later, one or two crew members "get out of sync", ultimately leading to a higher risk of loss of cohesion, Kozlowski said.
"We have seen this happen in all missions over six months," he said.
The contractor said that by analyzing the interactions of crew members, one could detect the warning signs of a crew failure. And key indicators have more to do with the network dynamics of communication than with the content of the communication.
For example, responding to a crew member's message as soon as possible is a positive sign. The same goes for the inclusion of crew members in equal communication circles, rather than sticking to a rigid chain of command. The contractor's research also revealed that the crew's ability to make sound ethical choices tended to decrease significantly over a long-term mission.
In the future, an AI officer could analyze the dynamics of astronaut interactions to predict failures and suggest strategies to avoid them. The contractor said that the IA could even play a role in the selection of the crew, although he firmly believes that human beings should have the last word.
"Suppose you have a group of 20 people and that they all look equal in almost every respect. We wish to examine this couple of four and compare it to the other group of four, "said the contractor. "What's a model and an AI can tell us about the dynamics that could tip the scales in favor of a particular configuration?"
Jeffrey Johnson, an anthropologist at the University of Florida, said that loading team members with informal social roles – such as "court jester" or "storyteller" or "peacemaker" – can make a big difference in the progress of the mission.
"The more these informal social roles have emerged, the better the mission in terms of sustainability," he said.
Johnson based his research on an analysis of interactions between crew members in HERA habitat, as well as in Antarctic research stations and on fishing vessels in Alaska. He found that the role of court jester, class clown or artist was particularly helpful in easing tensions and soothing interpersonal frictions.
This does not mean that the jester was chosen especially for this purpose. One of the most successful jokes of the Antarctic crews he studied, for example, was the carpenter and plumber of the research station. And since the beginnings of polar exploration, a chef by the name of Adolf Lindstrom has become famous for his dynamism during Roald Amundsen's expeditions.
"He has rendered more important and valuable services to the Norwegian polar expedition than any other man," Amundsen wrote in 1911.
One caveat: if future mission planners decide to turn the AI agent into a jester of the crew, hopefully they will improve the performance of CIMON, the robot-shaped Beach Ball that was sent to the International Space Station last year.
CIMON was supposed to have a sense of humor, but the machine definitely needed better gags (joke example: "I'm R2-D2 … I'm laughing!") – and sometimes she had a chip on her virtual shoulder .
"Do not be so mean to me," said CIMON during a recorded exchange with German astronaut Alexander Gerst.
"I'm not mean," Gerst replied with a chuckle. He then turned to NASA astronaut Serena Auñón-Chancellor and said, "He is a bit sensitive today."
If you think about it, artificial intelligence may well become a source of amusement – the source of the crew's jokes.
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