AustLit

'The Oxford dictionary defines the word ‘sentient’ as ‘having the power of perception by the senses.’ This is the truest definition of the word, but in recent years it has come to mean much more.

'Sentience is often taken to mean consciousness and subjective perception, not merely of the senses. In science fiction, sentience is an essential human quality, the ability to think and reason independently – the trait that separates us from robots. This trait would more correctly be described as ‘sapience,’ which essentially means wisdom, judgment and intelligence, but the words are used interchangeably and for the purposes of this site, we are referring to the meaning behind both.

'Shades of Sentience explores just that – our world and all the different levels of perception and experience with which it is perceived. Animals, humans and artificial intelligence – how do the lines blur, what do we share and how are we different?

'From this framework we present to you articles and fiction that explore this wide and interesting world. And in the process, we try to go past what is expected to reveal all the strange, beautiful oddities of existence. We will look at the most unusual theories and controversial ideas, and in doing so reveal some things to be possible that we thought only existed in science fiction and mythology.'

Source: Shades of Sentience (http://sentientonline.net/). (Sighted: 3/7/2013)