Can AI Preserve Your Most Precious Memories? | Pau Aleikum Garcia | TED

譯者: Lilian Chiu 審譯者: Shelley Tsang 曾雯海

A year ago, I was in front of Carmen,

一年前，我在卡門面前，

a 90-year-old woman from Barcelona.

她九十歲，來自巴塞隆納。

I asked her, "Carmen, what is your earliest memory?"

我問她：「卡門，

你最早的記憶是什麼？」

Now, for someone who has almost seen a century unfold,

對於一個幾乎經歷過 一整個世紀的人來說，

this can be a difficult question.

這個問題可能很難回答。

I was half expecting her to say,

我半期待著她會說：

「兒子，我最早的記憶 就是你問我這個問題。」

"Son, my earliest memory is of you asking me this question."

(Laughter)

（笑聲）

但事實是，她最早的 記憶來自 1941 年。

But the truth was that it was from 1941.

She was six years old, and her mother would pay another family

她那時六歲，她的母親 會付錢給另一個家庭，

so they could enter their house and go up to their balcony.

讓他們可以進入這家的房子，

上去他們的陽台。

What was particular about that balcony was that it was facing La Modelo prison.

那個陽台的特別之處在於 它面對著莫德洛監獄。

During that time,

在那段時期，

during the Spanish dictatorship in Spain,

在西班牙獨裁政權統治西班牙 期間，它是政治監獄，

it was a political prison

and her father, a doctor for the antifascist front,

而她的父親

是一位反法西斯陣線的醫生， 就被囚禁在那裡。

was a prisoner there.

So the only way they could see each other

所以他們唯一能見到彼此的唯一辦法

was from that balcony to the window of the prison.

就是從那陽台，遙望監獄的窗戶。

And that was her earliest memory of him.

這是她對他最早的記憶。

Between bars, through that street.

從鐵欄杆之間，看向街道的另一邊。

我問她：「卡門，

I asked her, "Carmen, would you like to have an image of that memory?"

你想要那段記憶的圖像嗎？」

And she said, "Yes, of course.

她說：「當然想要， 我可以讓給我的家人看看

I would love to show to my family what I experienced,

我的經歷，我遇過的事情，

the things that I went through

so they can remember where we all come from."

讓他們能不要忘本。」

And this is how we started this experiment,

我們便開始了這個實驗，

trying to transform a memory into an image,

試圖將記憶轉換為圖像，

in this case using generative AI.

在這種情況下用的 是生成式人工智慧。

首先，我們要創建對記憶的描述，

We started by creating a description of the memory,

a prompt, to say so.

也可以說是提示。

And then Carmen generated tens of images.

接著卡門產生了數十張圖像。

You could see her going through all of them.

她把所有圖像都一張一張看過，

But it was not until she saw these two images

但一直到她看到這兩張圖像，

that something clicked in her.

她才有所反應。

她指著那張圖像，說： 「對，這就是我和我媽媽，

She pointed at the image and said,

"Yes, this is me and my mother on the balcony.

我們在陽台上，我認得這髮型。」

I can see the haircut."

It was as if she had found something long lost.

就好像她找到了遺失很久的東西。

From there we did something else.

我們從那裡著手。

We used that image as a starting point to generate a video,

我們以那張圖像為 起始點來產生影片，

but this time,

但這次，

not only showing her and her mother,

不只呈現出她和她母親，

but also showing her father looking back at them

還呈現出她父親 從街道的另一邊回望。

from the other side of the street.

她看到這一幕時， 好長一段時間沒有出聲。

When she saw it, there was a long silence.

And later she told me that it had been a long time

後來她告訴我，她已經好久沒有

since she had seen an image of her father.

看到她父親的影像了。

And as you can see,

各位可以看到，

these are not factual recreations of the past.

我們並不是要重現過去的事實。

This feels a bit more like dreams, right?

感覺更像夢境，對吧？

And in fact, they are.

事實上，的確是。

They are visualizations based [on] memories

它們是以記憶為基礎的視覺化呈現，

with their imperfections and undefinition.

它們不完美，也有不確定性。

That's how we discovered that blurry, undefined images

這讓我們發現，模糊、不明確的圖像

work much better than hyper-realistic ones

在協助重建記憶方面， 比超逼真的圖像更有效果。

when we are trying to reconstruct memories.

That's why early generative AI models

這就是為什麼早期的 生成式人工智慧模型

work much better than the ultimate state-of-the-art ones.

效果反而優於最先進的終極模型。

It's not the factual accuracy that moves us

打動我們的並不是事實的正確性。

but the emotional truth that we find embedded into some of these systems.

我們在這類系統中發現的 情感真相反而讓我們感動。

And we call this project Synthetic Memories.

我們把這個專案計畫 稱為「合成記憶」。

It's one of the several projects we are doing at Domestic Data Streamers,

這是我們在「國內資料流工作室」 進行的數個專案計畫之一。

a team of researchers, designers and engineers

其成員包括研究人員、 設計師，和工程師，

exploring the impact that generative AI can have in society,

旨在探索生成式人工智慧 能對社會產生什麼影響，

從媒體素養到文化遺產，

going from media literacy to cultural heritage

and of course, memories.

當然，還有回憶。

記憶是建築師，打造出我們的身份。

Now, memories are the architects of our identity, right?

記憶提醒我們我們是誰。

Memories remind us who we are.

And visual memories are very important.

而視覺記憶非常重要。

We all have a picture of someone we love

我們都會把愛人的相片 放在我們的皮夾裡、手機裡、

in our wallet, in our phones,

in our homes.

家裡。

Visual memories shape our sense of self,

視覺記憶會形塑我們的自我意識，

and they can shape our sense of belonging to a specific place.

也會形塑我們對於 特定地方的歸屬感。

They can teach us things from the past.

它們可以讓我們從過去中學習。

因此，

And because of that,

they can actually make us understand in a deeper level

它們可以讓我們更深入了解

how we react to things.

我們對事物的反應。

And like organic memories,

就像有機記憶一樣，有機記憶

which are formed and stored in the human brain,

在人腦中形成並儲存在那裡，

synthetic memories are visual memories from a person's past

合成記憶是針對過往的視覺記憶，

which have been never documented or lost,

從來沒有被記錄下來 或已遺失的記憶，

and that we can now, using gen-AI,

而我們現在可以使用生成式人工智慧

transform from a text or an oral description into an image.

把文字或口頭描述轉換成圖像。

我們會失去視覺記憶 和記憶本身的原因有很多，

Now, there are many reasons why we can lose visual memories

and memories itself,

but the most common one is the one that comes with aging

但最常見的原因是老化所造成的，

and diseases like Alzheimer's or Parkinson's.

以及阿茲海默症 或帕金森氏症等疾病。

I myself have lived through that in my family,

我自己在我的家庭中 也有過這樣的經歷，

and I guess many of you have had similar experiences.

我猜在座也有許多人有類似的經歷。

It's a terrible disease as you not only see the memories fade away,

這種疾病很可怕，因為你不僅會看到

你所愛的人記憶漸漸消逝， 連他們的個性和身分也會不見。

but also the character and the identity of someone that you love.

So two years ago,

因此，兩年前， 我們開始舉辦一些聚會，

we started to create these meetups

to meet people from very different disciplines,

和來自不同領域的人 見面，試圖思考出

trying to figure out how synthetic memories could be used

合成記憶可以如何運用在 不同的社交情境中。

in different social setups.

And then I met David, a social worker in a nursing home.

然後我認識了大衛， 他是在護理之家工作的社工。

He was taking care of a group of Alzheimer’s patients

他那時在照顧一群阿茲海默症患者，

and he was using a therapy called reminiscence therapy.

他使用的療法是回憶療法。

Now, reminiscence therapy is a kind of therapy that uses music

回憶療法會運用

and old photographs from a person's past

病人過往的音樂和舊照，

to trigger these very visceral, emotional memories.

以觸發非常深刻且充滿情感的記憶。

Think of it as kind of lubricating an old rusty lock,

可以把它想像成 幫生鏽的舊鎖上潤滑油，

making it much easier to open the doors of certain forgotten rooms

讓我們更容易打開腦袋中 某些被遺忘的房間。

that we have in our head.

已經證明，對某些人來說，回憶療法

And it has been proven to, for certain people,

help very much in the prevention of depression, of cognitive decay,

對於預防憂鬱及認知衰退 有很大的助益，

and in some cases, even improve cognitive abilities.

在某些情況下，甚至 可以改善認知能力。

So we designed a pilot experiment

因此，我們設計了一個前導試驗，

using synthetic memories within reminiscence therapy.

把合成記憶用在回憶療法中。

And for over two months,

十二名病患接受個別治療 和團體治療，為期超過兩個月，

12 patients did both individual sessions and group therapy.

And we could see a direct relation between the level of engagement

我們發現，他們的投入程度 和認知能力之間有直接關係存在，

and their cognitive abilities,

pointing out that this could not only be a new way of doing therapy,

表示這可能不只 是一種新的治療方式，

but also it could be another way to detect early signs of cognitive decay.

也是偵測出認知退化 早期跡象的另一種方式。

Now, this image was generated with Nuria,

這張圖像是和努莉雅 合作產生出來的，

a 96-year-old woman from a nursing home.

她九十六歲，住在護理之家。

And she was telling me about one of her favorite memories of her husband

她告訴我，她對丈夫的 回憶之中她最喜歡的

was during Sundays,

是星期日時她丈夫 都會在客廳看報紙。

he used to read the newspaper in the living room.

And she will always play this old, jumpy gramophone with some music

而她總是會用斷斷續續的古老 留聲機播放音樂去惹毛他。

just to annoy him.

When she saw the image, she was so happy her eyes [lit] up,

當她看到這張圖像時， 高興到眼睛都亮了起來。

but after a while, she looked at me and she said,

但過了一會兒之後， 她看著我說：「但，保，

"But Pau, we have a problem here.

有個問題。

This man over here is not my husband."

這個男人不是我丈夫。」

And I said, "How come?"

我說：「怎麼可能？」

And she said, half laughing,

她半笑著說：

“Well, my husband was much more ugly.”

「嗯，我丈夫比他醜很多。」

(Laughter)

（笑聲）

[Proving] once again that love is not just blind,

再次證明愛情不僅 是盲目，還是近視的。

but also nearsighted.

(Laughter)

（笑聲）

As you can see, this is far from being a cure of Alzheimer’s,

各位可以看到，這遠不只是 阿茲海默症的療法，

but it could be a way of making the journey a bit less daunting.

也可以讓過程不那麼讓人生畏。

Another patient told me

另一位病患告訴我：「這就有點像

"It feels a bit like finding your glasses on your head

什麼地方都找過了， 結果發現眼鏡就戴在頭上。」

after searching for them everywhere."

It's small but very significant relief.

這種緩解感很小但非常顯著。

And from a medical perspective,

從醫學角度來看，

it could be a new way to temporarily enhance cognitive abilities,

它是種暫時強化認知能力的新方法，

making it much easier for family members

在痛苦或疏離的時刻，

and caregivers in moments of distress or disconnection.

減輕家人和照護者的難受程度。

So the pilot experiment was promising enough

這項前導實驗的前景很看好，

to partner up with the AGE-WELL network here in Canada,

因此加拿大的 AGE-WELL 網路和我們合作，

together with researchers from the University of Toronto

還結合了多倫多大學 及英屬哥倫比亞大學的研究員。

and the University of British Columbia.

And during this summer,

今年夏天我們會探索 並設計一個倫理架構，

we will be exploring and designing an ethical framework

to protect both family members and patients,

來保護家人及病人，

as well as comparing this therapy to other therapeutic interventions

並將這種療法與其他 介入治療方式做比較，

and exploring how we can make it truly accessible

並探討如何讓世界各地的家庭 及機構都能很容易取得使用。

for both families and institutions all over the world.

But as you can imagine, synthetic memories

但是，

可以想像，合成記憶和這個專案計畫 不只能應用在失智症研究上。

and this project can go beyond the research on dementia.

我們去失視覺記憶的原因還有許多。

There are many other reasons why we can lose visual memories.

There is the loss that comes from sudden displacement due to war,

比如這些情況都會： 戰爭造成的流離失所、

political persecution, or natural disasters.

政治迫害，或天然災害。

Situations in which our photo albums,

在這些情況下， 我們的相簿、硬碟、手機、

hard drives, phones, diaries can be lost,

日記都可能會遺失、 受損，或沒能一起帶走。

damaged or just left behind.

Synthetic memories is a way

透過合成記憶這種方式

to recover a part of this past heritage that have been lost

可以協助找回一部分 這種已經遺失的過往遺產，

and that right now is at risk of being forgotten.

如果不這麼做， 就有可能會遺忘它們。

It's a new way of reconstructing a past that has been hidden to our eyes.

有些過去我們看不見，但這種 新方式可以把它們重建出來。

Now, soon we will open the first public office

我們很快就會設立一間公共辦公室，

for visual memory reconstruction in the city of Barcelona,

位在巴塞隆納，在市議會支持下 處理視覺記憶重建的相關事務。

with the support of the city council.

The idea is to make a city-scale experiment,

想法是要進行一項城市規模的實驗，

a place where any citizen will be able to generate their own memories,

讓任何市民都可以產生自己的記憶，

to reconstruct a part of their past together in community,

同心協力重建他們過去的一部份，

understanding which are the subjectivities of the past

了解哪些是不同族群 在過去的主觀經歷。

from different communities.

不久前，社工大衛 把這張圖像傳給我，

This image was sent to me not long ago by David, the social worker,

and he did it with a dementia patient

這是他幫一位失智症病人做的，

that for very long time had not spoken with his daughter.

這位病人很久沒和他的女兒說話了。

They were in kind of bad terms,

父女之間的關係不是很好，

and he told David that he was terrified about horses,

他告訴大衛，他很怕馬，

but because his daughter loved them,

但因為他的女兒很愛馬， 他會帶她去騎馬，

he would bring her to ride every week during her childhood.

在她小時候，每週都去。

And he asked David to generate this image of both of them riding

他請大衛生成這張父女兩人 在夢幻的景色中騎馬的圖像。

in this kind of dreamy landscape.

This was not a memory, this never happened.

這不是記憶，這從未發生過。

It was a remembrance.

這是個紀念。

It was a way that he wanted to remember his daughter.

他想用這種方式記住他的女兒。

With his permission,

得到他的允許後，大衛 將這張圖像寄給他的女兒，

David sent this image to his daughter,

who, because of that,

在將近十年完全不與彼此交談 之後，他的女兒因為這張圖像

after almost ten years without speaking to each other,

回到巴塞隆納，跟他再次開啟對話。

came back to Barcelona to speak back to him.

Afterwards, she told David that when she saw the image,

後來，她告訴大衛， 當她看到那張圖像時，

she realized that her father still had good memories of her.

她意識到她的父親 對她仍然抱持著美好的記憶。

我們知道圖像可以作為世界的見證，

An image can work as a witness to the world, we know that,

but it can also change the way we see it.

但它也能改變我們對世界的看法。

We have now tools that can help us understand a time that was not ours.

現在有工具可以幫助我們 了解不屬於我們的時代。

Experiences from others that have never been shown in images

了解他人從未用影像 展示出來的經歷，

and bridge realities that were hidden to our eyes.

並連接我們看不見的現實。

Montserrat Roig, a beloved Catalan writer,

蒙特塞拉特‧羅伊格是一位 受人喜愛的加泰羅尼亞作家，

once wrote (speaking in Spanish).

他曾經寫過（西語）。

"If there is an act of love, that is to remember."

「如果有什麼行為是愛的 行為，那就是『記住』。」

And that is truly my hope.

我真心希望如此。

That we all get the opportunity to love

讓我們都有機會用這種方式 去愛人以及被愛。

and be loved in that way.

Thank you very much.

非常謝謝。

(Applause)

（掌聲）