[0xdeadbeefbabe]

"Suppose it is the 1890s. Artificial flight is the glamor subject in science, engineering, and venture capital circles." -Intelligence without representation by Rodney Brooks http://people.csail.mit.edu/brooks/papers/representation.pdf

It's accessible, and it's a good intro to thinking about AI. The field oughta be called even more nifty algorithms.

[seanmcdirmid]

Also, see elephants don't play chess:

http://people.csail.mit.edu/brooks/papers/elephants.pdf