EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW • 人物專訪 2022 UMAGAZINE 26 • 澳大新語 57 the Time of Oxymora: A Synaesthesia in Language, Logic and Law (published by Routledge), since there remain serious doubts whether machines can be considered ‘intelligent’. Other examples of oxymora include ‘Death brings life’ from The Art of War and ‘honourable villain’ from Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet. Prof Neuwirth points out that oxymora are an integral part of everyday discourse, but people are rarely aware of the subtle influence that these widely used forms of rhetoric may have on their thinking. From Prof Neuwirth’s observation, there have been a growing number of concepts consisting of such opposite propositions, such as the way that ‘sustainable development’ denotes change and not-change at the same time. In the legal field, the boundaries between opposing terms or concepts are difficult to clarify through legal reasoning in cases involving oxymora (e.g. the use of the term ‘real fakes’ to describe counterfeit products produced during night shifts in the original factories). Therefore, there is a need to find a more appropriate language for communication, which will help to create common understanding between lawyers and members of other professions as well as citizens in general. ‘From the perspective of cognitive linguistics, if two opposite propositions can be combined into a concept that is matched in reality, the law must adapt to the situation,’ says Prof Neuwirth. This view challenges the legal tradition of dualism, or the way people perceive the difference between justice and injustice, lawful and unlawful, and right and wrong. In addition to insight into law and linguistics, Prof Neuwirth has a wealth of knowledge about legal topics such as the World Trade Organization (WTO) and regional trade law, transnational law, business law in the BRICS countries, intellectual property law and the creative economy, global justice and the creative economy, and European Union trade law. He has published three monographs, three co-edited books, 37 book chapters, as well as 44 academic articles in internationally influential journals such as the Journal of International Economic Law, the International Journal for the Semiotics of Law, the European Journal of Development Research, and the International Journal of Cultural Policy. Studying Law from a Global Perspective Prof Neuwirth became interested in oxymora 20 years such as brain–computer interfaces, functional magnetic resonance imaging, robotics, and big data, allows for ‘mind reading’ or ‘dream hacking’ through brain spyware, while external stimuli received below the threshold of awareness can secretly manipulate the human mind and alter human behaviour. ‘AI will be used in many different scenarios in the future. We must guard against the possibility of the manipulation of thought and behaviour through legal means,’ says Prof Neuwirth. The formulation of a legal framework for AI also involves disciplines such as computer science, neuroscience, sociology, political science, marketing, and psychology. In the process of writing his book, Prof Neuwirth took advantage of the interdisciplinary platform provided by UM’s Institute of Advanced Studies in Humanities and Social Sciences to exchange ideas with experts from different disciplines at the university. ‘I was lucky to be able to learn about the different perspectives of my colleagues towards AI through the institute. One person cannot really cover all the challenges facing the regulation of AI development and application. We are all in the same boat,’ says Prof Neuwirth. Challenging Dualism in Law AI is an oxymoron or a ‘contradiction in terms’ as described by Prof Neuwirth in his 2018 book Law in 《矛盾修辭時代的法律：語言、邏輯和法律之間的通感》 Law in the Time of Oxymora: A Synaesthesia in Language, Logic and Law
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