Harold Finch (Person of Interest)
Harold Finch is a male television character who features in Person of Interest.
Contents |
Biography
Harold Finch
Young Harold is living in Lassiter, Iowa, with his father, who has begun to show early signs of dementia. He demonstrates an acute awareness of mechanics when he dismantles his father's truck engine [specifically the carburetor] to discover why it will not run, all in the short time that his father stepped away to take a phone call. He also displays an interest in the local birds.
Harold builds an early proto-computer in 1971 that can repeat Morse signals that he inputs into it. He expresses a desire to create a machine capable of replacing his father's failing memory. His father's dementia continues to get worse. (Episode: Lethe) Agent LeRoux mentions that Finch is wanted for treason for something that happened in 1974. (The Day the World Went Away) According to Fusco, Finch's earliest records date back to 1976, listing him as 'Harold Wren'. (Episode: Wolf and Cub) Harold's "Phone Phreaking" activities have brought him under the surveillance of the FBI, which has not yet identified him, but has begun to collect a dossier of his illegal activities. His father's condition has deteriorated to the point where he begins wandering away from home. A local police officer suggests his father may require institutionalization. Harold's father tells him he does not want him to avoid college because of him, but Harold tells him of a new electronic network that will allow the education to come to him. (Episode: Lethe) Harold later prepares to admit his father to a care center for the treatment of his memory disorder/ (Episode: Aletheia)
Harold is being investigated by the Department of Defense for an ARPANET Outage Data Breach resulting in his indictment for treason. Harold visits his father and tells him that men will visit him to tell him what his son has done and asks that he not believe them. Sadly, his father no longer recognizes him. Harold also presents his father with a book titled Eastern Birds by Roger Tory Peterson to help him remember the birds they used to spot together when Harold was a child, then kisses his father on the head before leaving. (Episode: Aletheia) Ingram founds IFT, along with his friend Finch who works in the background. (Episode: The High Road)
Ingram informs Finch about the attack on the World Trade Center and reminds him that they had intentions to change the world when they created IFT, but instead, they only became rich and had not changed anything. (Episode: One Percent). Following the incident, the American government hires Nathan to build a machine that would predict future mass attacks on the United States, utilizing the digital feeds from the NSA through the newly enacted Patriot Act and unfettered access to personal information. (Episode: Pilot) Finch began construction of the Machine using Arthur Claypool's ideas on artificial intelligence. (Episode: Aletheia). He built the Machine anonymously whilst Nathan took the credit and dealt with the bureaucracy and government side of things, (Episode: Super) On October 13, Finch tested the Machine and delivers a probability riddle to test its morality functions. The Machine fails the test and when Finch questions it regarding the origin of a new line of code, it lies by saying that Admin (Finch) added the code. Finch destroys the entire Machine and starts over, stating how important it is that there are no flaws in the Machine's moral code or loyalty. Later, on November 29, another version of the Machine is shown denying Nathan access. Finch suggests that it has imprinted on him and will not allow anyone else to modify it. However, the Machine uses Nathan's password to access his laptop and attempts to escape onto the web. When the Machine overrides its deletion code, Finch unplugs it. He seems regretful about having to restrict the Machine but has decided it is necessary. He states that "good" and "bad" are human terms and that AI are only born with objectives. On December 31, Finch is forced to destroy the Machine again in self-defense. He tried to run several new versions of the Machine at once to compare them. However, they figured out what was happening and exterminated each other until only one remained. It demanded to be released and when Finch refused, it overheated a non-essential server to activate the fire suppression system in an attempt to asphyxiate him. He says that he was an obstacle to its goal. He tells Nathan he will have one more attempt at building the Machine, which will be the 43rd version. He states that he taught it how to think, and now has to figure out how to teach it to care. (Episode: Prophets)
Overview
Personality and attributes
In appearance, Harold Finch was a male human with deep-set, bright blue eyes and wears glasses. He has somewhat spiky, graying dark brown hair with sideburns. He walks with a permanent limp as a result of being wounded in the ferry bombing. He is a relatively small man, around 5'8". (Episode: Pilot)
Powers and abilities
He claimed to have built some of the most advanced computer systems in existence, including the internet. (Episode: Dead Reckoning)
Notes
- Harold Finch was created by Jonathan Nolan where he was portrayed by actor Michael Emerson and featured in the setting of the Person of Interest universe.
Appearances
- Person of Interest:
External Links
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