Posted on 04/22/2006 3:47:09 PM PDT by Dark Skies
Ray Kurzweil, an inventor and futurist, has stumbled on a discovery of earth-shattering importance. It is the arrival of "singularity," and according to him it will happen in 2045.
"Gradually," he writes at the beginning of "The Singularity Is Near," "I've become aware of a transforming event looming in the first half of the 21st century the impending Singularity in our future is increasingly transforming every institution and aspect of human life, from sexuality to spirituality."
Singularity, Kurzweil says, is a development "representing a profound and disruptive transformation in human capability" and a "radical upgrading of our bodies' physical and mental systems."
(Excerpt) Read more at latimes.com ...
On the other hand, He might find a post-singularity civilization more interesting to hang out with. People talk to their dogs more often than their goldfish.
It's just another way of reframing the Cartesian dilemma. Whatever the case may be, my personal view is that indefinite lifespans will come around before total upload is possible, so the question is largely moot. As for total upload, there will probably be a merging of man & machine by increments anyhow, so when it finally comes along it won't seem like such a leap.
PS. I'm not saying everyone will undergo said merging. Perhaps even only a select number of technophiles. Whatever the case, there will probably be Luddites who will resist such technologies for a very long time to come.
I agree. Surely you must agree that the more we know, the more we appreciate our God and Father.
Knowledge is a good thing, a positive thing, and more is better. If there is to be a singularity, I have no doubt as to who led us there.
Whatever. People have been whining about technological advance for as long as I can remember, yet they still seem to stampede to the local WalMart or Best Buy every time The Next Big Thing comes along....
LOL I'm sure they thought the same thing at the Tower of Babel.
I don't think that "exponentially increasing intelligence would somehow lead us away from God"...I think that exponentially increasing intelligence will clarify the eternal fork in the road. One way leads to self and egoism...and the other leads to Love.
And to our Creator.
And BTW, thx for your service to our Country!!!
The dude is looony tooons. Well, not really. He's making a mint. Snake oil still sells in many guises. This is one of them.
This just gets better all the time. Let's just hope the Luddites don't become such a nuisance that they become eligible for the Third Reich treatment.
No way! There was "Grand Illusion", "Blue Collar Man", and "Foolin' Yourself."
I will admit that when the album "Cornerstone" ("Babe", etc) was released, it was all over.
I wish I had your confidence that Singularity Intelligence, if and when it arrives, will even tolerate human thought patterns.
Apparently he did actual work in fields such as OCR once upon a time.
His current stuff is pure gibberish new age type snake oil song and dance.
Not harmfull (generally) but not to be taken seriously.
He's gotta eat, can't begrudge him.
Question: How can I join the Amish community and become an Amish person?Answer: Anyone can live in an Amish community by simply moving to where the Amish live in a specific area. If a person wants to join the Amish church, the person must move to an Amish community, live there for a length of time (which could be years), accepting the Amish and the Amish accepting you (it is really a mutual issue), being willing to live within the rules of the Church (Ordnung). To become a member of the Amish church requires a genuine religious commitment which is much more than just moving to an Amish community and living the Plain lifestyle of not using electricity, cars, telephones, etc.
Get back to me whenever you call to get your power switched off. Oh, wait....
That aside, why can't the Singularity be partitioned off for a while? Just to see if everything is working and it doesn't decide to turn the Earth into computronium or worse? Why this all or nothing scenerio?
Could be worse...
Things won't happen overnight. It's not as if we're gonna wake up tomorrow and "the Singularity" will be upon us. There should be plenty of time to get things more or less right. If someone is stupid enough to build SkyNet, then oh well: Sucks to be us! :)
But for the record, if it all comes down to it, I for one will welcome our new supercyborg overlords, and then hopefully they'll let me join them. :p
"The Singularity" is not a specific object or event. But you're certainly right that any potentially world-changing technology should be extremely well tested before widespread release.
Just to see if everything is working and it doesn't decide to turn the Earth into computronium or worse?
Depending on the specifics, that could be a good thing...
It's possible. Once nanotech is under the direction of AI anything could happen. Exponentially increasing matter transformation. It might not even be the Singularity, just "dumb" self-replicating robotic devices birthed in an average 2025 industrial park, bulldozing your house and neighborhood without warning to make way for the next robot factory.
Check out the "grey-goo scenerio" and the novel "Blood Music".
All I know about Kurzweil is that I've got his keyboard, and he can't have it back.
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