Ich bin ein Singularitarian

1
Ich bin ein Singularitarian

• Chapter 7.
• The Singularity is Near.
• Ray Kurzweil.
• ISBN 0-670-03384-7.

2
The Singularity

• Future period.
• Pace of technological change very rapid.
• Human life will be irreversibly changed.

3
Singularitarian Definition.

• One who understands the Singularity.
• Has reflected upon it in his/her own life.

4
George Gilder Kurzweil Critic

• Singularity is a substitute vision
• For those who have lost faith
• In traditional religious belief.

5
Kurzweils Vision.

• We have the means to live forever.
• Reprogram biochemistry with food supplements.
• Body keeps rebuilding itself.
• Should try to optimize health.

6
Kurzweils Vision.

• Should optimize body as cyborgs.
• Only technology can solve our problems.
• All knowledge is precious
• music, art, science, technology.
• Information is not knowledge.

7
Kurzweils Vision.

• Death is a tragedy.
• Primary role of religion rationalize death.

8
Kurzweils Vision.

• Purpose of life greater order (negentropy).
• Promulgation of human order
• to solar system and beyond.
• Ideas can solve almost any problem.
• Technology leverages itself.

9
Consciousness.

• Respect for Consciousness of Others.
• Basis for ethics, morality, law.
• Silicon consciousness.

10
What is consciousness?

• Cannot ignore consciousness.
• We assume it in humans
• perhaps in complex machines.
• No objective test of consciousness.
• Can measure correlates,
• not consciousness itself.
• Emergent property vs specific mechanism.
• Paradox of self-reference.

11
What is identity?

• Not just the physical body
• Body keeps rebuilding itself.
• Theseus ship problem.
• Oneself vs copy of oneself.

12
Singularity as Transcendence.

• Silicon consciousness.
• Simple machines are not conscious.
• Greater intelligence, beauty, creativity,....
• Universe exists it will wake up.

13
Ich bin kein Singularitarian.

• Positive features.
• Well-written.
• Well-indexed.
• Well-referenced.
• Lots of web references.

14
Bill Moores Singularity.

• Previous period.
• Pace of technological change very rapid.
• Human life will be irreversibly changed.
• Examples
• Agriculture. Writing. Printing press.
• Telegraph. Computer. Photocopy.

15
Bill Moores Singularity.

• Even thousand-year-old technologies
• are still not available to all.
• We have the resources to end hunger,
• but hunger is still with us.

16
Bill Moores Singularity.

• We do NOT have the means to live forever.
• Ps 9010. The days of our lives are
• but threescore and ten....
• Vitamins are great, but not a cure-all.
• Change our bodies at will
• foreign body reaction.
• Some knowledge is expensive and dangerous.

17
Bill Moores Singularity.

• We agree death is a tragedy.
• Immortality (forget Malcolm Muggeridge)
• What if we all lived forever?
• Can the earth support 3 annual population
  increase?
  
• Ideas, like potato chips, are wonderful.
• One leads to another.
• God I am that am. Unnamable.

18

• Ray Kurzweil is a snake-oil salesman.