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That is interesting. Honestly I can see the argument for us being in the singularity but if the definition is a point in time which one computer that costs 1,000 dollars is a billion times more intelligent then all the humans on the planet today combined we are not there yet. I do think we are so close that we are "caught in the gravitational pull" so being in the event horizon could be a good way to describe where we currently are.
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Well, there seems to be several definitions of the "Singlarity" including extrapolating Moores Law re: the progress of computers. But even there, no one has yet demonstrated what "consciousness" is, let alone how any computer, no matter how "fast" or "powerful", will ever be able to emulate it.
Though I mostly like the definition first coined by mathematician John von Neumann back in the 50's, as the "ever accelerating progress of technology and changes in the mode of human life, which gives the appearance of approaching some essential singularity in the history of the race, beyond which human affairs, as we know them, could not continue."
And by any estimation (lifespan, sexuality, human rights, medical advances, economics, warfare, whatever...), human affairs are no longer continuing as we have ever known them!
Good point. When people talk about 2045 they are using the definition that the singularity is when 1 computer that costs a 1,000 dollars is as intelligent as all the humans on the planet today combined.
There is disagreement on the date though.
This is from Wiki:
The technological singularity is the theoretical emergence of superintelligence through technological means. Since the capabilities of such intelligence would be difficult for an unaided human mind to comprehend, the technological singularity is seen as an occurrence beyond which events cannot be predicted. Proponents of the singularity typically state that an "intelligence explosion", where superintelligences design successive generations of increasingly powerful minds, might occur very quickly and might not stop until the agent's cognitive abilities greatly surpass that of any human. The term was popularized by science fiction writer Vernor Vinge, who argues that artificial intelligence, human biological enhancement, or brain-computer interfaces could be possible causes of the singularity. The specific term "singularity" as a description for a phenomenon of technological acceleration causing an eventual unpredictable outcome in society was coined by mathematician John von Neumann, who in the mid 1950s spoke of "ever accelerating progress of technology and changes in the mode of human life, which gives the appearance of approaching some essential singularity in the history of the race beyond which human affairs, as we know them, could not continue." The concept has also been popularized by futurists such as Ray Kurzweil, who cited von Neumann's use of the term in a foreword to von Neumann's classic The Computer and the Brain.
Kurzweil predicts the singularity to occur around 2045 while Vinge predicts some time before 2030.
Just more steps to the singularity. Actually the implications of this is amazing as a computer can read every medical journal on the subject to make the best diagnosis and give the best treatment. I would have no problem having a computer as my doctor.
This is from The Atlantic:
Charley lukov didn’t need a miracle. He just needed the right diagnosis. Lukov, a 62-year-old from central New Jersey, had stopped smoking 10 years earlier—fulfilling a promise he’d made to his daughter, after she gave birth to his first grandchild. But decades of cigarettes had taken their toll. Lukov had adenocarcinoma, a common cancer of the lung, and it had spread to his liver. The oncologist ordered a biopsy, testing a surgically removed sample of the tumor to search for particular “driver†mutations. A driver mutation is a specific genetic defect that causes cells to reproduce uncontrollably, interfering with bodily functions and devouring organs. Think of an on/off switch stuck in the “on†direction. With lung cancer, doctors typically test for mutations called EGFR and ALK, in part because those two respond well to specially targeted treatments. But the tests are a long shot: although EGFR and ALK are the two driver mutations doctors typically see with lung cancer, even they are relatively uncommon. When Lukov’s cancer tested negative for both, the oncologist prepared to start a standard chemotherapy regimen—even though it meant the side effects would be worse and the prospects of success slimmer than might be expected using a targeted agent. But Lukov’s true medical condition wasn’t quite so grim. The tumor did have a driver—a third mutation few oncologists test for in this type of case. It’s called KRAS. Researchers have known about KRAS for a long time, but only recently have they realized that it can be the driver mutation in metastatic lung cancer—and that, in those cases, it responds to the same drugs that turn it off in other tumors. A doctor familiar with both Lukov’s specific medical history and the very latest research might know to make the connection—to add one more biomarker test, for KRAS, and then to find a clinical trial testing the efficacy of KRAS treatments on lung cancer. But the national treatment guidelines for lung cancer don’t recommend such action, and few physicians, however conscientious, would think to do these things.
I think we might virtual reality sooner then most people thought.
This is from Science Daily:
Feb. 28, 2013 — In a significant advance for brain-machine interfaces, engineers at Brown University have developed a novel wireless, broadband, rechargeable, fully implantable brain sensor that has performed well in animal models for more than a year. They describe the result in the Journal of Neural Engineering and at a conference this week.A team of neuroengineers based at Brown University has developed a fully implantable and rechargeable wireless brain sensor capable of relaying real-time broadband signals from up to 100 neurons in freely moving subjects. Several copies of the novel low-power device, described in the Journal of Neural Engineering, have been performing well in animal models for more than year, a first in the brain-computer interface field. Brain-computer interfaces coud help people with severe paralysis control devces with their thoughts.
It looks interesting but I have found that I hate to read. The only book I have read since grad school is the singularity is near as most of the time the books I buy just sit on the shelf at home.
Scientists Identify Gene that Causes Obesity in Mice
This is one of the big things I have been waiting for. Then I can eat as much as I want and not gain a pound.
This is from Sci -News.com
U.S. genetic researchers led by Prof James McManaman from the University of Colorado’s School of Medicine have found that deleting a gene called Perilipin 2 (Plin2) in mice prevents them from becoming obese even on a high fat diet.
“When fed a diet that induces obesity these mice don’t get fat. It may be possible to duplicate this in humans using existing technology that targets this specific gene,” Prof McManaman said.
Transhumanism, abbreviated as H+ or h+, is an international intellectual and cultural movement that affirms the possibility and desirability of fundamentally transforming the human condition by developing and making widely available technologies to eliminate aging and to greatly enhance human intellectual, physical, and psychological capacities.[
Now, with this in mind, I would have to say the reason why this topic has not been discussed is, greed. There will always be the ruling elite. There will always be the poor. There will always be the person who tries to take over the world. And why do these humans spend billions of dollars for this control, it is because they want power. Power and control go hand-in-hand. It is really this simple. The people who have power keep the people who do not have power poor. WHY?? So the poor are forced to rely on the ruling elite for everything. If Transhumanism was practiced, our life on earth would be a utopia. Everybody would have a home, job, health, and food. There would be no wars and everybody would get along with each other. Understand what I am saying???
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The Robot Will See You Now
