Click through for full sized version and the red button caption. via Saturday Morning Breakfast Cereal. The idea that only humans have an afterlife has always been one that I find interesting. If only humans have them, at what point in our evolutionary history did we obtain them? Did Neanderthals have them? What about Homo-erectus? If … Continue reading Who was the first person to have an afterlife?
Tag: Singularity
Survival machines versus engineered machines; why fears of AI are misguided
I've seen a lot of posts lately like this one by Ronald Bailey looking at Nick Bostrom's book on the dangers of AI. People never seem to get tired of talking about the dangers of AI. And stories about AIs who revolt against humanity are pretty much a staple of science fiction. I've written before on … Continue reading Survival machines versus engineered machines; why fears of AI are misguided
Transcendence
I finally watched the movie, Transcendence. I had commented a while back, when the trailer came out, the problems I had with what appeared to be the central premise of the film. Since then, there's been a lot of harsh reviews of the film. I did find a lot of silliness in it, but overall … Continue reading Transcendence
Hertling says singularity closer than appears, and a brief comment
Ramez Naam, author of Nexus and Crux (two books I enjoyed and recommend), has recently put together a few guest posts for Charlie Stross (another author I love). The posts are The Singularity Is Further Than It Appears and Why AIs Won't Ascend in the Blink of an Eye. They're both excellent posts, and I'd recommend reading … Continue reading Hertling says singularity closer than appears, and a brief comment
The Singularity Is Further Than It Appears – Charlie’s Diary
Are we headed for a Singularity? Is it imminent? I write relatively near-future science fiction that features neural implants, brain-to-brain communication, and uploaded brains. I also teach at a place called Singularity University. So people naturally assume that I believe in the notion of a Singularity and that one is on the horizon, perhaps in … Continue reading The Singularity Is Further Than It Appears – Charlie’s Diary
For interstellar travel, transmission is much cheaper
It will always be a lot cheaper to send a radio signal to an interstellar destination than any kind of physical presence. Our discussion the other day on the difficulties of interstellar travel left me pondering this, something that is well known to astronomers and other thinkers in this area. Given sufficiently advanced technology, the … Continue reading For interstellar travel, transmission is much cheaper
Why You Should Upload Yourself to a Supercomputer
We're still decades — if not centuries — away from being able to transfer a mind to a supercomputer. It's a fantastic future prospect that makes some people incredibly squeamish. But there are considerable benefits to living a digital life. Here's why you should seriously consider uploading. via Why You Should Upload Yourself to a … Continue reading Why You Should Upload Yourself to a Supercomputer
Singularity assumptions that should be questioned
The upcoming movie, Transcendence, looks like it will be interesting, but the trailer includes common assumptions about the singularity that I'm not sure are justified. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jY-cc1MLAI4 To be sure, the assumptions are held by a lot of singularity believers. Below I offer some reasons why these assumptions shouldn't be taken as self evident. Assumption 1: … Continue reading Singularity assumptions that should be questioned
Why an AI revolt is unlikely
From time to time, articles or blog posts appear expressing anxiety about what will happen when we finally achieve artificial intelligence. The thinking goes that such a mind would quickly be able to design and build a better version of itself and in no time we'd be facing an overwhelmingly superior intelligence which may or … Continue reading Why an AI revolt is unlikely
SelfAwarePatterns 