A recent article in EE Times discusses the future of Moore’s law: “Broadcom: Time to prepare for the end of Moore’s Law.” This comes up innumerable times. People assume that Moore’s law is synonymous with my law of accelerating returns, which it is not.
Moore’s law was the fifth, not the first, paradigm to bring exponential growth to the price-performance of computing. The law of accelerating returns does… read more
Ray,
I just finished reading How to Create a Mind. I found it both interesting and informative. At the end, I believe that there is an inherent difference between a human brain and an AI system, a difference that can’t be overcome by any amount of added speed and capacity. To illustrate this difference I have included a thought experiment:
Take the most powerful artificial brain in existence. Include all programs necessary to make… read more
This is a really interesting article about body and mind which I recently read. I wanted to share it with my readers:
The New York Times | “I am not this body”
Here is a compelling excerpt: “I do not identify with my body. I have a body but I am a mind.
“My body and I have an intimate but awkward relationship, like foreign roommates who share… read more
About Asimov’s “The Last Question” — I was captivated by Asimov’s story as a child, and again some 50 years later in reading Ray’s version of the answer in The Singularity Is Near.
Looking forward to getting his new book!
Thank you,
Ron Eckhardt
Dear Ronald,
Thanks. Yes, the evolution of intelligence runs counter to the second law.… read more
Dear Ray:
If the development of computer-based intelligence will become equivalent to that of human intelligence within the next twenty or thirty years, this computer-based intelligence will be able to build even better computers.
Such computer intelligence will, no doubt, find a way to enhance the thought process of the human mind.
No doubt it will supersede the capacity of the human mind. This leads me to… read more
Hi Ray,
I will be attending a gathering of National Federation of the Blind leaders in Daytona, Florida, on the evening before the Blind Driver Challenge event early on Saturday, Jan. 29 before the start of the Rolex 24 Race.
This high-profile event will be the first public demonstration of a blind person driving a vehicle without any form of guidance provided by another person. Obviously… read more
Hi, my name is Luke.
I’m contacting you now and asking you to please consider the following scenario. AD 2060 or later:
Humans can simulate multiple universes. We do so, and eventually intelligent life evolves in one and achieves a civilization with roughly the same science and computation as Earth 2010. This life will be a completely alien species, on a (simulated) alien planet.
That species figures… read more
Hello Ray,
This may seem asinine but I had a thought regarding the Fermi Paradox and the Singularity. (Wikipedia: “The Fermi paradox is the apparent contradiction between high estimates of the probability of the existence of extraterrestrial civilizations and the lack of evidence for, or contact with, such civilizations.”)
As you well know there is nowhere near enough life in the galaxy (as we see it… read more
Ray,
A disturbing thought occurred to me recently: given that we are on the cusp of personal immortality and the entrance into the age of conscious information (for lack of a better term), it seems that there will eventually become a real resource shortage at the most fundamental level.
What I’m suggesting (and you’ve probably already considered) is that as individuals make the transition to electronic… read more
Dr. Kurzweil,
My name is Stanley. I too was born and bred in Queens, New York. I am also an Alcor member since 1992. I was part of the New York stabilization team and was part many cryonic cases.
I I am currently experiencing an extreme case of death terror.
I am 45 years old and am desperate not to require cryopreservation, and live to be uploaded.… read more
Dear Ray:
How do you find motivation to want to live forever? How do you find comfort in your father’s death, knowing you may never truly see him again — only an avatar of what he’d represent?
— John Hansen
John:
I have the motivation to live to tomorrow, metaphorically speaking. I think everyone has that motivation. As we get to times in the… read more
Mr. Kurzweil,
I’m currently in the middle of How to Create a Mind. I’m struggling with this one a bit more than you’re other books, but it’s very enjoyable and elucidating.
You have for some time predicted human level machine intelligence arriving by 2029.
However, in Mind you estimate the speed of a computer necessary to simulate the brain at 100 trillion cps, and state that the… read more
I was wondering if I could get a comment from Mr. Kurzweil. I know he thinks Watson will win the Jeopardy! match — I agree. Professor Noam Chomsky has told me that Watson is not good AI, though, and I’m curious how Kurzweil would respond to Chomsky’s words, found here.
I read your article in PC Magazine, which is what persuaded me to… read more
Dear Mr. Raymond Kurzweil, hello,
How are you? My name is Noga, I’m a 16-year-old girl from Tel-Aviv, Israel.
First of all, I wanted to say that I’ve read one of your and it was fascinating. Secondly, I wanted to ask you a question. I’ll start from the beginning.
In my school, we have a course called “Human Rights.” It’s a course where we discuss many things… read more
Dear Professor Kurzweil,
I was hoping for your views on the potential elitization of Singularity that could lead to exacerbation of class/opportunity/economic division.
The ongoing quest for extending human life and artificially enhancing its quality testifies to our instincts for permanence and survival at all cost.
Technologically acquired supremacy breaks the well accepted paradigm that improved life span, physical and cognitive performance is possible only with practice, studious effort and a healthy… read more