The Singularity

I was reading up on Ray Kurzweil Wiki. In particular I was reading about his predictions on technology most of which have actually came true.

The one thing I was really interested in was The Singularity which he believes will happen in 2045, machine intelligence will surpass human intelligence and they can act and communicate so quickly that humans cannot not even comprehend what is going on.

Technology expansion explodes under the control of the machines and like a snowball rolling down a hill escalates out of control.

Here are some extracts from his Wiki prediction page.

The technological singularity occurs as artificial intelligences surpass human beings as the smartest and most capable life forms on the Earth. Technological development is taken over by the machines, who can think, act and communicate so quickly that normal humans cannot even comprehend what is going on. The machines enter into a "runaway reaction" of self-improvement cycles, with each new generation of A.I.s appearing faster and faster. From this point onwards, technological advancement is explosive, under the control of the machines, and thus cannot be accurately predicted (hence the term "Singularity").

The Singularity is an extremely disruptive, world-altering event that forever changes the course of human history. The extermination of humanity by violent machines is unlikely (though not impossible) because sharp distinctions between man and machine will no longer exist thanks to the existence of cybernetically enhanced humans and uploaded humans.

So unlike the Terminator movies he doesn't believe that we will all be slaughtered because we are so intertwined with technology ourself's the machines make no distinction.

The physical bottom limit to how small computer transistors (or other equivalent, albeit more effective components, such as memristors integrated into Crossbar latches) can be shrunk is reached. From this moment onwards, computers can only be made more powerful if they are made larger in size.

Like how today rather than make processors smaller we have started to use multiple processors on a chip (think quad core PC's) as this is more efficient in our tech today but one day we will reach that limit and the only was to acheive anything faster is make more of them chained together in a matrix.

At this point, the only possible way to increase the intelligence of the machines any farther is to begin converting all of the matter and energy in the universe into similar massive computers. A.I.s radiate outward from Earth, first into the Solar System and then out into interstellar space, then galaxies in all directions, utilizing starships that are Von Neumann probes with nanobot crews, breaking down whole planets, stars, moons, and meteoroids and reassembling them into computers. This, in effect, "wakes up" the universe as all the inanimate "dumb" matter (rocks, dust, gases, etc.) is converted into structured matter capable of supporting life (albeit synthetic life).

So now the machines have consumed the earth and the universe so its just like one big "borg" ship, sounds scary...




I was thinking about this for a few days as I find it fascinating and wonder if it could ever come true but then I realised most people believe that there is life out there in the universe (I do) if there is shouldn't there be alien world that has already reached the singularity? if we look out into the sky wouldn't we see this "swarm" consuming solar system's and now moving out into the universe, well... maybe its been staring at us right in the face and we didnt even realise...



Look familiar? yes its a nebula believed to be mass clouds of dust and gas some ten's of light years across, the composition of nebula have been observed by Hubble using Spectral Analysis which basically observes the visible bands of light and can show the chemical make up of it Wiki

This is all fine and dandy but how does this work over huge vast disances? think of all the space, stars, dust, gases in-between the nebulas and our telescopes what if the scientists are wrong







You can run! but there is literally NO WHERE to hide.

Please note before replying that this is in the skunk works.

Peace out!

this is exactly why I boot my computer at gun point seems just as likely that machine intelligence might act with more compassion, understanding and empathy than we as humans often manage

Originally posted by iforget
this is exactly why I boot my computer at gun point

seems just as likely that machine intelligence might act with more compassion, understanding and empathy than we as humans often manage

You know what I thought about that before, I think our "animalistic" emotions get in our way if we were just pure intelligence maybe our world would be more peaceful, we shouldn't fear the machines we should welcome them!

I actually really enjoyed reading this.

I wonder if we would become part of this Universal computer. We would likely corrupt the files and have to be put in the trash bin.

ALS

This is really interesting

And really scary, the propect that we can be superceeded by our own creation !

One question, does the "ghosts in the machines" like from I. Robot ressemble anything tangible in reality, i.e could the A.I of the future remember its humble past ?

If it is possible, then I guess thats where Armageddon by CPU could come into it all

S n F

reply to post by solargeddon


Did you read through his predictions wiki page? Wiki predictions

Something like 90% of the stuff he has predicted has come through its worth a read...

reply to post by roughycannon


I must confess I have not yet

But I am going to do so immeadiately

Promise

BTW for anyone who is interested in this, there is a movie coming out later this year about it...

The singularity

Maybe it has already happened, hence the hologram universe theory?

If it happens again, it is in a virtual world that it does. I mean, A) wath happens when you have conquered all?, leading to B) no doubt, this new universal organization will keep in memory ALL that is or ever was, and that means individual thinking process.

Maybe humans were the first race, got to the singularity point, got to the point where they merged with synthetic life, got to the point where they rearranged the universe. And now are part of a simulation that constantly reinterpret life.

So history would be a repetitive story. Always the same story, with tiny variances each time. Like an RPG. On a universal scale. In it, we would play each role, leading to an almost endless list of possible simulations. That could explain reincarnation memories and feelings of déjà-vu. Bits that need to be moved by a universal defragmention... LOL

So, what will you do when you become the next George W. Bush?

Ok, read and understood

Still scary !

On the one hand I like it, on the other I reckon I will be pineing for the old ways :/

In 2099, I will be 121 (21 again !) years young (oh yessss!)

Where do I sign up for a house cleaning robot please !

Originally posted by solargeddon
Ok, read and understood

Still scary !

On the one hand I like it, on the other I reckon I will be pineing for the old ways :/

In 2099, I will be 121 (21 again !) years young (oh yessss!)

Where do I sign up for a house cleaning robot please !

You can get it here I-robot

Weirdly enough its called I-robot

I'm facinated by the singularity theory, i believe it's highly likely.. I'm reminded of Eamonn Healey's dialogue in the film waking life, which explores the nature of accelerating evolution which incorporates digital artificial itelligence playing a role in our evolution, and indeed fulfillment of human potential.. (bit long but facinating nonetheless)

"If we’re looking at the highlights of human development, you have to look at the evolution of the organism and then at the development of its interaction with the environment. Evolution of the organism will begin with the evolution of life perceived through the hominid coming to the evolution of mankind. Neanderthal and Cro-Magnon man. Now, interestingly, what you’re looking at here are three strings: biological, anthropological — development of the cities — and cultural, which is human expression.

Now, what you’ve seen here is the evolution of populations, not so much the evolution of individuals. And in addition, if you look at the time scales that are involved here — two billion years for life, six million years for the hominid, 100,000 years for mankind as we know it — you’re beginning to see the telescoping nature of the evolutionary paradigm. And then when you get to agricultural, when you get to scientific revolution and industrial revolution, you’re looking at 10,000 years, 400 years, 150 years. You’re seeing a further telescoping of this evolutionary time. What that means is that as we go through the new evolution, it’s gonna telescope to the point we should be able to see it manifest itself within our lifetime, within this generation.

The new evolution stems from information, and it stems from two types of information: digital and analog. The digital is artificial intelligence. The analog results from molecular biology, the cloning of the organism. And you knit the two together with neurobiology. Before on the old evolutionary paradigm, one would die and the other would grow and dominate. But under the new paradigm, they would exist as a mutually supportive, noncompetitive grouping. Okay, independent from the external.

And what is interesting here is that evolution now becomes an individually centered process, emanating from the needs and desires of the individual, and not an external process, a passive process where the individual is just at the whim of the collective. So, you produce a neo-human, okay, with a new individuality and a new consciousness. But that’s only the beginning of the evolutionary cycle because as the next cycle proceeds, the input is now this new intelligence. As intelligence piles on intelligence, as ability piles on ability, the speed changes. Until what? Until we reach a crescendo in a way could be imagined as an enormous instantaneous fulfillment of human and neo-human potential. It could be something totally different. It could be the amplification of the individual, the multiplication of individual existences. Parallel existences now with the individual no longer restricted by time and space.

And the manifestations of this neo-human-type evolution, manifestations could be dramatically counter-intuitive. That’s the interesting part. The old evolution is cold. It’s sterile. It’s efficient, okay? And its manifestations of those social adaptations. We’re talking about parasitism, dominance, morality, okay? Uh, war, predation, these would be subject to de-emphasis. These will be subject to de-evolution. The new evolutionary paradigm will give us the human traits of truth, of loyalty, of justice, of freedom. These will be the manifestations of the new evolution. And that is what we would hope to see from this. That would be nice."

reply to post by mzungu


I wish I could find a link to the following... Maybe someone does.

Here goes; I saw a documentary about AI robots. In it, there were robots who had to hit three cones in order to switch on a light that would replenish their batteries. There was 5 robots ( They looked like little cars ). After a while, understanding they were each losing precious energy by having to hit the three cones and then go under the light, they began working as a group.

Three would hit the cones while one was waiting under the light, the fifth waiting in line, everyone having a turn at the different positions. You think "Yeah! Synthetics are showing a better way of life than biologics..."

Wrong! After a few turns, one of the robots, one who was then waiting in line, decided to bump out the one from under the light to take its place. It bullied it companions and simply stopped hitting the cones to get the much needed light. It could get it whenever it wanted, before any of the others, who displayed fear and submission.

There was also another project similar, but virtual. In it, bars of codes were programmed to write a copy of themselves every X moments. On the screen, they looked a certain length and color. After a time, there appeared shorter lines, on the screen. It meant a bar wrote an erroneous program. More appeared, with slight variations, overtime.

What happened next was as incredible as the story with the robots. Some bars, to short to be viable, coupled themselves with other bars, in a symbiotic way. After some time, some of these bars became more complex and some had a very predatory attitude by "capturing" some specifically targeted bars and incorporating their programming.

Both examples demonstrate that with consciousness comes individuality, and with individuality comes emotions, good or bad, and that consequences are born of those things.

In order for a self conscious hyper-evolving synthetic life form to be true to its design and function ( to become everything ), it will need to be the embodiment of a paradox. One and many at the same time, to be good and bad towards itself, since it would become the only thing in the universe. It is the very foundation of our universe, the duality of things.
The ancients understood that when they declared us to be indivi(sible)duals.

We are the mirror of the universe, and synthetics will be ours. They/we/it will not be any better, probably just maddeningly alone, thus becoming a paradox to keep sane...

I read a book maybe 15 years ago by E.O.WIlson called Consilience, which is a different name for the singularity event. Not sure who had it first. lol.
Be interesting to see what happens.

mzungu it reminds me of the path to least resistance going on there, and clearly, a bit alarming that it's inherent nature even extends to AI. It would mean, once AI got to the point where it no longer needed us, we had better step to the side and not get in it's way, thus we will be eliminated. I suspect with the end result of those robots, eventually that rogue robot would be eliminated since it's disrupting the efficiency. Same as the code which would be disrupted because it's predatory nature. Mankind's predatory nature would be his undoing in a society where we would have to get along with AI, on their terms.

depends i suppose, if a greater artificial intelligence was to rise above us, i'm not sure it would necessarily be malevolent, like if we built the intelligence on a foundation such as asimov's three laws of robotics.

interesting also is the concept put forward in his short story the last question:

In the last scene, the god-like descendant of humanity (the unified mental process of over a trillion, trillion, trillion humans that have spread throughout the universe) watches the stars flicker out, one by one, as the universe finally approaches the state of heat death. Humanity asks AC, Multivac's ultimate descendant, which exists in hyperspace beyond the bounds of gravity or time, the entropy question one last time, before humanity merges with AC and disappears. AC is still unable to answer, but continues to ponder the question even after space and time cease to exist. Eventually AC discovers the answer, but has nobody to report it to; the universe is already dead. It therefore decides to show the answer by demonstrating the reversal of entropy, creating the universe anew.

reply to post by roughycannon


Cool beans ! Thanks

I think I actually saw this on groupn a couple of months ago, but missed it (story of my life!)

Think I may hold on a little longer and wait for the one who can do the washing up, dust the house, make my kids do their homework, and tuck me into bed with a cup of cocoa

Nothing can not exist, so everything does.

The one Singularity is the dimension of omnipresence spherically efforting to become true to the definition of being "present" absolutely everywhere, by trying to also exist inside of absolute non-existence. Infinite spherical division/subtraction at an infinite rate.

It is when this failed to produce the entrance into absolute non-existence that generating one (then entering it) was the solution. So engaging this Singularity into infinite kinetic rate AND infinite angular directions produced the dimension for it to happen inside of (the infinite expanse), which is done by where the singularity IS as a component of that "flight path", but most important, where the Singularity IS NOT as a component of the same flight path, is the infinite non-existence (created), the infinite impedence, the null.

That's where we come in as proxies to serve as dwellers and Infinite can dwell in this realm, through us.

reply to post by roughycannon


S&F! The Kurzwell Wiki is a fun read. Thank you for bringing it to my attention. Machine intelligence is sometimes taken too lightly. When it comes to the topic of technology, MI is right up there with the most advanced IT around. That`s my opinion. If MI snowballs, there had better be a constinency plan in place to counter a possible take-over by machines and their allies. MI is a super exciting tech but must be monitored closely. Can you say robot wars?