Outline

• Evolution speed-up is occurring as we enter the 21st. century.
• Evolution moved from chemistry to biology - over billions of years.
• Homo Sapiens emerged about half-million years ago - not very different from other advanced primates - DNA is 98.6% the same as the gorilla, and 97.8% the same as orangutans.
• Evolution since that time focuses on a human-sponsored variant of evolution - Technology
  

  

• Homo Sapiens was distinguished by their invention of technology. Technology goes beyond the making and use of tools - it involves a record of tool making and a progression in the sophistication - requires invention. It is itself a continuation of Evolution.
• Technology, like Evolution that spawned it - is inherently an accelerating process.
• Moore's Law - Exponential growth of computing dates back to the start of the twentieth century
• Human Genome Project - International research program with the goal of gathering a resource of genome maps and DNA sequence information that will provide detailed information about the structure, organization and characteristics of the DNA of humans and other animals.
• Is a human with mechanical implants a machine? Is a machine with human extensions a human?
• “As Deep Blue goes deeper and deeper, it displays elements of strategic understanding. Somewhere out there, mere tactics are translating into strategy. This is the closest thing I’ve seen to computer intelligence. It’s a weird form of intelligence. But, you can feel it. You can smell it!”
  Frederick Friedel, assistant to Gary Kasparov, commenting on the computer that beat his boss.
• Intelligence - The Recursive Formula
  Pruning the possibilities, stopping the recursive growth of the tree of possibilities.
• Intelligence - Neural Nets
  Attempt to emulate the computing structure of neurons in the human brain:
  • Set of inputs that represent the problem to be solved
  • Inputs randomly wired to a layer of simulated neurons
  • Each connection has a strength (initially set at random)
• Intelligence - Genetic Algorithms
  Solutions are not programmed - they emerge through an iterative process of simulated competition and improvement. Smart but slow - retains the discernment of Evolution - but useful if speeded up a million fold
• Complexity Theory :
  The study of emergent behavior exhibited by interacting systems operating at the threshold of stability and chaos.
• Artificial Life :
  A synthetic approach to studying Life-as-it-could-be and viewing Life-as-it-is within a larger context.
• Computer Intelligence - extrapolated:
  
  • By 2020 - equal to the human brain
  • 2030 - Brain power of small village
  • 2050 - Entire population of US
  • 2060 - Trillion human brains by 2060
  • 2100 - one personal computer will have more capacity than all humans on earth….
• Computing Substrates in the 21st Century:
  
  • Cubic, 3-D integrated circuits
  • Optical computing
  • Molecular Computing
  • Nanotechnology
  • Quantum Computers
• The Spiritual Human
  Once neural implants are common, we’ll be able to stimulate a wide range of “feelings” There are already neurological triggers for such things as humor. Understanding the neurological correlation of “spiritual experiences” - translates to the computational processes that give rise to spiritual
• The Spiritual Machine
  Machines derived from human thinking and surpassing humans in their capacity for experience will indeed claim to be spiritual. 21st century machines will go to real or virtual houses of worship, meditation, praying and transcending - to connect with their spiritual dimension.
• "Humanity looks to me like a magnificent beginning - but not the final word." - Freeman Dyson

Web Hotlinks to all topics (click on any item)

Kurzweil Book
Extropy - Positive Entropy
Moore’s Law
MIT Artificial Intelligence Lab
Artificial Life (Santa Fe)
The Human Genome Project
Ray Kurzweil’s Cybernetic Poet
Paintings by Aaron (computer)
Autonomous Agents
DNA Computers
Genetic Algorithm Archive
NanoTechnology - Eric Drexler
Molecular Manufacturing
Neural Networks