In his latest foray into the future, he envisions an eventthe singularityin which technological change becomes so rapid and so profound that our bodies and brains. Ray kurzweil is the best person i know at predicting the future of artificial intelligence. The singularity, almost an article of faith in techie circles, is the point at which machine intelligence outstrips human brainpower. A pioneering inventor and theorist, he has explored for decades how artificial intelligence can enrich and expand human capabilities. Ray kurzweil, the bold futurist and author of the new york times best seller the singularity is near, is arguably todays most influential technological visionary. The technological singularity the mit press essential knowledge series shanahan, murray on. Access a free summary of the singularity is near, by ray kurzweil and 20,000 other business, leadership and nonfiction books on getabstract. At the sxsw conference in austin, texas, kurzweil made yet another prediction. When humans transcend biology in 2005 and predicted that human life will be transformed to transcend the current biological limitations from 2045 on. Futurist ray kurzweil pulls out all the stops and pills to live wired. He is an inventor who received the national medal of technology in 1999.
For those like myself whose views differ from rays on the balance of promise and peril, the singularity is near is a clear call for a continuing dialogue to address the greater concerns arising from. Among st louis postdispatchs best nonfiction books of 2005 one of s best science books of 2005. The acceleration of technological progress has been the central feature of this century. The singularity is near by ray kurzweil nagaitoshiya. The singularity is near is worth reading just for its wealth of information, all lucidly presented. Rays latest book, the singularity is near, was a new york times best. The name of this revolution might be a little confusing. Tracking trends related to artificial intelligence, neurotechnology, dubai, and elon musk as the end times reveal the antichrist. Free download or read online the singularity is near. Kurzweil predicts that at some point after this machine production of other machines that human beings and other machines will be indistinguishable. The technological singularity the mit press essential knowledge series. Kurzweil transformed the singularity from an interesting speculation into a social movement.
For example, with more powerful computers and related technology, we have the tools and the knowledge. More and more people believe in the technological singularity as artificial intelligence approaches human intelligence. The following provides a brief overview of the law of accelerating returns as it applies to the double exponential growth of computation. I had heard about the singularity is near by ray kurzweil, and ive browsed some of. What other book might you compare the technological singularity to and why. Kurzweil says robotics is embodied artificial intelligencebut its the intelligence itself that matters most. Is near is certain to be one of the most widely discussed and provocative books of. The technological singularityalso, simply, the singularity is a hypothetical point in time at which technological growth becomes uncontrollable and irreversible, resulting in unforeseeable changes to human civilization. Called the restless genius by the wall street journal and the ultimate thinking machine by forbes magazine, kurzweil was selected as one of the top entrepreneurs by inc. Kurzweils vision of the singularity the singularity, for kurzweil, will be an intentional merger of humans with technology, permitting us to transcend our biological limitations. Last week, paul allen and a colleague challenged the prediction that computers will soon exceed human intelligence. The technological singularity the mit press essential. The singularity is near offers a view of the coming age that is both a dramatic culmination of centuries of technological ingenuity and a genuinely inspiring vision of our ultimate destiny.
Ray kurzweil is one of the worlds leading inventors, thinkers, and futurists, with a twentyyear track record of accurate predictions. But now the man who hopes to be immortal is involved in the. The publisher has supplied this book in drm free form with digital watermarking. My interest in the future really stems from my interest in being an inventor. How to create a brain, the singularity is near, super intelligence. Kurzweil explained how computers, especially artificial intelligence, combined with discoveries in. Mar 07, 2001 the law of accelerating returns applied to the growth of computation. The great inventor and futurist ray kurzweil is one of the bestknown and controversial advocates for the role of machines in the future of humanity. He foresees the dawning of a new civilization where we will be able to transcend our biological skills with the vastly greater capacity, speed and knowledgesharing abilities of our. Ray kurzweil is the author of the age of intelligent machines and the age of spiritual machines, and coauthor with terry grossman of fantastic voyage.
This is a great overview of the subject of the technological singularity, murray does, a great job of explaining the concepts involved. Kurzweil speaks widely to audiences both public and private and regularly delivers keynote speeches at industry conferences like demo, sxsw, and ted. Where does the technological singularity rank among all the audiobooks youve listened to so far. The full title of this book is the singularity is near. Dec 06, 2017 a documentary based on ray kurzweils book, the singularity is near. For over 30 years bestselling author, inventor, and futurist ray kurzweil has been one of the most respected and provocative advocates of the role of tech in our future. In ray kurzweil s new york times bestseller the singularity is near, the futurist and entrepreneur describes the singularity, a likely future utterly different than anything we can imagine. Of his 147 predictions since the 1990s, kurzweil claims an 86 percent accuracy rate. Called hiba, which stands for hybrid intelligence biometric avatar, it will take on the personas of its users, exchange information with them and become part of the. The singularity is triggered by the tremendous growth of human and computing intelligence that is an almost inevitable outcome of moores law. There will be no distinction, postsingularity, between human and machine or between physical and virtual reality, kurzweil declares. Not surprisingly, he has an incredibly indepth knowledge of technology. At the sxsw conference in austin, texas, ray kurzweil made yet another prediction.
Recipient of the mitlemelson prize the worlds largest for innovation, and inducted into the inventors hall of fame, he received the 1999 national medal of technology. The book builds on the ideas introduced in kurzweils previous books, the age of intelligent machines 1990 and the age of spiritual machines 1999. Kurzweil claims the singularity will happen by 2045. Ive had the idea of being an inventor since i was five years old, and i quickly realized that you had to have a good idea of the future if youre going to succeed as an inventor.
This idea was popularized by ray kurzweil in his 2005 book, the singularity is near. The idea of technological singularity, and what it would mean if ordinary human intelligence were enhanced or overtaken by artificial intelligence. The singularity is near portrays what life will be like after this eventa humanmachine civilization where our experiences shift from real reality to virtual reality and where our intelligence becomes nonbiological and trillions of times more powerful than unaided human intelligence. Inventor and futurist ray kurzweil examines the next step in the evolutionary process of the union of human and machine. The singularity, virtual immortality and the trouble with. The singularity is near free summary by ray kurzweil. The technological singularity audiobook by murray shanahan. Ray kurzweil is a prizewinning author and scientist. His intriguing new book envisions a future in which. When humans transcend biology is a 2005 nonfiction book about artificial intelligence and the future of humanity by inventor and futurist ray kurzweil. According to the most popular version of the singularity hypothesis, called intelligence explosion, an upgradable intelligent agent will eventually enter a runaway.
The great inventor and futurist ray kurzweil is one of the bestknown and. When humans transcend biology, and like its title, the book is verbose and very, very speculative. Kurzweil, who turned 70 in 2018, famously predicted that the technological singularity the crucial moment when machines become smarter than humans will occur in our lifetime. The book was published in multiple languages including english, consists of 652 pages and is available in trade paperback format. The term singularity in my book is comparable to the use of this term by the physics community. I took two of the most contrasting points from the book, because i wanted to show you that the future lies on a spectrum. The book builds on the ideas introduced in kurzweil s previous books, the age of intelligent machines 1990 and the age of spiritual machines 1999. The idea that human history is approaching a singularity. For those like myself whose views differ from rays on the balance of promise and peril, the singularity is near is a clear call for a continuing dialogue to address the greater concerns arising from these accelerating possibilities. For over three decades, ray kurzweil has been one of the m. The book builds on the ideas introduced in kurzweils previous books, the. Ray kurzweil in just 32 years, humans wont speak to each other and will instead communicate through a worldwide consciousness using just our brains new research shows. Duckworth, london when i first picked up ray kurzweils dazzling, utopian book the singularity is near 2005, some six years after its publication, i ripped through it at a breakneck pace, riveted by the unfurling of fantastical technological prognostications. This model considers the impact of the growing power of the technology to foster its own next generation.
Technological singularity jeremy lent author and integrator. In this essay, vinge expected the technological singularity where the creation of entities with greater than human intelligence would bring about the physical extinction of the human race. Called the restless genius by the wall street journal and the ultimate thinking machine by forbes magazine, ray was selected as one of the top entrepreneurs. A documentary based on ray kurzweils book, the singularity is near. Ray kurzweil popularised the singularity concept, when artificial intelligence overtakes human thinking. Rays optimistic book well merits both reading and thoughtful response. Ray kurzweil is an inventor, thinker, and futurist famous for forecasting the pace of technology and predicting the world of tomorrow. Hi all, im interested in learning more about singularity and am looking for a good book on the topic. Sep 22, 2005 the singularity is near by ray kurzweil. In his optimistic book the singularity is near kurzweil explains that civilization will soon achieve new heights of intelligence, material progress, and longevity. He is best known for his hugo awardwinning novels a fire upon the deep, a deepness in the sky, rainbows end, fast times at fairmont high, and the cookie monster, as well as for his 1993 essay the coming technological singularity, in which he argues that the creation of superhuman artificial intelligence will mark the point at which. Just as we find it hard to see beyond the event horizon of a black hole, we also find it difficult to see beyond the event horizon of the historical singularity. When humans transcend biology by ray kurzweil, viking press.
The singularity, virtual immortality and the trouble with consciousness oped. Best technological singularity books fiction or nonfiction. In his book the singularity is near, kurzweil basically agrees with vinge but believes the later has been too. These are the extremes and well likely end up somewhere in the middle of annihilation and immortal superhumans. While acknowledging the risks, he argues the ai revolution is the most profound transformation human civilization will experience. The main characters of this science, science story are. If ray kurzweil predictions continue to come true, machines will be smarter than humans in just a few years. The time when computer intelligence exceeds that of humans is near. Not everything that kurzweil predicts may come to pass, but a lot of it will, and even if you dont agree with everything he says, its all worth paying attention to. Feb 22, 2014 ray kurzweil popularised the teminatorlike moment he called the singularity, when artificial intelligence overtakes human thinking. Ray kurzweils singularity is near is an argument for a technology singularity coming in the near future, a time when machines will have and be able to make other machines with intelligence comparable to human beings, and he expects this to happen in year 2045. In his book, the singularity is near, kurzweil defines singularity as a time period in which technology growth is at a such a pace that it blurs the distinct lines between nature and.
They argue that it is difficult or impossible for presentday humans to predict what human beings lives would be like in a post singularity world. When i first picked up ray kurzweils dazzling, utopian book the singularity is near 2005, some six years after its publication, i ripped through it at a breakneck pace, riveted by the unfurling of fantastical technological prognostications that seemed beamed in from science fiction. Kurzweil claims that the singularity will happen by 2045. Biblical christianity, eschatology, prophecy, and the gospel of jesus christ are the answer to a world entering the apocalypse. Ray kurzweil is one of the world leading inventors, thinkers, and futurists, with a thirtyyear track record of accurate predictions. The first edition of the novel was published in 2005, and was written by ray kurzweil. Apr 19, 2016 ray kurzweil, the singularity is near. This time, however, kurzweil embraces the term the singularity, which was popularized by vernor vinge in his 1993 essay the coming technological singularity more. Starring pauley perrette of cbs network ncis tv series.
Just as we find it hard to see beyond the event horizon of a black hole, we also find it difficult to see beyond the event horizon of the historical. Technology ray kurzweil the singularity is near the best. What about tim andres pabons performance did you like. Ray kurzweil is currently completing his new book the singularity is nearer debuting in year 2021. In his latest foray into the future, he envisions an eventthe singularityin which technological change becomes so rapid and. In practical terms, this means that human aging and. His intriguing new book envisions a future in which information technologies. One of our leading ai practitioners, ray kurzweil, has once again created a mustread book for anyone interested in the future of science, the social impact of technology, and indeed the future of our species. I argue in this paper that we are on the edge of change comparable to the rise of human life on earth. Aside from futurology, he is involved in fields such as optical character recognition ocr, texttospeech synthesis, speech recognition technology, and electronic keyboard instruments.
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