Technical Singularity in my lifetime. ( Ray Kurzweil )

Excerpt from my handwritten diary : April 18th : " Heard a BBC Interview with Ray Kurzweil on living forever with (a) bridge to post biological future. Computers (are) getting more intelligent than humans (and will be) making even more intelligent machines is Technical Singularity. Are we going to experience the end of time as we know it ?

Industrial revolution was more power (than humans could produce), the machine now will not suffer from Information overload but thrive and grow on it. How have I missed this up to now ? "

This concept "when you get it" or as the Dutch say "als het kwartje valt" is mindblowing.

Thoughts:

-It's important to realize that it will take a lot of time (10 years-2010?) before the idea spreads to general acceptance.

-"Experts" people who are daily active with computers will often be the last ones to see or accept this. No one is more aware of present day limitations of computing than they are.

-A lot of people that I have talked to in the past week don't know what Moore's Law is, making comprehension for non-experts difficult as well. (On top of grappling with the quick growth of exponential sequences.)

For now: I am printing out Kurzweil's predictions for the next decade. It's important to know where technology is headed and how it is accelerating. To quote Wayne Gretzky: " I skate to where the puck is going to be, not where it has been. "

-I have read the first chapters of Kurweil's book The Singularity is near. and will finish it. (on my Kindle which he predicted in 2005 for 2010).

-Set a reminder to spend a day looking into the state of affairs next year in my agenda.

-I'll try not to waste my time "preaching" this "rapture for nerds". That's why I am writing this post, so I don't have to repeat myself. (I do see a possible overlap with my religious experience not a contradiction.)

May 21st: Via Caelis : http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Omega_point & Hyperion

Comments, questions or E-mails welcome: ajbrenninkmeijer (a) cs.com