Will Galactus Become a Reality in the Age of Immortality?

[Ryan_m_b]

A great way to describe Kurzweils ideas about mind uploading, computers and his justification is to look it at this analogy:

"Camera pixel count doubles every 2 years --> In X years camera's will have more pixels than the human eye --> at this time we will swap our eyes with camera's for super vision"

Of course even this analogy is easier than Kurzweil's argument because it's relatively easy to count how many pixels the eye has (just count the rod and cone cells) compared to figuring out how to compare the brain to computer power. He equates development of machines designed to mimic aspects of humans (vision, thought etc) to replacement! Not to mention computer power having little relation to how the brain works to produce a mind

 

[Borg]

Time magazine had an http://www.time.com/time/health/article/0,8599,2048138,00.html" ) at the NASA Ames campus.

 

[JaredJames]

A great way to describe Kurzweils ideas about mind uploading, computers and his justification is to look it at this analogy:

"Camera pixel count doubles every 2 years --> In X years camera's will have more pixels than the human eye --> at this time we will swap our eyes with camera's for super vision"

Of course even this analogy is easier than Kurzweil's argument because it's relatively easy to count how many pixels the eye has (just count the rod and cone cells) compared to figuring out how to compare the brain to computer power. He equates development of machines designed to mimic aspects of humans (vision, thought etc) to replacement! Not to mention computer power having little relation to how the brain works to produce a mind

So what he's saying is "once we get technology to rival X human part, we can ignore the issue of actually connecting it to the body and just 'use it'". What a fruit loop.

He's ignoring 90% of the work required and just making wild guesses based on, well, nothing.

From Borg's article above, says it all really:

He believes that this moment is not only inevitable but imminent. According to his calculations, the end of human civilization as we know it is about 35 years away.

I don't see how this discussion can be of any use, given what we are working with.

 

[Ryan_m_b]

Just to show in graph form what we are dealing with this is Kurzweils "calculations" that give him that 35 year number (apologies for the size of the image)

 

[Ryan_m_b]

This and many other of his graphs (http://singularity.com/charts/page17.html) just plot random things that he calls events to show that the world will end in 35 years in a nerdy robot rapture.

It makes no sense, he picks and chooses things like the time gap between Life--multicellular life, walking upright--speaking and the telephone--computers and concludes that because these things are slowing down there must be a singularity in his life time. Specifically one with mind-uploading, nanomagic control over matter and strong AI. I know it sounds stupid but this truly is his reasoning and the defence he always gives when criticised. He calls it his "law of accelerating returns" and sticks to it like the Pope sticks to the gospels. Its pathetic this man is seen as some sort of authority figure on modern science

For a good criticism see Alfred Nordmann's article here http://spectrum.ieee.org/robotics/robotics-software/singular-simplicity/1

 

[rogerl]

OP. Consider this. SUPPOSED some dualism was true. Even if you say use the resources of 10 galaxies to extent your consciousness physical and materially. You won't gain any real progress. At most. It would make you more intelligent. What you need to do is go to planets with advanced lifeform and souls. Kidnap them, do experiment on them and manipulate their souls and integrate it to your own (to increase the dual substance raw material to give you true omniscience as you dominate too the spirit part of nature).

Hmm... Just an speculation. Is this why so many alleged visitors are after Earth.. because they want our soul and life essence? Ponder on this. Refute this if you can.

 

[JaredJames]

Refute this if you can.

The fact you start with "SUPPOSE" is enough to put a hole in this one.

Let alone the other countless assumptions made throughout - and that's before we get on to whether or not there have actually been alien visitors to the planet.

Drifting wildly now. More assumptions than the OP's premise.

 

[rogerl]

The fact you start with "SUPPOSE" is enough to put a hole in this one.

Let alone the other countless assumptions made throughout - and that's before we get on to whether or not there have actually been alien visitors to the planet.

Drifting wildly now. More assumptions than the OP's premise.

Any truly advanced civilization can create designer genetics and solve any problems on their own. They can fix the DNA and solve all problems without having to conquer other planets. The genetics off-world would be very incompatible. This is the reason why scientists don't believe in any of the UFO phenomenon.. because they sound stupid because it doesn't follow any logic. So we most reject all of these phenomenon as crap.

But what if some kind of dualism was true?? That is.. some unknown substance is related to our sentience and qualia? Then all those visitors allegedly visiting us can make sense.

Point is. We must investigate about dualism more and determine its properties. Anyway. That is what philosophy does. Maybe someday science and philosophy can converge when the physical mechanism of dualism is discovered...

 

[Math Is Hard]

I'm not inspired to salvage this thread.