Weekly Read-Along—June 26, 2009: The Coming Technological Singularity

Material for the Stout-Hearted Reader to Ruminate

♦ Essays, Lectures & Speeches ♦

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Vernor Vinge (1944 –) is professor emeritus of mathematics and computer science at San Diego State University.  He also is the author of several novels—including A Fire upon the Deep, and Rainbows End—and is a Hugo Award winner.

This week’s text is his essay “The Coming Technological Singularity” (1993) in which he argues that technology is advancing at a rate in which it will soon eclipse the abilities of humans to understand it. He predicts further developments will then occur through a super-intelligence mediated by super-computers.  At that point—technological singularity—we will enter the “post-human era”.  He sees this happening by the year 2030.   

Join others from around the world in this weekly reading event! You can find Vinge’s text at these websites:

http://minorepic.net/~agentx/singularity.html

http://www-rohan.sdsu.edu/faculty/vinge/misc/WER2.html