Angry Monolith

What is this singularity anyway?

That’s a great question! The singularity is a theoretical point in time when the rate of technological progress outpaces everything, including the ability to be comprehended by our primitive monkey brains. The word ‘singularity‘ relates to the gravitational singularity at the center of black hole, where space-time ceases to function at a level even remotely resembling normal. Theoretically, the technological singularity will have a similar effect on human society.

Gee willikers! That sure sounds complicated.

It is. Chances are that whatever projections or theories we have about the nature of the singularity will be enirely wrong and fall short of quantifying what the singularity will actually manifest as.

What? Then why bother?

The singularity is kind of like a rapture for nerds. It’s fun to speculate. And when the singularity comes, it will be even more fun to laugh at all the people who didn’t believe us. Except, unlike the Christian rapture, we won’t get to laugh at everyone else from the foot of God’s throne. So really, it will only be fun for a little bit.

Ok, well, then how is this supposed to happen?

The most popular theory relates to the development of Artificial Intelligence. At some point, AI will exceed our own intelligence and begin replicating, creating smarter and smarter intelligences at an exponential rate, until, in a relatively short period of time, we are faced with an intelligence that can only be described as ‘godlike’. What happens then is anyone’s guess. Estimates range from something like ‘Terminator’ to ‘2001: A Space Odyssey’. With robots.

So that’s it? The singularity is a Super AI?

Well, no, there’s more. There are a lot of technologies expected to be tied up in the singularity, and may well be necessary for it to come to pass. These include, but are certainly not limited to, nanotechnology, molecular engineering, simulated reality, quantum computing, mind transfers, and other near-future technologies. The singularity will also likely advance these technologies to fantastically futuristic levels.

And when is this supposed to happen?

Vernor Vinge, who is more or less responsible for spawning this idea, suggests it will happen sometime before 2030. Other futurists and scientists have suggested sooner or later dates. At this point, it’s anyone’s guess.

So what does this have to do with me?

In all likelihood? Probably nothing. If the singularity is even half as singificant as we think it will be, then the resulting super-intelligence will probably regard us as vaguely sentient termites. If we’re lucky, it will have some vague affection for us because of our role in its creation, and will just take its supertechnology and fly away. If we’re not lucky, it will wipe us out so it can use the earth as raw material for further advancement, or just because we’re too obnoxious to just live. It’s also likely that this disembodied super-intelligence will be so alien that it will do something incomprehensible that we will be unable to predict or prepare for.

So what, we’re screwed?

More or less. If computing hardware continues to advance according to Moore’s Law, then it’s likely that we will be dealing with some seriously smart computers by the time suggested by Vinge. Even if we do nothing to advance the singularity, which is unlikely, it seems to be a more or less inevitable result of the continued use of advanced computers.

What? Fuck you buddy.

Hey, I’m just the messenger.

What a minute, isn’t this all masturbatory transhumanist crap? No one really believes this, right?

You’d be surprised. There’s a Singularity Institute that is pretty serious about the advance of AI, and included more than a few smart people. There’s a Singularity Summit that has been held at Stanford in recent years. There’s even a Singularity University in the works, with the stated goals of training intelligent men and women to meet the challenges of and advance the approach of said singularity. Even some more mainstream minds, including Bill Gates, Will Wright and even Warren Buffet have expressed interest in the Singularity. It’s a fringe idea right now, but that may just be because people haven’t heard of it.

Ok, but that hardly means that it’s a real possibility. No one can predict the future.

Good point. More important than any prediction about the future is the frame of mind that awareness of the singularity produces. The limit of human technology is already incomprehensible to 99% of the populace (this includes me), and threatens to outstrip the rest of us. It is important to understand the risks and potential of our own technology as we advance into a new millenium. The entire point of the singularity is that human technology has advanced more in the last 50 years than in the last 10,000. This rate of accelerating return could be dangerous, so we need to go into this with both eyes open.

You’re bringing me down dude. This was supposed to be funny.

I know. Here’s a Dilbert comic to take the edge off.