What is the singularity? Picture yourself trying to explain the experience of streaming a movie to William Shakespeare. First, you'd have to explain movies. Then you'd have to explain TVs (or computers, or tablets or mobile phones, or maybe even Google Glass). Then you'd probably have to explain the Internet. That, in essence, is at least one definition of a singularity: a moment in time where our technological and cultural realities have changed so drastically that our way of life would be incomprehensible to those who lived before that shift. Another, narrower definition of the singularity refers to the rapid development of artificial intelligence (AI) and, specifically, the point in time when AI has advanced to such a level that it can design and replicate ever more sophisticated forms of AI that greatly outstrip the capabilities of the human mind. As we mentioned earlier, artificial intelligence is the technology that most people believe will usher in the singularity. Related on MNN:
How to see into the future Billions of dollars are spent on experts who claim they can forecast what’s around the corner, in business, finance and economics. Most of them get it wrong. Now a groundbreaking study has unlocked the secret: it IS possible to predict the future – and a new breed of ‘superforecasters’ knows how to do it Irving Fisher was once the most famous economist in the world. In the 1920s, Fisher had two great rivals. Fisher’s rivals fared better than he did. If Fisher and Babson could see the modern forecasting industry, it would have astonished them in its scale, range and hyperactivity. It is true that forecasting now seems ubiquitous. Real breakthroughs have been achieved in certain areas, especially where rich datasets have become available – for example, weather forecasting, online retailing and supply-chain management. So why is forecasting so difficult – and is there hope for improvement? Tetlock’s response was patient, painstaking and quietly brilliant.
Salim Ismail on Singularity University [Transcript] Endeavor is pleased to make public the following transcript from a presentation at the 2011 Endeavor Entrepreneur Summit in San Francisco. The event, which assembled over 450 entrepreneurs and global business leaders, featured dozens of entrepreneurship-related presentations by top CEOs and industry experts. Overview: Salim Ismail, successful angel investor and entrepreneur, former vice president of Yahoo! and current executive director of Singularity University discusses what Singularity University is and does and how technology will radically change the future. Bio: Salim is a successful angel investor and entrepreneur – his last company, Angstro, was acquired by Google in August 2010. He has operated seven early-stage companies and is a frequent speaker on internet technologies, private equity and entrepreneurship. From the full remarks: Salim: Singularity University is a nonprofit organization in Silicon Valley. And the question is, what will we do with that kind of computing power?
Of Time Machines and Foresight Garages: About the September-October FUTURIST One of the most frequently asked questions here at the World Future Society is How do I become a futurist? The first step, of course, is to be interested, but the second, as with any profession, is to learn the required skills. So the next question is Where? There are no better experts on this subject than futurists themselves, so we invited essays from anyone who has participated in a futures-education program—as a learner, as a teacher, or as an administrator. And we didn’t rule out self-learners! The range of approaches described in the special report in this issue is truly inspiring. It is not surprising that a very large percentage of contributions came from people who have participated in the University of Houston’s futurist-training program, including three of its leaders—Oliver Markley, Peter Bishop, and Andy Hines. The Futures Education special report is not a comprehensive survey of the foresight-learning opportunities out there. Cynthia G.
The Unique Challenges of Exponential Leadership Salim Ismail The term “exponential” refers to a sequence or process by which desirable results are achieved. As Salim Ismail explains in his eponymous book, written with Michael S. Here are the six characteristics of exponential leadership, accompanied by Ismail’s comments: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. “How exponential is the leadership throughout your own organization?” Salim Ismail is a sought-after speaker, strategist and entrepreneur based in Silicon Valley. Salim has spent the last six years building Singularity University as its founding Executive Director and current Global Ambassador. His latest book, Exponential Organizations: Why new organizations are ten times better, faster, and cheaper than yours (and what to do about it), written with Michael Malone and Yuri van Geest, and published by Diversion Books (2014)
Emerging technologies An emerging technology (as distinguished from a conventional technology) is a field of technology that broaches new territory in some significant way, with new technological developments. Examples of currently emerging technologies include educational technology, information technology, nanotechnology, biotechnology, cognitive science, robotics, and artificial intelligence.[1] New technological fields may result from the technological convergence of different systems evolving towards similar goals. Emerging technologies are those technical innovations which represent progressive developments within a field for competitive advantage;[2] converging technologies represent previously distinct fields which are in some way moving towards stronger inter-connection and similar goals. History of emerging technologies[edit] In the history of technology, emerging technologies[3][4] are contemporary advances and innovation in various fields of technology. Emerging technology debates[edit] General Other
The World in 2025: 8 Predictions for the Next 10 Years - Singularity HUB In 2025, in accordance with Moore’s Law, we’ll see an acceleration in the rate of change as we move closer to a world of true abundance. Here are eight areas where we’ll see extraordinary transformation in the next decade: 1. A $1,000 Human Brain In 2025, $1,000 should buy you a computer able to calculate at 10^16 cycles per second (10,000 trillion cycles per second), the equivalent processing speed of the human brain. 2. The Internet of Everything describes the networked connections between devices, people, processes and data. 3. We’re heading towards a world of perfect knowledge. 4. 8 Billion Hyper-Connected People Facebook (Internet.org), SpaceX, Google (Project Loon), Qualcomm and Virgin (OneWeb) are planning to provide global connectivity to every human on Earth at speeds exceeding one megabit per second. We will grow from three to eight billion connected humans, adding five billion new consumers into the global economy. 5. 6. 7. 8. Bottom Line: We Live in the Most Exciting Time Ever
Cops In Dubai Are Using Google Glass To Catch Speeding Drivers Ayuda Web A police officer wearing Google Glass If you think traffic light cameras and discreet roadside cops are irritating enough, authorities may upgrade to Google Glass for catching speeding drivers soon enough. Police in Dubai have begun using Google's wearable display in an effort to capture traffic violators, according to a report by Gulf News spotted by The Verge. The technology is currently being tested by the Dubai Police Smart Services Department using two applications for tracking road-bound crimes. One app allows police officers to take photos of traffic violations using Glass, which would instantly be uploaded to the police department's system. If successful, Google Glass would make it extremely simple for officers to catch traffic offenders. Police would simply tap the side of the smart eyewear to snap a photo, and the image along with the date, time, and location at which it was taken would be stored in its system.
Can We Control Our Technological Destiny—Or Are We Just Along For the Ride? - Singularity HUB “Man becomes, as it were, the sex organs of the machine world…”– Marshall McLuhan A standard assumption of technological progress is that new innovations are born in our mind, and we humans choose which of those visions to bring into existence. We imagine stuff, we want stuff, we build stuff, and repeat. We assume that our brains are the center of the innovation universe. But just as Copernicus’s sun-centered model of our solar system taught us how physically marginal our place in the cosmos really is, a new class of techno-philosophy is similarly displacing our understanding of technological innovation. Susan Blackmore has spent a career studying memetics—the idea that Darwinian principles of natural selection can explain which memes (ideas, beliefs, and patterns of behavior) get passed from one brain to another. Memes are the very bedrock of innovation, the raw ingredients of cultural and technological progress. Consider highways and roads that humanity has built for itself.
untitled The Futurist: Are You Acceleration Aware? The single most necessary component of any attempt to make predictions about the future is a deep internalized understanding of the accelerating, exponential rate of change. So many supposed 'experts' merely project the rate of progress as a linear trend, or even worse, fail to recognize progress at all, and make predictions that end up being embarrassingly wrong. For example, recall that in the early 1970s, everyone thought that by 2000, all of the Earth's oil would be used up. It has not, and the average American spends fewer hours of wages on gasoline each week than in 1970. Equally simple-minded predictions are made today. "By 2080, Social Security will no longer be able pay benefits, leaving many middle Americans with insufficient retirement funds." 2080?! Or how about this one? "Immigration to the US from third-world countries will make such people a majority of the US population by 2100, making the US a third-world country." 'Third-world'? Here is why :
Emerging Technologies That Will Change The World