class 4 automata and, 89, 90, 520n, 521n
deterministic processes and, 89
of neural net, 269
of neurons and brain, 149, 151, 152, 153, 440, 443–444
quantum, 353–354, 363, 474–475, 481, 521n, 522n
Rao, R., 547n
Rao, Tata N., 567n
Rappaport, N. J., 512n
Ratner, Mark A., 115, 528n
rats, 188, 255
Rauch, Jonathan, 524n
Ray, Thomas, 429, 442–444, 446, 456, 600n, 601n
RayandTerry.com, 490
Ray Kurzweil’s Cybernetic Poet, 273, 580n
Raymond, J. L., 545n
reading, 175, 337, 589n
real-estate industry, 105
reality:
analog vs. digital nature of, 519n
mental models of, 198
see also physical reality; virtual reality
reasoning, 120, 143, 285
recessions, 99, 106
high-tech (2000–2003), 97, 524n
records, recording industry, 53, 327, 339
recursion, 190
recursive search, 272–273, 279
algorithmic description of, 273, 576n–580n
red-blood cells, mechanical, see respirocytes
Rediscovery of Mind, The (Searle), 459–460
reductants, 252
“Reduction in Watts per MIPS” chart, 128–129, 129
Reed-Sternberg cell, 552n
Rees, Martin, 361, 500n, 597n
Regan, Chris, 235
regional cerebral blood flow (rCBF), 161
regulation, 430–431, 470–473
medical, 373, 412–413, 416–417, 423
Reil, Torsten, 288, 582n
Reilly, B.D., 554n
“Relative State Formulation of Quantum Mechanics” (Everett), 500n–501n
relativity theory:
general, 341, 355, 378, 500n, 503n, 520n
special, 341, 354, 520n
relays, 67, 67, 127–128, 434
religion:
author’s upbringing in, 1, 2
death as viewed by, 368, 372, 374
fundamentalism and, 414
Singularity compared with, 370, 374
Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, Center for Gigascale Integration at, 113
repetition, mechanical, 26
repression, of memory, 176–177, 544n
reproduction:
of bacteria, 248
of cells, 218
in vitro fertilization and, 340
nonsexual, 46
sex separated from, 301, 367
sexual, see sexual reproduction
research, 279, 407
computer, budgets for, 25, 42, 259
Internet, 392–393, 594n
paradigm shifts and, 45
stem-cell, 222, 431, 471
respirocytes (mechanical red-blood cells), 28, 227, 305, 306, 506n
effectiveness of, 254, 558n
retina, 166, 187, 530n
feedforward sequence and, 154, 170
image processing in, 123, 187–188
implants of, 185, 308, 585n
of toad, 154
virtual reality and, 312, 472
retirement, 98
Rettig, Duane, 569n
Reuter, A., 560n
reverse engineering, 127, 146, 213, 323
of blood, 305–306
of computers, 157–158
of human brain, see brain reverse engineering
of primate visual system, 574n
of products, 231
reversible computing, 130–135, 244–245, 350, 428, 534n
Reynolds, Glenn, 598n
Rhea, John, 589n
rhesus macaques, humans compared with, 505n
Rhodoferax ferrireducens bacterium, 248
ribosomes, 16, 147, 198, 207–210, 213
design of, 483
nanotechnology and, 232–235, 238–239, 412
Rich, Elaine, 265, 266
Richards, Jay W., 593n
Richards, Mark A., 438, 439, 600n
rich-poor divide, 95, 430, 469–470
Riesenhuber, Maximilian, 186
Riley, James, 588n
Rilke, Rainer Maria, 299
Rizzolatti, Giacomo, 190 548n
RNA, 47, 216, 441
gene expression and, 16, 213
messenger (mRNA), 207, 208, 214, 412, 552n
nanotechnology and, 232
transfer (tRNA), 207, 208, 233
RNA interference (RNAi), 12, 214, 256, 323, 417, 422, 552n
Roach, John, 591n
roads, biological evolution and, 440
Robitaille, P-M. L., 540n
Robot (Moravec), 24
robotic telescopes, 281
robots, robotics, 24, 122
disabled assisted by, 189, 195
household, 292
kinematic constructor, 228, 229, 558n
manufacturing and, 276, 285–286
military, 189, 280, 285, 331–332, 333
at molecular level, see nanobots
monkeys’ control of, 194–195
nanotechnology and, 228–233, 246
as probes, 352, 591n
revolution in, 73, 84, 205, 206, 259–300, 570n–583n; see also strong AI
search-and-rescue, 286
vision systems for, 123, 187–188, 285–286, 529n
rock:
complexity of, 37, 508n–509n
computation in, 131, 137, 362
information in, 37, 137, 508n–509n, 536n
Rodgers, Peter, 592n
rogue nations, 423
Roninson, I. B., 554n
Rosamond, J., 552n
Roscheisen, Martin, 250
Rosen, Nathan, 355, 592n
Rosenblatt, Frank, 156, 539n
Rosetta Disk, 588n
Roska, Boton, 187, 547n
rotaxane, 115
Roth, U., 575n
Rothblatt, Martine, 379, 418, 593n, 598n
Roush, Wade, 580n
Rowling, J. K., 4–5
Roy, C. S., 540n
Rubel, E. W., 542n
Rueckes, Thomas, 114
Rukeyser, Muriel, 5
rule 110, 87–89, 88, 522n, 523n
Rupley, Sebastian, 533n
Russell, Bertrand, 264, 321, 453, 514n, 600n
Russia, ICBM arsenal of, 401
Sabatini, B. L., 541n
Sagan, Carl, 18, 35, 346, 355, 501n, 590n
Sahlins, Marshall, 387
“Sailing to Byzantium” (Yeats), 301
Saini, Subhash, 562n, 563n
St. Louis University, 247–248
Sakamoto, K. M., 552n
Salinas, E., 539n
Samonds, Jason M., 541n
Sandberg, Anders, 134, 144, 350–351, 356, 535n
Sandhana, Lakshmi, 589n
Sandia National Laboratories, 304
Sandvik, Haavard Bunes, 592n
sanitation, 409
San Jose AI conference (2004), 286
Santa Fe Institute, 509n
SARS (Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome) virus, 74, 398, 402–403, 423, 514n
satellites, 413
Space Solar Power, 250
Space Technology 5, 281
spy, 281
Sato, Hisahiko, 517n
Sato, K.-I., 516n
Sato, M., 553n
Savoy, R. L., 539n
scaffolds, nanoscale, 242
Scalaidhe, S. P., 543n
Scalise, George M., 525n
scanning-probe microscope (SPM), 237, 240
ScanSoft (formerly Kurzweil Computer Products), 570n
Schafer, Ron, 588n
Schaller, R. D., 566n
Scheibel, Thomas, 529n
Schewe, Phillip F., 586n
Schmidt, Bob, 283
Schneider, Frank, 550n
Schoenauer, T., 575n
Schopenhauer, Arthur, 7
Schönenberger, Christian, 526
Schopf, J. W., 502n
Schwartz, Jeffrey M., 542n
Schwarzschild, Kurt, 503n
science, 335, 372, 373, 375, 498n
AI applications in, 283
human grasp of, 261
inflated self-significance corrected by, 487
objectivity and, 378, 380
simplicity as driving force in, 39
technology’s enabling of advances in, 143
see also specific sciences
Science, 114, 117, 176, 215, 505n
science fiction, 271–272, 569n
Scientific American, 51, 101, 236–238, 254
scientific models, right level for, 167–168
scientist’s pessimism, 12
Scripps Research Institute, 235–236, 556n
S-curves:
energy and, 244
in paradigm life cycle, 43–44, 43, 44, 67, 72
of technology as expressed in its life cycle, 51–56
transportation and, 457
search-and-retrieve methods, 328
search engines, 100, 150, 286–287, 336, 436
Searle, John R., 394, 458–469, 474, 475, 477, 601n
second-harmonic generation (SHG) microscopy, 163
Securities Observation, News Analysis, and Regulation (SONAR) system, 284
security issues:
defensive technologies and, 417
law enforcement organizations and, 413, 421, 424
spybots and, 406–407
“Seed AI,” 569n
Seegrid, 285
Seeing Machines, 285
Seeman, Nadrian C., 235, 236, 560n
Seitz, C. L., 535n
Select computer program, 2–3, 497n
self-assembly, 121, 227
in nanotube circuits, 112–113, 115–116, 528n
self-organizing system(s), 89, 225, 265, 435, 459–462
algorithms, 146, 439–440, 481, 538n; see also evolutionary (genetic) algorithms
biopolymers, 252–253
brain as, 25–26, 148, 152, 153, 293, 371, 440, 443–444, 446, 456, 460, 483, 501 n, 523n
communication networks as, 125, 533n
connectionism and, 155–156
design and, 479–483
knowledge and, 126
mesh networks, 125, 280, 533n
military’s use of, 332–333
nonlinearity as requirement for, 155
see also Markov models; neural nets
self-replicating nanotechnology, 230, 235–236, 346, 352
broadcast architecture and, 232, 235, 400, 409, 412, 419
Foresight guidelines for, 229, 395, 411, 418–419, 598n
immune system and, 400, 411–412, 417
need for, 352, 400, 411–412, 425–426
probes and, 352, 412
safety concerns about, 11, 206, 229, 232, 237, 256, 395, 398–400, 403, 409, 411–412, 425–426
von Neumann’s model of, 228
weapons and, 334
self-replication:
of computer viruses, see software viruses
of computing resources, 116–117, 139
of DNA, 16, 47, 116, 117, 118, 207–208, 235, 529n
GNR defense and, 423–424
immune system and, 417
intelligent destiny of the cosmos and, 346, 352, 356
power of patterns vs., 388
Selkoe, D. J., 555n
Sematech, 57
semiconductors, semiconductor industry, 119, 153, 253
deflation in, 102
feature-size reduction in, 57–61, 57–60, 113, 434
growth in, 65, 102
International Technology Roadmap for, 57, 112, 126, 292
nanotubes as, 114
quantum effects in, 429
spintronics and, 119
see also silicon; silicon chips; transistors
Sendoh, M., 584n
sensorimotor skills, formation of, 178–179
sensory data:
brain’s processing of, 120
in Epoch Three, 16
virtual reality and, 319
sensory disabilities, 144
sensory signals, nanobots’ monitoring of, 165–166
sentience quotient (SQ), 536n
September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, 280, 397
serial endosymbiosis theory, 583n
Serre, Thomas, 547n
Chinese Room analogy of, 430, 458–466
serum monitoring, 423
SETI (Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence), 342–353
biological vs. nonbiological intelligence and, 350, 352, 358
computational limits and, 349–351
Drake equation and, 342, 344–349, 590n
Fermi Paradox and, 348, 357–359
scope of, 342–343, 343
Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome, see SARS (Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome) virus
sex, sexual activity:
contraception and, 321
desire and, 193
pleasure and, 301, 307, 315, 319
reproduction separated from, 301, 367
virtual, 318–319
sexual reproduction, 46, 92, 207, 301, 402, 441
genetic algorithms and, 270n, 539n
Shachtman, Noah, 588n
Shah, P. K., 553n
Shakespeare, William, 126, 196
shale oil, 244
Shane, Scott, 597n
Shannon, Claude, 507n–508n
Shapiro, Ehud, 118
Shaw, Gary A., 438, 439, 600n
Shaw, George Bernard, 96
Shaw, J. C., 264, 273, 569n
Shay, Mary-Ellen, 557n
Shenderova, O. A., 563n
Shepherd, Gordon M., 184, 545n
Sherman, William, 236, 560n
Sherrington, Sir Charles S., 458, 540n
Shi, Yuhui, 589n
Shoham, S., 586n
Shostak, Seth, 346, 358, 422, 590n
Si, K., 543n
signal-processing techniques, 279, 438–439, 445
silicon, 442
in BioMEMS, 583n
in photovoltaic cells, 249
silicon chips, 113, 119, 122
number of, 351, 591n
number of components on, 41–42, 111–112, 351, 526n
three-dimensional, 113
silicon intelligence, 376
silicon lithography, 113
Silk, J., 502n
Silva, R. A., 560n
SIMD (single instruction multiple data) architecture, 118, 119–120, 229
Simmel, F. C., 560n
Simon, Herbert A., 264, 273, 569n–570n
Simon, S. M., 586n
Simone (movie), 315
brain design and, 446–449
Einstein’s views on, 39, 519n
equivalence principle and, 136–138, 536n
of neurons, 143–144
Simpson, Michael, 236
Sims 2 game, 341
simulations:
brain, see brain simulations
existential risks and, 404–405
Singer, Maxine, 418
Singer, W., 176, 543n
Singularitarian, 369–390, 593n–594n
alienation and loneliness of, 370–371
meaning of being, 371–373
understanding and, 370
use of term, 7, 370, 498n
Singularitarian Principles, The (Yudkowsky), 498n
Singularity:
concept of, 5, 7–9, 498n
consciousness and, 374–382, 384–385
countdown to, 17, 17, 18, 18
death and, 326
as economic imperative, 96–110, 524n–526n
Epoch Five and, 14, 15, 20–21, 205
Epoch Six and, 14, 15, 21
GNR age and, 205, 206
goal of, 364
history of use of word, 22–24, 485–487
identity and, 382–387
meaningful statements about the nature of life
after, 29–33
passivity and, 374
powering of, 243–250
principles involved in, 25–29
religion compared with, 370, 374
time frame for, 123, 135–136, 226
as transcendence, 373, 375, 387–390
von Neumann’s views on, 10
Singularity.com, 489
Singularity Institute for Artificial Intelligence (SIAI), 598n–599n
Sinnott, Susan B., 563n
Skaletsky, Helen, 549n
Skarda, Christine A., 538n
skeleton, 307
skepticism, 12–13, 263
skills:
backing up of, 323
downloading of, 300
formation of, 178–179, 194, 202, 260–261, 309
human longevity and, 329
skin, 242, 307
skin cells, 213, 214, 223
transdifferentiation and, 223, 471, 557n
Sky & Telescope, 342–343, 343
Slack, Jonathan M. W., 557n
Smalley, Richard E., 234, 236–241, 246, 254, 432, 559n, 560n, 561n, 564n
smallpox, 398, 402
Smart, John, 24, 35, 358, 370, 504n, 507n, 592n
Smart-Airport Operations Center (SAOC), 284
smart dust, 334
Smith, Huston, 387, 594n
Smith, K. R., 553n
Smith, Quentin, 500n–501n
Smith, Tony, 565n
Smolin, Lee, 360, 361, 362, 364, 592n
Smoller, Joel, 504n
snails, consciousness of, 466, 467
Snider, S., 586n
snowflakes, 93
Snyder, Allan, 161
Snyder, Lawrence H., 179
Sobel, Dava, 590n
soccer, software for, 288
social institutions, conservatism of, 472–473
Social Security, 97–98
software, 5, 100, 259
AI systems’ monitoring of, 284
algorithms, 428, 438–442
auditory, 148
for chess, 274–278, 274, 441, 459
complexity of, 428, 437–438
as composing universe, 86
consumer power and, 104
criticism from, 428, 435–442
deflation and, 102–103
development of, 97, 107, 437, 534n
for dyslexic students, 175, 337, 589n
genetic algorithms and, 271
genome compared with, 206–207
hardware vs., 102, 428, 435, 438, 439, 445
human intelligence modeled by, 25, 126, 127; see also brain reverse engineering
irreversible, 130
longevity of, 325–330
military uses of, 279–280
for molecular manufacturing, 231
price-performance of, 103, 436, 438
productivity of, 428, 437
responsiveness of, 436
self-organization in, 151
for space exploration, 280–281
for speech recognition, 5, 103, 146, 153, 184, 268, 436, 438, 529n, 570n
sports, 288
stability of, 435–436
for strong AI, 261–262
of universal computer, 91, 523n
viability of, 325
software viruses, 241, 255–256, 333, 423
biological viruses compared with, 413–414, 416