Singularity.FM

Jamais Cascio is one of the worlds top 100 thinkers according to Foreign Policy. He writes and speaks on a variety of topics from technology and global warming, to war, nuclear proliferation, ethics and sustainable development.  Thus my goal was to discuss most of those topics for, in one way or another, they are relevant […]

Tracy R. Atkins is not only a contributor to Singularity Weblog but also the author of a brand new singularity book titled Aeternum Ray. Aeternum Ray is rather unique because it is openly and whole-heartedly utopian in character. It is written in the epistolary literary tradition of classic science fiction works such as Frankenstein, and is structured as a mémoire - a series of letters from a father to his son. The book is also interesting from a technical point of view: It also comes in a Dyslexia edition which has been formatted to include a special typeface that may assist readers who have a developmental reading disorder (DRD or Dyslexia). The open source font - OpenDyslexic by Abelardo Gonzalez, utilizes weighting at the bottom of many characters in an effort to prevent letter inversion while reinforcing the line of text. This typeface modification technique has been shown to increase reading accuracy for some forms of DRD. During our conversation with Tracy R. Atkins we cover a wide variety of topics such as: his definition of the technological singularity; how Star Trek inspired Tracy to love science fiction and how Transcendent Man inspired him to write a singularity novel; growing up in a home that marveled in science and technology; what the title Aeternum Ray stands for and what the novel is all about; whether the future of humanity is digital or if there are benefits to biology; writing dystopia versus writing utopia; human nature and the potential for a pre-sigularity global war... As always you can listen to or download the audio file above, or scroll down and watch the video interview in full. If you want to help me produce more episodes of Singularity 1 on 1 please make a donation:   More About Aeternum Ray: “Poverty, terrorism, murder, disease, homelessness, hopelessness, hunger and death; all cease to exist in 2049.” Aeternum Ray is a sweeping, yet intimate story of mankind’s next renaissance that will appeal to fans of visionaries Isaac Asimov, Gene Roddenberry and Ray Kurzweil. The novel is a collection of emotional personal letters written by 240-year-old William Babington to his newborn son Benjamin. Having lived a full life, William has experienced everything from death to his rebirth into the utopian Aeternum; an advanced computer system shepherded by the omnipotent artificial intelligence Ray. William pens the highlights of his existence, love, and loss while reflecting on the centuries of wonder he has witnessed firsthand. His humble letters form a detailed memoir that is intertwined with humanity’s greatest triumphs, the technological singularity, and the solemn burden of surviving Earth’s darkest night of terror. Through the light and dark times of the near future, Aeternum Ray departs from dystopian themes and brings back the uplifting notion of utopian speculative ideals.   More about Tracy R. Atkins: Tracy R. Atkins has been a technology aficionado since a young age, proclaiming with lighthearted glee that it began when he first saw DOS in kindergarten. By fifteen, Tracy had already written and sold software, as well ran a pre-internet era bulletin board system, which put many residents of his home town of Madison, WV online for the first time. At the age of eighteen, he played a critical role in an internet startup, cutting his tech-teeth during the dot-com boom. After the bust, Tracy hit the books and graduated college at the top of his class with a degree in Business Information Systems. Throughout his fifteen year career, he has earned numerous professional level tech-industry certifications, which he pursued out of a misguided sense of fun. As a man whose life is intertwined with technology, he has not let it define him. That same sense of fun and exploration that propelled his career has also driven his desire to live life to the fullest. Tracy’s interests have run the gamut from writing, traveling,

Tracy R. Atkins is not only a contributor to Singularity Weblog but also the author of a brand new singularity book titled Aeternum Ray. Aeternum Ray is rather unique because it is openly and whole-heartedly utopian in character. It is written in the epistolary literary tradition of classic science fiction […]

Tracy R. Atkins is not only a contributor to Singularity Weblog but also the author of a brand new singularity book titled Aeternum Ray. Aeternum Ray is rather unique because it is openly and whole-heartedly utopian in character. It is written in the epistolary literary tradition of classic science fiction works such as Frankenstein, and is […]

Dr. James Hughes is not only the executive director of the Institute for Ethics and Emerging Technologies (IEET) but also a well known book author and transhumanist. I enjoyed having him on the show and will probably ask him to come back. During our conversation with Dr. Hughes we cover a wide variety of topics such as: what is the IEET and what does it do; the story behind James' interest in technology, policy, philosophy and bio/ethics; why transhumanist atheists are often drawn to Buddhism; his first book Citizen Cyborg and his upcoming Cyborg Buddha; transhumanism and his definition thereof; whether optimism is rational; the impact of artificial intelligence on transhumanism; James' take on the technological singularity and our chances of surviving it; the benefits of biology; moral enhancement and animal uplift. As always you can listen to or download the audio file above, or scroll down and watch the video interview in full. If you want to help me produce more episodes of Singularity 1 on 1 just make a donation:   Who is James Hughes? James Hughes Ph.D. serves as the Executive Director of the technoprogressive thinktank Institute for Ethics and Emerging Technologies. He is a bioethicist and sociologist at Trinity College in Hartford Connecticut where he teaches health policy and serves as Director of Institutional Research and Planning. He holds a doctorate in sociology from the University of Chicago. Dr. Hughes is author of Citizen Cyborg: Why Democratic Societies Must Respond To The Redesigned Human Of The Future, and is working on a second book tentatively titled Cyborg Buddha.

Dr. James Hughes is not only the executive director of the Institute for Ethics and Emerging Technologies (IEET) but also a well known book author and transhumanist. I enjoyed having him on the show and will probably ask him to come back. During our conversation with Dr. Hughes we cover […]

Dr. James Hughes is not only the executive director of the Institute for Ethics and Emerging Technologies (IEET) but also a well known book author and transhumanist. I enjoyed having him on the show and will probably ask him to come back. During our conversation with Dr. Hughes we cover a wide variety of topics […]

The first time that I looked at The Alpha Centauri Project by Marco Santini, I was struck by the book’s dedication: To he who explores new horizons, because knowledge doesn’t have limits, to he who tries new ways, because dreams become reality, to he who pursues brotherhood, because peace is not […]

The first time that I looked at the The Alpha Centauri Project by Marco Santini, I was struck by the book's dedication: To he who explores new horizons, because knowledge doesn’t have limits, to he who tries new ways, because dreams become reality, to he who pursues brotherhood, because peace is not a chimera. Having read such an opening I knew that I have to talk to the author. So, when I decided to do a few interviews spotlighting good sci fi authors, who don't receive the attention they deserve, I naturally thought of Marco. Santini - an Italian engineer and and MBA holder by training, has already released two books - The Alpha Centauri Project and Evolution: The Future. What is interesting here is that Marco makes his books available for free to everyone interested. Furthermore, his novels have been translated into five languages and are available in a number of different formats. Bellow you can watch my 20 minute conversation with Marco about his books and his views on science fiction, transhumanism and giving your work away for free. My favorite thought that I will take away from Marco is this: "Pessimistic scenarios can always exist. But with rationality - optimistic ones can be created!" As always you can listen to or download the audio file above or scroll down and watch the video interview in full. If you like it and want to help me produce more episodes of Singularity 1 on 1 just make a donation:   Evolution: The Future According to future studies, the world will be dominated soon by disruptive technologies, able to plunge Mankind into an era of accelerated progress. Main outcomes will be the achievement of immortality, the creation of smarter than human Artificial Intelligence and the spread of the new species through the universe. “Evolution: the future” is a breathtaking story set in a near future altered almost beyond recognition by disruptive technologies. 24th century. Humans live on Earth and the Moon, last strongholds of their past power. Mars and the Net are inhabited by artificial intelligences and souls, these last obtained by digitizing the brain after death. The virtual reality allows the two races to communicate. Their differences are deep, their interests incompatible. With digitization, humans have postponed real death to an indeterminate future, but they are not happy. Towards the virtual beings they feel admiration but also envy and inferiority. The digital creatures instead cannot bear being relegated in worlds too small for their unbounded ambitions. Their Martian experience has allowed them to develop the competence necessary in extra-terrestrial environments, most of all to acquire the self-confidence indispensable for the colonization of other star systems. The Alpha Centauri project obtains the humans’ support, in exchange for the waiver of any expansion on the Earth. Just before departure, Earth Security intercepts a suspect message from the Space Agency. Terrorism? The evidence leads to the Elects, a sect that entered Net fifty years before through a collective suicide... Eve and Victoria, the main characters, are “souls”, digital beings whose brain was digitized after death. They move in a context of epoch making events, becoming more and more involved and finally merging their destiny with that of the digital people.   The Alpha Centauri Project: Thinking Worlds is a science fiction novel full of suspense and action, that becomes soon a fascinating travel into emerging technologies, disclosing future impacts on our civilization. Imagine this: It is the 24th century. Three ethnic groups: humans, artificial intelligences and souls - obtained by digitizing the brain after death. Deep differences, incompatible interests. An interstellar voyage to avoid a war, a sect determined to interfere. Suspense, action, but also considered thoughts. The main characters move in a context of epoch making events,

The first time that I looked at The Alpha Centauri Project by Marco Santini, I was struck by the book’s dedication: To he who explores new horizons, because knowledge doesn’t have limits, to he who tries new ways, because dreams become reality, to he who pursues brotherhood, because peace is not a chimera. Having read such […]

Dear friends, It took me a few days to digest the results from my first ever fund-raising campaign and decide what to do next. During that time I took a long, hard look in the mirror of public opinion and input. I received many amazing testimonials and public endorsements and few criticisms. Still, I can't fail to ignore 2 facts: Your input was overwhelmingly positive. I was simply overrun by messages not only via email but also via all kinds of social media. (This is one of the main reasons it took me so long to post this because I did my best to reply to as many of you as possible.) I failed to reach my stated goal of raising $30,000. So, how do I reconcile the above 2 facts and what have I decided to do next?! Check out the video below or the audio above to find out! Thank you!

Ray Kurzweil's impact on my life in general but especially on what I have been doing for the past 3 or 4 years is hard to exaggerate. It is a simple fact that, if I haven’t read his seminal book The Singularity is Near, I would be neither blogging nor podcasting about exponential technologies, not to mention going to Singularity University. And so it was with great excitement and some trepidation that I went to interview Dr. Kurzweil in his office in Boston. Part of my trepidation came from some technical concerns: I wish I could buy a better camera. I wish I could hire a team of audio and video professionals so that I can focus on the interview itself. I wish I did a better job with the set up. I wish I had noticed that Ray's lavalier mic has slipped out of its holder... The list is exponential. Still, if there is one thing that I've learned since I started podcasting is that we do get better. But it takes time. Meanwhile, my consolation is that eventually I will have to do another interview with Ray Kurzweil just so I get it right that time. For now, however, I hope that the content of this one will make up for its technical deficiencies. During our conversation with Dr. Kurzweil we cover a wide variety of topics such as: how and why at age 5 Ray decided to become an inventor; his unique background of being born to Jewish parents but brought up in a Unitarian Church; his early interest in issues such as religious tolerance, poverty, social inequality and justice; 3D printing, open source, patents, progress and intellectual property rights; Watson, artificial intelligence, the Turing Test and human rights for AI, the technological singularity and some criticism thereof; his upcoming book How To Create A Mind and his Pattern Recognition Theory of Mind; the evolutionary advantages of intelligence; the benefits of reverse-engineering the human brain for the creation of AI and whether the latter would be interested in pondering and solving humanity's greatest problems. My favorite quote that I will take away from this interview with Ray Kurzweil is: “Don't be too concerned about what's practical. Follow your passion and be who you would like to be.” As always you can listen to or download the audio file above or scroll down and watch the video interview in full. You can also help me produce more episodes of Singularity 1 on 1 by supporting my fund-raising campaign: http://www.singularityweblog.com/donate-and-support-singularity-weblog/   Behind The Curtain: Images of My Interview with Ray Kurzweil   Ray Kurzweil: I Support Singularity 1 on 1 http://www.singularityweblog.com/donate-and-support-singularity-weblog/   Who is Ray Kurzweil? Ray Kurzweil has been described as “the restless genius” by the Wall Street Journal, and “the ultimate thinking machine” by Forbes. Inc. magazine ranked him #8 among entrepreneurs in the United States, calling him the “rightful heir to Thomas Edison,” and PBS included Ray as one of 16 “revolutionaries who made America,” along with other inventors of the past two centuries. As one of the leading inventors of our time, Ray was the principal developer of the first CCD flat-bed scanner, the first omni-font optical character recognition, the first print-to-speech reading machine for the blind, the first text-to-speech synthesizer, the first music synthesizer capable of recreating the grand piano and other orchestral instruments, and the first commercially marketed large-vocabulary speech recognition. Ray’s web site Kurzweil AI.net has over one million readers. Among Ray’s many honors, he is the recipient of the $500,000 MIT-Lemelson Prize, the world's largest for innovation. In 1999, he received the National Medal of Technology, the nation's highest honor in technology, from President Clinton in a White House ceremony. And in 2002, he was inducted into the National Inventor's Hall of Fame,

Ray Kurzweil‘s impact on my life in general but especially on what I have been doing for the past 3 or 4 years is hard to exaggerate. It is a simple fact that, if I haven’t read his seminal book The Singularity is Near, I would be neither blogging nor podcasting […]

Ray Kurzweil‘s impact on my life in general but especially on what I have been doing for the past 3 or 4 years is hard to exaggerate. It is a simple fact that, if I haven’t read his seminal book The Singularity is Near, I would be neither blogging nor podcasting about exponential technologies, not to […]

Aubrey de Grey recently posted a link to the Singularity 1 on 1 fund-raising campaign on his Facebook wall. I asked Aubrey “Why do you support Singularity 1 on 1?!” Here is what he had to say...