Subject: [extropy-chat] Social Implications of Nanotech

[Eugen Leitl]

On Thu, Nov 13, 2003 at 02:07:24PM -0500, Robin Hanson wrote:
> On 11/13/2003, Curt Adams wrote:
> >Without self-replication, I don't see any good reason that nanotechnology
> >will produce effects fundamentally different from other revolutionary 
> >techs,
> >like railroads, electricity, scientific drug design or computers.
> 
> Well each of those revolutions did produce different effects, but you might
> well argue that these differences are small compared to the effect of
> self-replication of programmable nano-factories.

Except for AI, of course. Molecular circuitry by self-assembly is
nanotechnology, yet it doesn't self-replicate its means of production.

An AI in a self-enhancement runaway is of course the driving force behind
Singularity (and will produce self-rep molecular manufacturing as one of the
side effects).

-- Eugen* Leitl <a href="http://leitl.org">leitl</a>
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