[extropy-chat] Baquiast on Kurzweil

[Giu1i0 Pri5c0]

Jean Paul Baquiast <http://automatesintelligent.blog.lemonde.fr/about.html>,
editor of the French web magazine Automates
Intelligents<http://www.automatesintelligents.com/>,
has written a review<http://www.automatesintelligents.com/edito/2005/oct/edito.html>of
the recent
book of Ray Kurzweil, The Singularity is Near - When Humans Transcend
Biology <http://singularity.com/>. Definitely worth reading for those who
read French.
Baquiast's review, measured and balanced as usual, begins with a description
of the Singularity concept and states that human life and computer networks
will interpenetrate in such a way to push the habitat of intelligent life
beyond foreseeable bounds. Hence a Singularity after which the impossible
becomes possible.
In other articles Baquiast seems persuaded that the evolution of technology
and the evolution of our species will follow a smoother path, without an
abrupt S. But he criticizes European and in particular French public
authorities for not taking the concept seriously enough. If instead of
dismissing Kurzweil's ideas as science fiction they took the time to
understand the dynamics of exponential growth of technology and accelerating
returns, Baquiast says, they could plan for the future by selecting emerging
high-potential NBIC technologies for public funding. Also, they could offer
citizens a more positive image of the future based on the understanding that
future technologies will be able to provide good solution for the problems
of today's world.
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