[ExI] Apocalyptic AI - book presentation and discussion inSecond Life, Tuesday March 30, 10am PST

[Natasha Vita-More]

I'm in SL now looking at the bilboard. Looks great! 


Nlogo1.tif Natasha Vita-More

-----Original Message-----
From: extropy-chat-bounces at lists.extropy.org
[mailto:extropy-chat-bounces at lists.extropy.org] On Behalf Of Giulio Prisco
Sent: Tuesday, March 30, 2010 5:49 AM
To: cosmic-engineers at googlegroups.com; cosmeng at googlegroups.com; ExI chat
list; transumanisti at yahoogroups.com; transfigurism at googlegroups.com
Subject: Re: [ExI] Apocalyptic AI - book presentation and discussion
inSecond Life, Tuesday March 30, 10am PST

Reminder: today March 30, 10am PST, 1pm EST, 7pm Continental EU, 6pm UK

SLURL and info here

http://giulioprisco.blogspot.com/2010/03/apocalyptic-ai-book-presentation-an
d.html

> Oxford University Press - Apocalyptic AI: Visions of Heaven in 
> Robotics, Artificial Intelligence, and Virtual Reality, by Robert M.
> Geraci.
>
> See my review of this excellent book. Robert has done a lot of field 
> reconnaissance work behind transhumanist lines in Second Life. The 
> book has a full report of Robert's field work and his interpretation 
> of the spirit of transhumanism, and the spirit of virtual worlds. This 
> book has started many interesting (and often vigorous) discussions in 
> both transhumanist and Second Life interest groups.
>
> Robert will come to Second Life for a book presentation and discussion 
> on Tuesday March 30, at 10am PST. The talk will take place in the 
> Singularity Club (which can be seen in the background of the picture) 
> on the Transvision Nexus island. Please follow this SLURL to teleport, 
> and bring interesting questions.
>
> New World Notes - Oxford Press Book on Digital Age Spirituality Argues 
> Second Life Provides Platform For Innovative Religious Thinking: The 
> ultra-prestigious Oxford University just published a book devoted to 
> theology in the digital age: Apocalyptic AI Visions of Heaven in 
> Robotics, Artificial Intelligence, and Virtual Reality. It's written 
> by Manhattan College professor Robert Geraci, known in Second Life as 
> Soren Ferlinghetti (pictured), and unsurprisingly, a whole chapter is 
> devoted to Second Life, and conversations with several well-known 
> Extropians (sometimes called transhumanists), who often see Second 
> Life as a means for transcending the human body.
>
> From the publishers' site: "Description: Apocalyptic AI, the hope that 
> we might one day upload our minds into machines or cyberspace and live 
> forever, is a surprisingly wide-spread and influential idea, affecting 
> everything from the world view of online gamers to government research 
> funding and philosophical thought. In Apocalyptic AI, Robert Geraci 
> offers the first serious account of this "cyber-theology" and the 
> people who promote it.
>
> Drawing on interviews with roboticists and AI researchers and with 
> devotees of the online game Second Life, among others, Geraci 
> illuminates the ideas of such advocates of Apocalyptic AI as Hans 
> Moravec and Ray Kurzweil. He reveals that the rhetoric of Apocalyptic 
> AI is strikingly similar to that of the apocalyptic traditions of 
> Judaism and Christianity. In both systems, the believer is trapped in 
> a dualistic universe and expects a resolution in which he or she will 
> be translated to a transcendent new world and live forever in a 
> glorified new body. Equally important, Geraci shows how this worldview 
> shapes our culture. For instance, Apocalyptic AI has influenced 
> funding agencies such as the National Science Foundation, helping to 
> prioritize robotics and AI research. It has become the ideology of 
> choice for online gamers, such as those involved in Second Life; it 
> has had a profound impact on the study of the mind; and it has 
> inspired scientists and theologians alike to wonder about the super 
> robots of the future. Should we think of robots as persons? What kind 
> of morality would intelligent robots espouse?
>
> Apocalyptic AI has become a powerful force in modern culture. In this 
> superb volume, Robert Geraci shines a light on this belief system, 
> revealing what it is and how it is changing society."
>
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