Economic tumult, political upheaval, uncertainty? Great, everything is going as expected.
What?
Yes, it’s hard to believe, but the human species is evolving rapidly; our current economic paroxysm simply reflects the pangs of a new birth. Throughout history, economies have plunged into turmoil just prior to the greatest economic boom-times, and November 2008 is no exception. Drastic changes are taking place certainly, but we’ve nothing to fear as these changes presage the greatest time in all of human history; a time when the human potential will seem to unfold at a near infinite rate. Science and technology will again take the front stage of this new human renaissance, with a few key technologies at the heart of this boom, among them:
AI, Genetics, Robotics.
These technologies will develop as astonishing speeds over the coming years, similar to but faster than the development of the personal computer, the internet, mobile telephony and the various other technologies of the last boom cycle. The uncertainty that we are experiencing now is required, as we must restructure ourselves, our markets and our leaders to facilitate our evolution: in the lexicon of a “punctuated equilibrium“, we are currently punctuating.
So then what is this “New World Order”? Well, if the truth shall set you free, then these nascent technologies are our truth. The “New World Order” is made of us; a newer stronger us, a society of supermen.
Huh?
Yes it is true. AI will be in operation within this decade. When a computer masters thought, the computer will begin solving humanities’ largest problems at phenomenal speed. The computer will quickly surpass human questions and begin pondering questions humans could not, including notions such as how to keep man safe from computers (easy, integration). Within just a few decades, humans will amplify our knowledge by a billion times, and with this knowledge we will solve our problems, (and certainly make some new ones). This is not my concern though, and neither is genetics, but a little on that…
When DNA was discovered, some of the world’s best minds confidently predicted that it would take humans 10,000 years to decrypt the genome; it took 27. Heck the whole DNA code can fit on CD, but who could have predicted the meteoric rise of computers? (a nearly “instant” technology that has done more for humanity than any technology in the last million years…) Now that we have the genome in hand, we possess our own destiny. Expect to see “miracles” being performed in just the next decade, as we rush toward understanding our inner makings. I digress; but for more transhuman predictions I’d recommend a read of Ray Kurzweil’s book, The Singularity is Near.
Robots at the gates of dawn:
Robots…what are they? Walking talking autonomous servants? Not yet, and I doubt such a machine will ever be in wide use. (Besides, bipedalism is a bad design for most jobs; we’ve long had better ideas for locomotion.) So what kind of robot then? Well, if you use a computer printer, you’ve used a robot.
A printer?
Yep. A printer is a gantry robot, driven by a machine controller (computer) and fed spacial coordinate data as well as parametric values for its purpose-built functions from numerous software programs. Got all that? My point is, you almost certainly have a printer sitting beside you now, and you know how to use it. You are a roboticist, but I doubt you ever think of yourself that way. This shows how a technology doesn’t need “bottom up” understanding to achieve ubiquity; users only need a “top down” knowledge to use the machine…heck, a user doesn’t even have to know they are using a robot to use it.
The computer printer is a good example too, since it is a foot in the door to my contention; that behind that door is a veritable tsunami of automation technology that is ripe for consumption. I am not speaking of how robots will affect science and industry, but rather the personal robotics revolution that puts the power into your hands, my hands, school kids; all of us. What is this power? It is the power to make practically anything.
Consider that any tool held by man’s hand (and many that can not) can be used by this robot to much greater effect, precision and speed; without risk, and at a tiny fraction of the cost of human labor. Every person will have an affordable, autonomous manufacturing plant at their disposal. This single tool will replace practically every other tool in use. The cultural uptake of this technology on a personal level is what I deem the Micro-Manufacturing Economy; a DIY economy far more supportive of individual empowerment; a milieu of high-personalization and individual creativity, of collaborative manufacturing and unprecedented cultural advancements, in both art and science.
This is my vision, and I have no doubt that this is now coming to pass; the development of the personal robot: A machine that is adaptable, rugged and inexpensive. A machine that is modular and configurable. A machine that is….to be continued…
Grayson Sigler (aka Brainchild)
