tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post1762107162615165719..comments2024-03-18T21:52:45.757-07:00Comments on CONTRARY BRIN: Technologies that might change everythingDavid Brinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14465315130418506525noreply@blogger.comBlogger49125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post-86813687155199296082013-11-25T00:13:03.191-08:002013-11-25T00:13:03.191-08:00I wonder if they are doing human trials yet?
OEMI wonder if they are doing human trials yet?<br /><br /><b><a href="http://www.ducotech.com/original-equipment-manufacturer/" rel="nofollow">OEM</a></b>ducotechhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17218263925464954106noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post-5346022540603957702013-04-20T22:20:26.220-07:002013-04-20T22:20:26.220-07:00I'm late... but where'd you get the trilli...I'm late... but where'd you get the trillion synapse figure? If directly from Kurzweil, that seems even less reason to take him seriously; the Webmind has estimates of 150 trillion to 700 trillion synapses.Damien Sullivanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13321329197063620556noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post-38680675735970103782013-04-07T09:31:36.389-07:002013-04-07T09:31:36.389-07:00Here's another -- if you don't know H.E. T...Here's another -- if you don't know H.E. Taylor, take the time to read more starting here:<br /><br />http://scienceblogs.com/illconsidered/2013/04/the-bottleneck-years-by-h-e-taylor-chapter-34/Hank Robertshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07521410755553979665noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post-71392512534038793792013-04-03T18:22:19.077-07:002013-04-03T18:22:19.077-07:00Where the hermit kingdom is a possible asset to Ch...Where the hermit kingdom is a possible asset to China is in the price we pay to get China to talk them down from apparent insanity. Watch for the possibility that we will roll back these upgrades if China helps out. If we do that it means we are setting the price instead of letting the Chinese do it.<br /><br />I expect we will go along with this bluster-for-rewards for a little while longer. It currently serves our interests to do so. China has to step up soon, though, to make sure it serves theirs too.Alfred Differhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01170159981105973192noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post-77946309841041639642013-04-03T18:12:29.208-07:002013-04-03T18:12:29.208-07:00locumranch,
I'm not concerned with whether or...locumranch,<br /><br />I'm not concerned with whether or not others (non-weird) see technology the same way I do. I'm sure they won't. That doesn't mean there isn't value to my perspective on this. Insights at at the basis of innovations that tend to be adopted by outliers. I'm fine with that. If there is enough value in an insight others might adopt it for themselves, but value is always measured by the individual so that works out without bias.<br /><br />Owning and being something can be overlapping. I'm following in an old liberal tradition described by Locke. The most fundamental property we own is ourselves, so there is a relationship between being free to use your property as you choose and being free to act as you choose.<br /><br />For example, I both use the English language and shape it as if it were a tool. In a sense, I am also part of the English language since it doesn't exist without people who speak and write it. I own it. I am it. I shape it. I am not the only one who has a claim like this, though. The language IS what we all are.Alfred Differhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01170159981105973192noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post-33010790842209805282013-04-03T17:13:30.283-07:002013-04-03T17:13:30.283-07:00Technology in and of itself doesn't make us be...Technology in and of itself doesn't make us better people, but it does make it easier for large numbers of people not to be hungry, cold, desperate, and afraid.<br /><br />And people who are not hungry, cold, desparate, and afraid are more likely to be better people than are people who ARE all of those things.<br /><br />That's why a social safety net is a benefit to all of society, not just those who are "lucky ducky" to be poor enough to receive the benefits. Believing this to be the case is almost entirely the reason I consider myself a liberal.LarryHartnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post-90775937393158232732013-04-03T17:08:27.587-07:002013-04-03T17:08:27.587-07:00Just back from out of town, so a few quick points ...Just back from out of town, so a few quick points in no particular order...<br /><br />locumranch is right that slavery is simmering just below the surface. The right-wing pretty obviously is hot to re-establish feudalism, thinly disguesd as the property rights of the so-called owners of the means of survival. "I own all the stuff you need to live, and you are free to bargain with me for a share of it." Thom Hartmann posits that the original economic sin was when agriculture made it possible for an elite to "lock up the food."<br /><br />I agree with several of you that Star Trek DS9 was great when it had extended story arcs that changed the status quo (such as Gul Dukat allying with the Dominion, making the Cardassians a force to be feared again). But who says TNG didn't have extended arc either. I found some of the middle seasons absolutely fascinating because of the Klingon politics and Roumlan intrigue arcs.<br /><br />Just returned from St Louis where the family and I saw (among other things) the lemurs at the zoo. I have to say that the reason the missing link between monkeys and humans hasn't been found is because everyone is looking for the wrong thing. Lemurs are the missing link between monkeys and CATS.LarryHartnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post-39514548521826587502013-04-03T16:47:43.487-07:002013-04-03T16:47:43.487-07:00Re North Korean bluster:
(1) NKorean nukes are ...Re North Korean bluster:<br /><br /><br /> (1) NKorean nukes are an insignificant threat (today) compared to the thousands of artillery tubes now buried in reverse slopes in mountains within range of Seoul. They can "rain fire" quite literally, within a single, synchronized minute. The SKorean leadership was criminally negligent to keep the capital and commercial heart in such a locale. <br /><br />(2) We are alive today because saner heads maintained containment of communism since 1945, and never heeded the yokels screaming "nuke'em now!" <br /><br />(3) Have any of you noticed the side benefit to us? The US is rushing in reinforced missle defense systems to Guam etc and the big Asian power who might have objected strenuously and effectively cannot, because their client state made it untenable for us NOT to reinforce. Obama is rushing though long-delayed upgrades in East Asia using NKorean bluster as an excuse. And the big neighbor has to just watch. <br /><br /> This may finally propel them into seeing the hermit kingdom as no asset.<br />David Brinhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14465315130418506525noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post-23039061801219344522013-04-03T12:37:51.557-07:002013-04-03T12:37:51.557-07:00Jumper:
The use of the royal "we" is a...Jumper: <br />The use of the royal "we" is a WEIRD prerogative. See Item 1.2: "Researchers Often Assume their Findings are Universal". If you find the royal 'We' use offensive, then congrats because you're less WEIRD than think.<br /><br />Robert:<br />Q:"Who is to say that this outlier you call WEIRD is not in fact an evolutionary adaptation?"<br />A: Why Nobody, of course. That's up to Time & the Universe, not the prospective Dodo.<br /><br />Alfred:<br />Everything WE have is 'technology' including the clothes on OUR back and the social institutions in which WE participate (Apologies to to Jumper). Problem is that OWNING technology is not the same as BEING technology. To assuming that 'possessing' and 'being' mean the same thing is a classic logical fallacy. <br /><br />"Say not that you are a fine man because you own a fine (technological) horse," says Epictetus, "Say instead that you own a fine horse" (because the term 'fine' refers only to the horse).<br /><br />Best.locumranchnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post-79134247153150119012013-04-03T12:03:44.815-07:002013-04-03T12:03:44.815-07:00WEIRD is a macro-innovation that is being adapted ...WEIRD is a macro-innovation that is being adapted and adopted by others. Every cultural group struggling to join the global market is becoming a WEIRD variant.<br /><br />If 33% of us are mentally unfit to function as adults, that sounds exactly like a selection pressure. Those of us who survive to have and raise children will make the next generation even weirder.<br /><br />The thing to measure (if it can be done) is how infectious weirdness is. Does it displace other memes?Alfred Differhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01170159981105973192noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post-18720990938136218682013-04-03T11:39:08.890-07:002013-04-03T11:39:08.890-07:00And speaking of technologies that may change every...And speaking of technologies that may change everything... <a href="http://www.rdmag.com/news/2013/01/scientists-mimic-fireflies-make-brighter-leds" rel="nofollow">scientists have found a micrometer-scale structure in fireflies that is easy to replicate and increases the brightness of Light Emitting Diodes by 50%</a>. Though technically this probably could be applied to CFCs and incandescent lightbulbs as well. Best of all, it could be done without having to retool LEDs through use of laser etching. <br /><br />I mean, one of the major problems with LEDs is you pay through the nose for ones with sufficient brightness to compete with incandescents. So if you can turn a 40 watt-effective bulb into a 60 watt bulb with just a little bit of work without having a significant bump in price? Then you have just made something an effective competitor.<br /><br />It also provides a method of extending the product lifespan of incandescent bulbs... because now you have 66 watt bulbs putting out the light of a 100 watt bulb. While the power savings isn't as great as LEDs or even CFCs, it still is a power savings for an inexpensive bulb.<br /><br />Rob H.Acacia H.https://www.blogger.com/profile/07678539067303911329noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post-38857113951222196322013-04-03T11:25:09.174-07:002013-04-03T11:25:09.174-07:00You do realize, locumranch, that your argument is ...You do realize, locumranch, that your argument is flawed. When the current form of Homo Sapiens came about, they were outliers. They weren't the norm. And yet they managed to become the norm and even surpass competitors such as Neanderthal. <br /><br />So who is to say that this outlier you call WEIRD is not in fact an evolutionary adaptation of humanity that could eventually surpass the rest of sociopolitical and socioeconomic variants found within Homo Sapiens?<br /><br />Or to put it another way, stagnation leads to death. A company that does not grow will in a free market situation end up overcome by competitors. A culture that does not change will be surpassed by other cultures (as pre-Communist China is evidence of). <br /><br />Rob H.Acacia H.https://www.blogger.com/profile/07678539067303911329noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post-48145105573577935562013-04-03T11:16:01.080-07:002013-04-03T11:16:01.080-07:00OK. I'll give some ground with respect to DS9....OK. I'll give some ground with respect to DS9. That one was more interesting and the humans were more human. <br /><br /><br />The evolutionary jury never comes in though. It always hangs because nothing ever ends. Unless all life goes extinct on this rock, even species death leads to a hung jury if the species was around long enough to speciate. Our ancestors demonstrate this fairly well by the variety of 'human' types.<br /><br />The jury may be out, but the fact that there are 7 billion of us on this rock is telling. We used to have a hard time keeping just 1% that many alive not that long ago. Our life span and quality of life back then sucked when compared to modern life. Unless you make and wield stone axes and hunt & gather in small family bands, everything you have is 'technology' including the clothes on your back and the social institutions in which you participate. Hard and soft technology are the 'end' products of innovation which is very much an evolutionary process.<br /><br />I know there are people who argue we haven't changed in a fundamental way because the tech is not us. I disagree, though, because the soft tech IS us in the cultural sense. As individuals it is reasonable to argue we haven't changed much, but as cultures I think it is a slam-dunk that we have. The existance of WEIRD culture demonstrates this.Alfred Differhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01170159981105973192noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post-28656408346248078012013-04-03T10:56:44.831-07:002013-04-03T10:56:44.831-07:00" We tell ourselves that we would be happier ..." We tell ourselves that we would be happier (better) people if we were somehow smarter, richer, more accomplished or productive"<br /><br />As that isn't the "royal 'we'" I find it presumptive. Except for the richer part, which also does not equal better in my mind nor in the minds of many. I guess it's a desire for ego-superiority that "we" have, to assume such.<br /><br />The low absolute numbers of WEIRD may be inconsequential compared to the high absolute numbers characterizing technology's comparative capabilities as an effective tool.Jumperhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11794110173836133321noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post-90107151792908891572013-04-03T09:45:13.168-07:002013-04-03T09:45:13.168-07:00Alfred makes a good point. We know what is unalter...Alfred makes a good point. We know what is unalterable only by trying, failing and trying again. I would add, though, that the evolutionary jury is still out regarding the long-term benefits of being 'WEIRD' because industrialization (which makes 33% of our population 'mentally ill') may or may not be an effective long-term survival strategy.<br /><br />Randy says that 'technology is not magic' and I agree, but I would add that most people -- who use technology without understanding it -- are incapable of making that distinction. Like Prospero summoning Ariel, they perform magic when they flip a light switch or anoint themselves with an antibiotic elixer. I repeat: Technology, like clothes, do not make the man even though they serve similar purpose, keeping him warm, preserving food resources & helping him look marvelous.<br /><br />Tim says that our descendents will also be "human" and I beg to differ. Was Australopithecus human in the same sense that we are? Were orangutans? Similarly, there is no guarantee that our descendents will define us (or themselves) as 'human' even though we do.<br /><br />And, Ian: <br /><br />As evidenced by fuss over the benefits of citizenship, illegal immigration, minimum wage, work-for-welfare & bonded labour, slavery has never left us. We merely call it by a different names. Even David pointed out that this is GOP political platform regarding the lack of legal protections for undocumented workers.<br /><br />Best.locumranchnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post-23765581072136787422013-04-03T04:21:18.613-07:002013-04-03T04:21:18.613-07:00Locumranch, got any recent examples of people goin...Locumranch, got any recent examples of people going on the record as being in favor of slavery?Ianhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01739671401151990700noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post-80930702535777315062013-04-03T04:11:22.206-07:002013-04-03T04:11:22.206-07:00Gakk, I've been verbose again, whatever our de... Gakk, I've been verbose again, whatever our descendants are, they'll be Human, the definition shifts over time.Tim H.noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post-53591597246871063322013-04-02T23:35:44.413-07:002013-04-02T23:35:44.413-07:00 Technology can be an amplifier,letting us show ou... Technology can be an amplifier,letting us show our humanity in more ways, good and bad, so I could imagine it could enable enough change that our ancestors would have some difficulty dealing with our descendants. Even now, the 19th century would be excessively interesting to adjust to, and I think Eric Flint understates how unsettling the 17th century would be for us.Tim H.noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post-42429794145499286952013-04-02T21:07:31.000-07:002013-04-02T21:07:31.000-07:00@Robert
I must agree about DS9 and its uber-story ...@Robert<br />I must agree about DS9 and its uber-story arc; unlike every other series, the characters were allowed to have growth, change and learn because it was all sort of a novel; the other series were merely strings of episodes in which the characters could not grow significantly, unless they were being ejected from the series through apotheosis or death.<br />Having an arc allowed DS9 to explore deeper stories than the episodic series did; in particular the reactions to Sisko, Worf and Odo to extreme stresses of war just would not have made sense in the other series because it changed them; they were not the same characters at the end as they were at the beginning.<br /><br />As for @locumranch's comments on technology vs. personality: the jury is out. Surely we retain much of the baggage of our ancestors, but modern humanity is vastly more human than they are. We do aweful things, yes, but sometimes we regret it afterwords, and sometimes we don't do it at all. In contrast, read Henry V's speech before Harfleur and keep in mind that <b>he was the good guy!</b><br /><br />Technology is not magic, but I have observed it help people feel the humanity of people around the world, and make a difference in a small way, e.g. kiva.comrewinnhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14008105385364113371noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post-60282249180365473472013-04-02T19:47:36.628-07:002013-04-02T19:47:36.628-07:00That depends on which Trek. Original series Trek? ...That depends on which Trek. Original series Trek? They were human enough. And Deep Space Nine? They were also nicely human (even the aliens! ^^). It's the <i>other</i> series where things started going in strange directions. <br /><br />But then, I rather preferred humanity from Babylon 5. Indeed, much of what made ST:DS9 so great was the fact they were competing against B5. You'll noticed this was when we had ongoing storylines and story-arcs with a genuine sense of continuity... and a meta-story in which significant changes were being inflicted upon several of the Star Trek "nations."<br /><br />Rob H.Acacia H.https://www.blogger.com/profile/07678539067303911329noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post-20928304593793684492013-04-02T18:21:04.958-07:002013-04-02T18:21:04.958-07:00How do we know what is unalterable?
Evidence sug...How do we know what is unalterable?<br /><br /><br />Evidence suggests that WEIRD people have managed to change their own situation over the centuries as measured by our longer lives, reduced violence toward each other, and our wealth. That fact that many others in the world are adapting and adopting some of our ways suggests there is some usefulness to our tools and social constructs. The same measures apply.<br /><br />Imagining a 'trekkie' world IS too much. On that I agree. Humans are going to keep being humans and 'trek' humans weren't. Nevertheless, humans DO change. We have more than enough evidence for this, so it is reasonable to expect it to continue.Alfred Differhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01170159981105973192noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post-10933541989676353592013-04-02T14:46:35.440-07:002013-04-02T14:46:35.440-07:00Most posters on this site are unabashedly 'WEI...Most posters on this site are unabashedly 'WEIRD' -- "Western, Educated, Industrialized, Rich and Democratic" -- and they are damn proud of it despite the fact that these westerners are "outliers among outliers", representing a psychological exception rather than the human rule.<br /> <br />http://www2.psych.ubc.ca/~henrich/pdfs/Weird_People_BBS_final02.pdf<br /><br />In the manner of Next Gen Trekkies, these weirdos then assume that "Technology might change everything". They hope against hope that improvements in human technology will somehow translate into improvements in human nature; and they worship the coming "singularity" which will (hopefully) (magically) alter human nature in a decisive manner.<br /><br />This is why I find so inappropriately humorous about so many of these threads: The delusional belief that that technological "clothes make the man". <br /><br />It is gallows humour to be sure. A gallows humour that springs from an absurd amount of self-deception and/or pretension. We tell ourselves that we would be happier (better) people if we were somehow smarter, richer, more accomplished or productive, yet we (US Society) suffer from more unhappy mental illness than anywhere else in the world (32.4% as of 2010).<br /><br />We are guilty of probability fallacy on a grand scale; we project our problems on the greater world; and we think that we can alter the unalterable by 'positive thinking'.<br /><br />I laugh at these human foibles because we must. Otherwise, we must cry.<br /><br />Best.locumranchnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post-68076061370375434842013-04-02T05:32:52.301-07:002013-04-02T05:32:52.301-07:00Well this is unexpected: there may be much more re...Well this is unexpected: there may be much more recoverable oil than we thought - but the recovery process uses large amounts of carbon dioxide mitigating some of the warming that would result from burning the oil.<br /><br />http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2013-04-02/republican-born-roosevelt-digs-deep-for-texas-oil-found-with-co2.htmlIanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01739671401151990700noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post-81941970779804601022013-04-01T13:18:50.963-07:002013-04-01T13:18:50.963-07:00The acronym suggests they're expecting a bonan...The acronym suggests they're expecting a bonanza... (probably take a day for people to wise up! ;-)Tony Fiskhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14578160528746657971noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post-53843504539529260242013-04-01T08:26:57.680-07:002013-04-01T08:26:57.680-07:00You might find this new use of technology interest...You might find this new use of technology interesting: As of today, every 15 minutes, a surplus Russian EBUTEBYA spy satellite transmits a photo of Seattle to a computer center on Queen Anne Hill. Advanced photoanalysis software scans each parking space and characterizes as either empty or occupied by a vehicle, which is further characterized by color, length and width. Any vehicle found in the same location for more than 3 hours has overstayed its parking meter. A Twitter message is sent to an enforcement vehicle for ticketing. Remarkably, Seattle Parking Enforcement Work System Tickets (SPEWS-Tickets) was implemented the 1st day of the 2nd quarter this year.<br /><a href="http://rewinn.blogspot.com/2013/04/seattle-parking-enforcement-work-system.html" rel="nofollow">Press Release And Image</a>rewinnhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14008105385364113371noreply@blogger.com