false 83533 12 <b>Step into the world of Ray Kurzweil, the "restless genius" (<i>Wall Street Journal</i>) and "ultimate thinking machine" (<i>Forbes</i>), whose predictions for an age in which man and machine are interchangeable are startling, provocative--and closer to realization than you think.</b> Imagine a world where the difference between man and machine blurs, where the line between humanity and technology fades, and where the soul and the silicon chip unite. This is not science fiction. This is the twenty-first century according to Ray Kurzweil, the inventor of the most innovative and compelling technology of our era. In his inspired hands, life in the new millennium no longer seems daunting. Instead, it promises to be an age in which the marriage of human sensitivity and artificial intelligence fundamentally alters and improves the way we live. More than just a list of predictions, Kurzweil's prophetic blueprint for the future guides us through the inexorable advances that will result in: computers exceeding the memory capacity and computational ability of the human brain by the year 2020 (with human-level capabilities not far behind); relationships with automated personalities who will be our teachers, companions, and lovers; and information fed straight into our brains along direct neural pathways. Eventually, the distinction between humans and computers will have become sufficiently blurred that when the machines claim to be conscious, we will believe them. 2518483 1999 The Age of Spiritual Machines: When Computers Exceed Human Intelligence total:488|5:157|4:204|3:89|2:30|1:8| 488 1936 808 70 2 0 false false Sun Jul 01 00:00:00 -0700 2007 Fri Jan 23 04:08:58 -0800 2009 Fri Jan 23 04:16:45 -0800 2009 more...]]> 5 1 false false Thu Apr 30 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Thu May 07 15:18:01 -0700 2009 Thu May 07 15:30:55 -0700 2009 more...]]> 3 0 false true Mon Dec 01 00:00:00 -0800 2008 Tue Dec 30 09:20:45 -0800 2008 Tue Dec 30 09:30:37 -0800 2008 1 more...]]> 3 0 false false Thu Oct 01 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Wed Sep 09 10:07:09 -0700 2009 Thu Oct 01 15:17:58 -0700 2009 more...]]> 4 1 false false Thu Jan 01 00:00:00 -0800 2004 Thu Jul 03 07:59:39 -0700 2008 Thu Jul 03 08:00:45 -0700 2008 4 0 false false Fri Aug 14 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Thu Aug 13 12:51:17 -0700 2009 Fri Aug 14 09:36:33 -0700 2009 more...]]> 3 0 false false Fri Oct 01 00:00:00 -0700 1999 Sun Jan 18 20:57:21 -0800 2009 Sun Jan 18 21:18:09 -0800 2009 Artificial Intelligence researcher Ray Kurzweil tries to predict the future of computers, from 1999 - 2099 CE. In brief, he predicts that by the end of the 21st century human and machine intelligence will have "merged" -- computers will be as sentient as us, and hum...more...]]> 4 0 false false Wed Aug 20 19:28:05 -0700 2008 Wed Aug 20 19:49:20 -0700 2008 more...]]> 5 0 false false Tue May 20 05:48:19 -0700 2008 Tue May 20 06:07:24 -0700 2008
Science fiction readers have often benefited from having witnessed any number of good or bad technological situations, so what Kurzweil has to say in...more...]]> 3 0 false false Thu Jul 01 00:00:00 -0700 2004 Sun Apr 01 18:04:05 -0700 2007 Mon Apr 02 17:36:54 -0700 2007 more...]]> 5 0 false false Tue Jan 01 00:00:00 -0800 2002 Fri Feb 09 10:37:29 -0800 2007 Fri Feb 09 13:51:12 -0800 2007 more...]]> 4 0 false false Sat Apr 01 00:00:00 -0800 2000 Tue Sep 22 09:43:06 -0700 2009 Tue Sep 22 09:57:38 -0700 2009 more...]]> 2 0 false false Tue Jan 15 00:00:00 -0800 2008 Thu Oct 15 10:33:15 -0700 2009 Thu Oct 15 10:39:18 -0700 2009 4 0 false false Fri Oct 01 00:00:00 -0700 1999 Tue Nov 03 11:05:19 -0800 2009 Tue Nov 03 11:07:50 -0800 2009 4 0 false false Sun Jan 11 11:51:03 -0800 2009 Sun Jan 11 11:51:03 -0800 2009 4 0 true false Sun Apr 01 00:00:00 -0700 2007 Mon May 14 07:04:08 -0700 2007 Mon May 14 07:16:33 -0700 2007 more...]]> 3 0 false false Fri Sep 12 00:00:00 -0700 2008 Fri Sep 12 13:46:25 -0700 2008 Fri Sep 12 13:49:28 -0700 2008 more...]]> 4 0 false false Mon Sep 10 16:39:34 -0700 2007 Wed Oct 24 13:20:25 -0700 2007 more...]]> 0 0 false false Tue Jan 01 00:00:00 -0800 2002 Thu May 07 20:31:43 -0700 2009 Thu May 07 20:33:10 -0700 2009 3 0 false false Tue Feb 26 07:24:40 -0800 2008 Tue Jun 23 13:09:56 -0700 2009 more...]]>