Raymond Kurzweil

New Zealand TV Features Singularity University

by Socrates
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The concept of the technological singularity is becoming more and more mainstream and is exhibiting what seems to be an exponential growth in media coverage. Just some of the more recent examples include feature articles on the NY Times and coverage on PBS TV network together with the widely anticipated big screen movie premieres of both Transcendent Man and The Singularity Is Near. Now even New Zealand’s 60 minutes TV show run a short but very interesting documentary news report featuring Singularity University. Check out the video below which touches on a number of topics related to the singularity such as Ray Kurzweil‘s predictions, immortality, nanotechnology, exponential growth, brain uploading, synthetic biology, space exploration and others. Related articles Ray Kurzweil at the Daily Show with John Stewart (singularityblog.singularitysymposium.com) PBS Reports On Ray Kurzweil and The Singularity (singularityblog.singularitysymposium.com) Singularity Podcast: Barry [...]

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Is Blio eReader the future of reading?

by Socrates
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Here are 3 videos about the upcoming eReader from Ray Kurzweil called Blio. The first video is a virtual tour of Blio while the 2nd and 3rd are Steve Balmer and Ray Kurzweil talking about the software. So, what do you think? Is Blio the future of reading? I think it is a great start but we can definitely do better… Related articles by Zemanta Ray Kurzweil Vows To Right E-Reader Wrongs (bits.blogs.nytimes.com) Nuance Vocalizer Brings Voice to Blio eReader (eon.businesswire.com) Blio eReader software to have Nuance text-to-speech technology (zdnet.com)

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Ray Kurzweil at the Daily Show with John Stewart

by Socrates
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This is a funny video of Ray Kurzweil on the Daily Show with John Stewart. While the video is anything but serious, some of the points it makes are. Warning: Rated at least PG 13. Viewer Discretion is Advised.

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Singularity Podcast: Barry Ptolemy on Transcendent Man

by Socrates
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In this edition of Singularity Podcast I was privileged to do a phone interview with Barry Ptolemy, the director and producer of Transcendent Man. Barry was very generous to make time in his busy schedule and share his thoughts on the making of the movie, the technological singularity in general and Ray Kurzweil in particular. Listen to the podcast and watch the trailer but be forewarned — if you do so then you may feel compelled to go and watch the movie   Transcendent Man is a new documentary film about the life and ideas of inventor, futurist, singularitarian and transhumanist Ray Kurzweil.  About Barry Ptolemy At age 12, Barry Ptolemy was first inspired to create films on the set of E.T. where he worked closely alongside Steven Spielberg for the duration of the production. After attending USC Film School, [...]

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Latest Singularity University Video Remix

by Socrates
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This is a brand new 3 min video of some highlights of the Singularity University Graduate Studies Program opening ceremony. It features people such as Larry Page, Larry Brilliant, Peter Diamandis, Ray Kurzweil and NASA Astronaut Dan Barry. Singularity University is an interdisciplinary university preparing humanity for accelerating technological change and aiming to study and use technology growth to address the greatest challenges facing mankind. As Larry Page says: “If I were a student, this is where I’d want to be.” Related articles by Zemanta Peter Diamandis on the Best Way to Predict the Future (singularityblog.singularitysymposium.com)

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Is Genius Immortal?

by Socrates
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Chris Faraone from the Boston Phoenix recently wrote a very interesting and detailed article on Ray Kurzweil and his quest to live forever titled Is Genius Immortal?. You can read the whole article by following the link above, but if like me you prefer audio rather than text, then you can go and listen to or simply grab the full podcast of the exclusive interview with Ray Kurzweil by clicking here: Is Genius Immortal? the full podcast by the Boston Phoenix. Enjoy the podcast but do let me know what is your answer to Chris’ question: Is genius immortal? Related articles by Zemanta Ray Kurzweil on Brain-Computer Interfaces (singularityblog.singularitysymposium.com) James Harvey’s Singularia: a “Both/And” Point of View of the Singularity (Part 1) (singularityblog.singularitysymposium.com) Singularity University: Ray Kurzweil’s Opening Address (singularityblog.singularitysymposium.com)

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Ray Kurzweil’s Review of Avatar

by Socrates
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Some time ago I posted a few trailers, interviews and short docs together with a brief review of AVATAR. Today I happened to fall onto a very detailed and highly critical review written by Ray Kurzweil. I thought that it is worthwhile to republish Ray’s review in its totality for it does raise many good points that may be worth considering. The review was copied from KurweilAI.net and its orginal URL page is: http://www.kurzweilai.net/news/frame.html?main=news_single.html?id%3D11907 Reflections on Avatar by Ray Kurzweil from KurzweilAI.net, Mar. 8, 2010 I recently watched James Cameron’s Avatar in 3D. It was an enjoyable experience in some ways, but overall I left dismayed on a number of levels. It was enjoyable to watch the lush three-dimensional animation and motion capture controlled graphics. I’m not sure that 3D will take over — as many now expect — until [...]

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Can you TRANSCEND biology and live long enough to live forever?

by Socrates
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In 2004, Ray Kurzweil and Terry Grossman, MD, published Fantastic Voyage: Live Long Enough to Live Forever. Their groundbreaking book marshaled thousands of scientific studies to make the case that new developments in medicine and technology will allow us to radically extend our life expectancies and slow down the aging process. In 2009, Ray and Terry published Transcend: Nine Steps to Living Well Forever where they present what they believe to be a practical and enjoyable program which readers can follow in order to live long enough (and remain healthy long enough) to take full advantage of the biotech and nanotech advances that have already begun and will be occurring at an accelerating pace during the years ahead. The program aims to help us TRANSCEND biology and live long enough to live forever. In 2010, Ray and Terry give us [...]

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