Submitted by: Submitted by sweetsouthern
Views: 1939
Words: 571
Pages: 3
Category: Science and Technology
Date Submitted: 12/08/2011 08:28 PM
While watching the videos of Ray Kurweil, I was able to understand some of what he was explaining. Based on my limited knowledge of the subject matter presented, I agree with his expressions of how the technology industry grows exponentially. I do agree with the statement that he made about how eventually we will be experiencing augmented reality, smaller computers, smarter devices, and nano-machines that we help us influence our body, diseases, and abilities. Every day I we get closer to these things. Specifically, augmented reality, as mentioned in our text (Mark D. Bowles, 2010, Introduction to Computer Literacy, 2.4, Augmented Reality), we currently have the ability through smartphones to experience augmented reality. By using GPS and your phone's camera, using specific software, you can scan nearby buildings and gather useful information such as restaurant ratings, addresses, and company profiles. You can also takes pictures of products and instantly receive information on the best prices, consumer ratings, and even which stores nearby have your desired item in stock. We are living in the age of technology.
The only thing that I didn't entirely agree with, was something he mentioned in the video, "How Technology Will Transform Us" (http://www.ted.com/talks/ray_kurzweil_on_how_technology_will_transform_us.html, posted 2006), he mentioned that by 2010 computers as we know them would disappear and instead be imbedded in all of our objects and in ourselves. Kurzweil even went so far as to say that images would be delivered directly to our retinas. Obviously this prediction was not a successful one. Not to say that we won't someday experience these things, but for now, they are not reality.
I am not quite sure how I feel about the singularity and exponential technology advances. I don't feel that I am educated enough on this subject to make a convincing argument one way or another. I can express my opinions as of this point in my life, which are mixed on the...