NANOKIWI

Animated Gif test

2010-06-07T16:47:00.000+12:00

Bubbleshare

2008-08-30T17:33:00.002+12:00

BubbleShare: Share photos - Create and Share Crafts

Slide Tester

2008-08-30T16:52:00.000+12:00

Video Test

2008-08-25T13:02:00.003+12:00

Ultra Hybrids Change The Game

2008-01-14T11:03:00.000+13:00

Negroponte on OLPC

2007-11-28T21:35:00.000+13:00

Hydrogen Fuel

2007-07-02T21:16:00.000+12:00

Hydrogen refuelling with 'ordinary' cars at home
From the New Zealand Herald

A Plug for Hybrids

2007-06-24T16:50:00.000+12:00

Forging a sustainable future has become a popular topic, but some think new energy sources promoted in the media are a way of maintaining the status quo:

"E85 fuel is a distraction, a diversion, a red herring. Just as the switch to "hydrogen economy" (remember that?) was before it. Both require huge investment, new infrastructure and will not lead to a post-oil economy. The hydrogen economy was promoted principally by both automakers and oil companies as a stalling strategy to avoid having to change the way they currently do business."
Alternative Energy Blog

It may be possible to have clean energy without waiting for further technological breakthroughs. One example is the combination of solar power and Plugin Hybrid Electric Vehicles (PHEVs).

The Google crowd have jumped on the electric bandwagon

RechargeIT.org

Creativity & Education

2007-06-19T14:52:00.000+12:00

iphone - One to Rule Them

2007-06-06T17:04:00.000+12:00

My Response to New Zealand Herald article 5 June 2007
READ ORIGINAL

Like it or not, the iphone is the most anticipated product in the history of consumerism. Steve Jobs describes it as "magical" and existing competitors as "just garbage". Have a look at the videos of the device in operation and you may see what he means.

If you think its all about a list of features, then yes, the iphone seems nothing special. If it is about advancing the human computer interface then this thing is as important as the mouse.

There are many writers who snipe at the iphone. Personally I can't get where they are coming from, other than from a certainly that they will generate hits, as did unfavourable reviews of the Lord Of The Rings movies.

But come June 29 you will see that there is indeed, ONE TO RULE THEM. . .

Future is now as 'science-fiction' comes true

2007-01-22T15:00:00.000+13:00

SunJournal.com - Future is now as 'science-fiction' comes true

Monkey vs Robot!

2007-01-16T13:38:00.000+13:00

Our Energy Challenge

2006-04-13T11:40:00.000+12:00

For an overview of the promise of nanotech
Nanotechnology and Our Energy Challenge
provides a clear roadmap

From the Book

Nanotechnology: Science, Innovation, and Opportunity

$100 Laptop

2006-04-04T14:57:00.000+12:00

Technology for children takes a big step with the soon to be released $100 laptop.

Nicholas Negroponte of MIT Media Lab envisions putting millions of these internet ready machines into the hands of the world's children at around US$100 a pop. He calls this ambitious project One Laptop Per Child (OLPC).

The ruggedised computers will be powerful enough to do just about anything you might expect a laptop to do. They feature an innovative hand crank which provides power to recharge 'C' or 'D' sized batteries. They will also have an AC cord which doubles as a carry strap and a number of USB ports.

Negroponte sees the laptops as tools for constructionist learning.
Constuctionism means learning through the making of personally meaningful artifacts. This could include designing a webpage, building a model of a park, or making a film or book.

All software is open source to maximise expansion capacity and minimise costs. Included with the machine will be a web browser, word processor and a few intriguing extras. For example, MIT is currently working on Scratch, a free programming language for children that will allow learners to produce their own multimedia.

Many of the machines are destined for developing countries, but this map shows broad interest in the project around the world.

For each child to have their own laptop will alter the face of education.

It will benefit teachers who will be able work with small groups while the rest of the class engages in personal and peer-to-peer learning.

Some New Zealand schools are already investing in laptops for their students.

OLPC puts laptop computing within reach of all.

"One laptop per child: Children are your most precious resource, and they can do a lot of self-learning and peer-to-peer teaching. Bingo. End of story." ―Nicholas Negroponte

Flash Fun Four

2006-03-27T10:12:00.000+12:00

(1) Windows Really Good edition!
(2) Samorost Flash Game
(3) Orisinal
(4) Newgrounds Flash Media

Free Culture

2006-03-21T09:44:00.000+12:00

If you are into open source (aka free stuff)
Free Culture Talks
are essential

Children Discuss Conflict

2006-03-20T18:55:00.000+12:00

I have noticed that whereas administrators wish to emphasise numeracy and literacy in education, in my experience about 80% of what children bring to the teacher are problems of communication and conflict. Here is an interesting P4C article in which Children discuss conflict

Kids learn nanotechnology at Nanoworld

2006-02-27T13:55:00.000+13:00

Would love to see something like this in New Zealand

Touchscreen Interaction

2006-02-10T10:37:00.000+13:00

Robot Dinosaur Mimics Life

2006-02-10T08:39:00.000+13:00

Pleo This looks like it's going to be quite a sophisticated learning robot to delight both children and adults alike.

Solar on a roll

2006-01-16T12:55:00.000+13:00

New Zealand's Pride in Science

2006-01-16T12:12:00.000+13:00

From Epoch Times

nanorings pick of 2006

2006-01-14T11:42:00.000+13:00

nanoring computer memory:
Roland Piquepaille
eurekalert.org
john hopkins

BBCs technology coverage is excellent:
New gadgets make waves in Vegas
CES reveals cool, clean gadgets

computing:
Xbox360
& Apple's new machines

for more
engadget

Lots of nanotubes

2005-10-28T17:56:00.000+13:00

Scientists discover new method for creating carbon nanotubes

To my mind
having a method for easily producing nanotubes in bulk
is one of the best ways to advance nanotech in general

Nanotechnology to Revolutionise Medicine

2005-10-22T08:03:00.000+13:00

Unmissable from the BBC

Prof develops cancer nanobomb

2005-10-15T09:55:00.000+13:00

nanobomb @ nanotsunami

this looks very positive to me
if nanotechnology defeats cancer
it will be the greatest victory for
medical science since immunisation

cycling robot

2005-10-08T11:42:00.000+13:00

BBC News | In pictures | Japan's Ceatec tech fest

Murata Manufacturing leaves delegates wanting more with its cycling robot.

Murataseisaku-kun, or Murata Boy, can also run at any speed up to about 60cm/sec without falling over.
It can stand still without falling and can also run backwards.

coconut oil revs diesel engines

2005-10-08T10:57:00.000+13:00

Story - New Zealand Herald

One Laptop per Child

2005-10-01T17:38:00.000+12:00

MIT Media Lab: $100 Laptop
This will be a boon to the world's children
Advance Humanity

top ten xbox games

2005-10-01T12:00:00.000+12:00

1) Halo / Halo2
2) Jade Empire
3) SSX3
4) Fable
5) Oddworld Strangers Wrath
6) Half Life 2
7) Farcry Instincts
8) Doom 3
9) Rallysport Challenge 2
10) Brothers in Arms: Road to Hill 30

ipod nano

2005-09-10T08:24:00.000+12:00

another iconic apple release

Domestic robot to debut in Japan

2005-09-01T15:59:00.000+12:00

Read BBC Story

Listening to Children

2005-08-15T19:00:00.000+12:00

Children should be seen and not heard! – Traditional Kiwi folk saying
Will someone think of the children? – Mrs. Rev. Lovejoy, The Simpsons

In this essay, I will argue for the need for teachers to listen to children. Authentic skilful, two-way communication is an act of power sharing, which serves learners, teachers and society.

To make my case I will use three compelling arguments: The Argument from Rights, The Argument from Education Theory and The Argument from Ability. While I think any of these arguments is persuasive in itself, the three together comprise a solid foundation for a shift to a teaching paradigm with communication as its foundation.

Canterbury Students Shortlisted for Nanotech Prize

2005-08-10T20:37:00.000+12:00

from Nano Tsunami .com

Nano Cluster Devices Announces New Nano Patterning Technologies

2005-08-08T22:17:00.000+12:00

New Zealands Premier Nanotechnology Site

2005-08-07T21:38:00.000+12:00

The MacDiarmid Institute

European Plug in Prius Launched

2005-07-30T19:29:00.000+12:00

European Plug in Prius Launched

a big step forward for fossil alternatives

3D anatomy

2005-07-02T14:26:00.000+12:00

more uses for your supercomputer

from Wired News

July Report

2005-07-02T13:39:00.000+12:00

Wired News: Supercomputer for Dodgy Tickers

Hopes for home power generation

2005-06-25T12:22:00.000+12:00

BBC NEWS | UK | Hopes for home power generation:
"Many homes could generate all their own power by wind or solar energy and sell the surplus, the government has said."

here is an area
advances in nanotechnology
could move things foward rapidly
the advent new generation solar panels
a house supplying its own power needs and selling off excess
outfitted for only some thousands of dollars

May Report

2005-06-02T09:28:00.000+12:00

BBC NEWS | Business | The free phone call revolution
how phone calls are looking
to get a whole lot cheaper
from my favourite techsite
at the moment:
BBC Technology

iM7 for iPod

NANOTECH NEWS

Globetechnology: Scientists use molecule as computer switch
big breakthrough - or not? =years away from manufacture

cheaptubesinc.com
nanotubes going cheap

ps3 launched

2005-05-17T22:59:00.000+12:00

Nokia N90 does it all

2005-04-28T08:50:00.000+12:00

NZ nanotech company gains high profile in US

2005-04-03T07:47:00.000+12:00

go kiwis!

Why Does Windows Still Suck?

2005-02-07T08:16:00.000+13:00

Why Does Windows Still Suck? / Why do PC users put up with so many viruses and worms? Why isn't everyone on a Mac?

Refusing the Iraq War

2005-01-24T11:45:00.000+13:00

Why I refused a 2nd deployment in Iraq - a soldiers reflections.

Nano big in 2005

2005-01-22T09:42:00.000+13:00

BBC NEWS | Science/Nature | Small science to be big in 2005

Spray-On Solar-Power Cells Are True Breakthrough

2005-01-17T09:20:00.000+13:00

Spray-On Solar-Power Cells Are True Breakthrough

ive been ranting on about
spray on solar power for a while now
good to see advances in this area

life in the trees

2005-01-16T14:49:00.000+13:00

freespiritspheres.com

mac mini review

2005-01-12T13:04:00.000+13:00

US$500 (NZ$949) mac?
im really impressed
its macs for the masses
for the first time apple covers all budgets

i grok the ishuffle random music thing
"like a radio station that always plays your favorite music"
plus no additional pocket bulge

iwant - but i also want Tiger - so iwait

Nanokiwi Best of the Web

2005-01-10T10:15:00.000+13:00

Firefox!

My favourite extensions for Firefox:

Adblock: the Firefox essential - only see the ads you want.
Greatly increases the speed of browsing over dial-up

Clusty Toolbar: Very handy addition to searching that hides away neatly in the corner of the Navigation Toolbar. Instant encylopaedia and dictionary clips. Try it to see how well it works.

Forecastfox: Weather for anywhere snuggled into your statusbar.

Gmail notifier: Lets you know when you have new mail in your Gmail account - I love Gmail

Magpie: Tool for gathering images. A must for anyone who collects images from the web. So handy you have to install it to believe it!

Quicknote: Notes, quick.

And its all free!

2005 -2015

2005-01-06T23:39:00.000+13:00

Down the road, prognosticators see flying cars, nano-medicine, end of checkbooks and cable TV and more
from DenverPost.com

4D cube

2004-12-10T09:12:00.000+13:00

Sunlight to Fuel Hydrogen Future

2004-12-09T08:18:00.000+13:00

Wired News: Sunlight to Fuel Hydrogen Future

just the kinda thing I have been envisioning
go solar-hydrogen!

2004-12-06T14:34:00.000+13:00

Has it flown away,
The cuckoo that called
Waking me at midnight?

Yet its song seems
Still by my pillow.

Oh this world of ours-
There is no way out!

With my heart in torment
I sought the mountain depths,
but even there the stag cries.

Fujiwara Shunzei

Nanokiwi Best of 2004 :: Camcorder

2004-11-19T07:34:00.000+13:00

Oregon Scientific DV100
at the low end of the market
JVC Everio looks wonderful
at the higher end: HDD/MPEG2

but what the hey
the latest from
engadget.com
has what you want. .

IBM does it again

2004-11-19T07:08:00.000+13:00

IBM Corp.'s Nanotechnology For Semiconductor Processing

Nanotubes Make Antennas for Light

2004-11-16T07:26:00.000+13:00

Technology Review: Nanotubes Make Antennas for Light
November 15, 2004

An antenna transmits and receives electromagnetic waves at wavelengths that are close to the length of the antenna, and it does so by converting electrical current to electromagnetic waves and vice versa. The electromagnetic spectrum spans radio waves, microwaves, heat waves, visible lightwaves, ultraviolet waves, x-rays, and gamma rays.

Carbon nanotubes, which are rolled-up sheets of carbon atoms that can be smaller than a nanometer in diameter, can act as antennas, but instead of transmitting and receiving radio waves, which are at the longest end of the electromagnetic spectrum, antennas of their size pick up the nanoscale wavelengths of visible light. A nanometer is one millionth of a millimeter. In contrast, radio wave wavelengths are measured in meters.

Researchers at Boston College, the U.S. Army Natick Soldier Center, Mega Wave Corporation and Florida International University have demonstrated the light antenna effect using arrays of multiwalled carbon nanotubes.

The method could be used to convert optical signals to electrical signals in communications equipment, to carry out optical computing, to detect different wavelengths of light including the infrared wavelengths used in telecommunications equipment, and to convert sunlight to electricity in solar energy applications, according to the researchers.

To make the light antennas, the researchers grew arrays of multiwalled carbon nanotubes that were 50 nanometers in diameter and varied in length from 200 to 1,000 nanometers. Visible lightwaves range from 400 to 700 nanometers long from crest to crest, which is about ten times smaller than a red blood cell.

The researchers measured the behavior of the carbon nanotube arrays by recording the lightwaves that the minuscule antennas reradiated.

Practical nanotube antennas could be developed in two to five years, according to the researchers. The work appeared in the September 27, 2004 issue of Applied Physics Letters."

Nanointerview

2004-11-15T07:46:00.000+13:00

check out my
Interview with Sander Olson
at Nanotsunami

democracy perfected!

2004-11-05T08:17:00.000+13:00

"As democracy is perfected, the office of President represents, more and more closely, the inner soul of the people. On some great and glorious day, the plain folks of the land will reach their heart's desire at last and the White House will be adorned by a downright moron."

--- H.L. Mencken (1880 - 1956)

The Most Important Terrorism is 'Ours'
- John Pilger

Failures in Iraq Repeat History

A Soldier Speaks

ipod photo

2004-10-27T08:11:00.000+13:00

Halo 2 breaks records with 1.5 million preorders

2004-10-22T21:26:00.000+13:00

Anticipation for Bungie's latest promises one of the biggest entertainment launches ever

Microsoft has announced that pre-orders for Xbox-exclusive title Halo 2 have passed 1.5 million in the United States alone, breaking videogame records and guaranteeing first-day revenues higher than any movie in history.

Over 6,500 stores in the USA are planning to open at 12.01 AM on the morning of Tuesday, November 9th, to sell copies of the game, with the first retail copy set to be distributed at midnight in the Toys 'R' Us store in New York's Times Square.

Additionally, 1,125 further retailers worldwide are planning celebration events for the launch of the game - which will take place between November 9th and November 11th in every Xbox territory, covering 27 countries with seven different language versions.

Anticipation for the sequel to the biggest-selling Xbox game ever doesn't appear to have been dulled by the release of a pirate version onto the Internet last week - a move which has mainly been greeted with outrage by fans of the game.

"Halo 2 is expected to be the biggest 24 hours for a video game title in retail history," boasted Microsoft's VP of worldwide publishing and marketing for Xbox, Peter Moore, in a statement this week, "and is projected to bring in more revenue than any day one box office blockbuster movie in the United States."

The original Halo, which was also Xbox-exclusive originally but was later released on PC and Mac platforms, has now sold over five million units worldwide and is still a regular entry in the monthly top ten sales charts in North America.

Rob Fahey

Technology Light & Heavy

2004-10-20T08:36:00.000+13:00

wanna light technology read?
try the free downloadable
techzine

philosophical tech?
then get smart with
John Smart

Nanokiwi Best of 2004 :: Health

2004-10-17T17:45:00.000+13:00

15 Minute Yoga Box
my highest recommendation
after two decades of nightly back pain
nothing I've done has been as lifechanging
as these simple yoga stretches
some kind of miracle. .

superman is dead

2004-10-12T08:15:00.000+13:00

its worse than we feared. . .

Animals

2004-10-10T13:26:00.000+13:00

I think I could turn and live with animals,
they are so placid and self-contained.
I stand and look at them long and long.

They do not sweat and whine about their condition,
They do not lie awake in the dark and weep for their sins,
They do not make me sick discussing their duty to God.

Not one is dissatisfied,
not one is demented with the mania of owning things,
Not one kneels to another,
nor to his kind that lived thousands of years ago.

Not one is respectable or industrious over the whole earth.

- Walt Whitman

Xbox2 Preview: Monster Machine

2004-10-08T08:58:00.000+13:00

The release of Xbox2 in about a year looks to be a significant event in the history of computing. The first Xbox, though impressive, was very much a console version of current PC technology. Xbox2, codename Xenon, will push computing power to levels not seen outside supercomputing facilities.

The PC world has seen clock speeds hover at the 3ghz mark for a few years now, with heat problems apparent at higher speeds. This would have been part of the motivation for Microsoft's shock switch to IBM and its Power processor architecture (as used by Apple, most recently in the G5 iMac).

The Xenon will feature three(!) Power5 processors and running at a total of over 10ghz. This will be combined with ATI's latest R500 chip, which they claim will be ready to ship Q1 2005. So late 2005 looks a cert for the next Xbox.

What will this mean for gaming? The first xbox got rid of the jaggies and allowed the best gaming ever. Halo2 anyone? The next will see something approaching a photorealistic look. Though the latest software tools make game programming easier, its going to be quite a challenge for game companies to "direct" games which more and more resemble the cinema.

But if Xbox2 is the most exciting product of 2005, Sony looks to steal the show in 2006, with the much anticipated cell processor. Cell architecture is completely new and if the hype is to be believed will make the fastest PCs of today look like pockets calculators (again).

And behind it all: IBM

Essential Links:
Xbox2 Inside & Out
Xbox2 Specs

nanokiwi nanotsunami

2004-10-07T08:29:00.000+13:00

ive been invited to be
guest writer at nanotsunami.com
im happy my rantings will reach a wider audience
and later. . . world domination!

click the nanotsunami
gif on the right
to catch the wave. .

also on the right
links to my art page
and friend's blogs

hi friends!

Mr. Clean

2004-09-28T09:04:00.000+12:00

SAMSUNG | SOUTH KOREA

To find Kim Hyung Gyoon's office in Samsung's R.-and-D. complex, just follow the baskets of dirty clothes. No, Kim is not running the company Laundromat. As chief of Samsung's washing and cleaning technology group, he is the man behind a new washing machine that deposits tiny silver particles - about 11/410,000 the thickness of a human hair - onto clothes to make them bacteria-and odor-free without the use of hot water. The device represents the first mass-produced application of this type of nanotechnology - the science of very small structures - to home appliances. "In the summer of 2002, I asked everyone in the office to take off their socks," says Kim, 48. "I took one sock from each person and placed it in a regular washing machine; the others were washed in a machine with the Ag+ Nano System. The next day I asked everyone to check the odor of their socks after a day's wear. One began to stink, and the other was odorless."

Here's how it works: a grapefruit-size device near the tub uses electric currents to nano-shave two silver plates the size of chewing-gum sticks. The resulting silver particles are sprayed into the tub during the wash cycle. The silver ion inhibits bacterial growth. According to the Korea Testing & Research Institute for the Chemical Industry, Samsung's device kills 99.9% of bacteria and fungi. Kim says garments stay germ-free for up to a month after being laundered. The Ag+ Nano device went on sale in March 2003 (just ahead of other silver-nanotech appliances from competitors LG and Daewoo) and costs around $1,150. The revolutionary technology is also being used in Samsung's refrigerators and air conditioners.

No wonder: consumers seem to like a little silver in their spin cycles. Since Samsung's nano-armed products were first launched, they have brought in an estimated $779 million in revenue. Overall, nanotechnology has been one of science's fastest-growing fields in recent years, with potential applications in fields as diverse as energy production and toothpaste manufacture. The nanotech market is projected to be worth $1 trillion by 2015.

Because this is such a hotly competitive field - Daewoo has introduced air conditioners that spray vitamin C into the environment - Kim isn't about to divulge what other nanotech projects he's working on. But one thing is for sure ‹ from now on, even his dirtiest clothes will have a silver lining.

--By Mingi Hyun/Seoul

Nanokiwi Best of 2004 :: Audio

2004-09-20T13:10:00.000+12:00

could you say no to
ipod+sounddock?

Firefox Icons

2004-09-17T07:56:00.000+12:00

Firekiwi
Why Switch?
Get Firefox Now!

Free Nanotechnology Now!

2004-09-12T14:42:00.000+12:00

Since Freetopia is now nanokiwi.com
and there's plenty of room at the bottom
i thought i'd better make some nanoposts
why not visit as i do the well equipped
smalltimes or nanotech-now
or get the whole kaboodle with a
free nanotech course

my favourite nanothing?
carbon nanotubes since they
seem good for just about anything

and how about a downunder rant!

Nanokiwi Best of 2004 :: Comedy

2004-09-12T11:02:00.000+12:00

Ali G
Universal Truths
Angry Rants Teenstyle
Bill Hicks - Genius lives on

Ducks just let you be

2004-09-09T07:14:00.000+12:00

Terrorism blows you up
Nastiness grinds you down
Stupidity wears you out
The media sucks you in, drags you under
Politics does you over
Up, down, in, out, under, over!
But ducks ...
Ducks just let you be.

- Michael Leunig

Nanokiwi Best of 2004 :: Car

2004-09-06T08:44:00.000+12:00

riddle me terror

2004-09-03T07:31:00.000+12:00

riddle me this
how many western non
israel/palestine
russia/chechnya
peeps have been
killed by terrorist acts
in the last decade?

6000? or
one in a million
about that i'd say

if you were worried about terrorism
based on previous levels of activity
youd be plain crazy to be concerned for
more than a moment

terrorists just arent that busy

but if you want to worry
think dirty bomb or some other techy thing
since if a crazed ex priest can catch marathon man
its shows its pretty easy to sneek through security

the media feeds us a diet of fear
terrorism is the most distilled form of this
because what can you do about it?

i for one would give palestine and chechnya back
i mean if someone wants something so much you
should probably just give it to them, no?

not likely!

those fighting for a piece of nationhood
used to be called "freedom fighters"
but to merit that name they must stop targeting civilians
otherwise the public will naturally sympathise with the victims

Nanokiwi Best of 2004 :: Computer

2004-09-02T17:07:00.000+12:00

The Stone Mind

2004-08-29T17:36:00.000+12:00

Hogen, a Chinese Zen teacher, lived alone in a small temple in the country. One day four traveling monks appeared and asked if they might make a fire in his yard to warm themselves.

While they were building the fire, Hogen heard them arguing about subjectivity and objectivity. He joined them and said: "There is a big stone. Do you consider it to be inside or outside your mind?"

One of the monks replied: "From the Buddhist viewpoint everything is an objectification of mind, so I would say that the stone is inside my mind."

"Your head must feel very heavy," observed Hogen, "if you are carrying around a stone like that in your mind."

SPITE! wins election for Bush

2004-08-27T09:45:00.000+12:00

CLICK PICTURE FOR FULL ARTICLE

If I only had a brain

2004-08-22T17:06:00.000+12:00

jeepers peepers

2004-08-18T21:41:00.000+12:00

The Age of Kurzweil Inc.

2004-08-01T09:00:00.000+12:00

Book Review: The Age of Spiritual Machines by Ray Kurzweil

I have long been interested in AI and more recently reading about an idea called the "singularity" on the Internet: the idea that technology, specifically computing power, is improving so rapidly that were will soon live in a world of superintelligent AI. The average 2004 computer may have the equivalent intellectual capacity of a mouse, but by 2020 (or 2030 or 2010) a computer will have the processing power of a human brain, with capacities way beyond the human brain shortly thereafter.

The manifesto of "accelerating returns" reaches its most detailed expression in "The Age of Spiritual Machines" by Ray Kurzweil.

Most of the book is philosophy of mind, something I am familiar with having taken philosophy of mind to Masters level. The basis with which Kurzweil argues is called "physicalism": the belief that all processes are ultimately physical processes. Thus all states in humans are due to the states of their cells, specifically neurons (hormones are not mentioned: perhaps because they are too messy). The brain is thus a kind of computer.

I was surprised he did not cite the bible of neural physicalism, Churchlands' "Neurophilosophy".

There is a branch of AI that seeks to model computational processes after neurons called "neural networking" or "connectionism". Software has been developed in attempt to have computers function in ways analogous to a human brain. Experiments in this area have proven fruitious, it is possible to teach neural networks to recognise patterns and learn in remarkably human way. Kurzweil has examples of computer generated poetry and even painting that defy judgement that it is machine made. I found this section of the book interesting. Since computers are able to do so much that we previously though to be exclusively human, Kurzweil argues, we can extrapolate this trend into the future to find there will be (virtually) nothing a human can do that can't be done by a machine. If a machine has as much processing power as a human, can do all a human can, its spiritual status is something like that of a human. It will have a mind because "mind", according to physicalism-connectionism, is a by-product of complex computational ability.

This is a well known position in philosophy of mind called "epiphenomenalism".

Although Kurzweil doesn’t use the term, his entire book is based around it. I was surprised to find that the basis for Kurzweil’s position was a citing of all the things computers can do that are considered "intelligent" in humans. While this may be a basis for an argument that machines could be considered intelligent, it says nothing on the possibility of machine consciousness or spirituality. It is just assumed they will follow. Now I'm not saying they will not follow, it could happen IF physicalism AND connectionism AND epiphenomenalism were true. But Kurzweil never enters into any arguments about this, instead he spends much of the book providing screeds of evidence for the ongoing increasing processing power of computers.

Kurzweil uses the time honoured method of developing an argument ignoring the strongest objections whilst deftly demolishing the "straw men", or minor ones.

Yes, Ray, carbon nanotube computing will provide the power of the worlds current fastest computer, the NEC Earth Simulator, in a cubic millimetre. Great! But will they be conscious? Will they be spiritual? Will it be immoral for us to pull the plug on such machines?

To me the book lacked a sense of spirituality. Ray's trinity appears to be cybersex, self-promotion and money.

Sometimes I got the feeling the book was just a big promo for Ray Kurzweil Enterprises Incorporated. But I hasten to add it is well written as far as it goes, with lots of provocative ideas. Plenty of food for the mind, if not the soul.

Humans, Technology Mesh in Fascinating Ways

2004-07-27T08:25:00.000+12:00

Mac News: Commentary: Humans, Technology Mesh in Fascinating Ways

When microchips give way to nanobots which are replaced by organic arrays nearly indistinguishable from our own cells -- passed from one generation to the next, evolving by design -- then our own connected future may lie not in the light of fiber optics, but in the spectrum of a new kind of ESP (what I will call "Engineered Sensory Perception"), a means of interpersonal communication that makes a gigabyte per second look like two children with a garden hose, funnels held to mouth and ear.

fine

2004-07-27T01:43:00.000+12:00

naked buttresses

............of gallantry

dressed for her...

in fine bearing

- aromatic

short film

2004-07-21T06:58:00.000+12:00

man captured by hoods
gag him, dressed in black
taken to darkened room
lit by large fishtank

gag removed the man splutters
but he's not gonna squeal

then goggleyed stares at the tank
something had been dropped in
(a finger?) cas it turns out the fish are piranas
the other figure in the room casually
continues his questioning
the feeding frenzy continues

cut to the men dressed in black
who are dropping in fish fingers
"yeah uncle tony's got good interview skills"

or something. . .

little fly

2004-07-09T09:52:00.000+12:00

Michael Moore terrorizes the Bushies!

2004-06-23T20:21:00.000+12:00

Welcome to Nanokiwi

2004-06-22T09:40:00.000+12:00