Ray Kurzweil: Reverse-Engineering The Human Brain

Inventor and Futurist Ray Kurzweil speaks at a Q & A after a screening of the film TRANSCENDENT MAN at the 2009 AFI Fest Presented by Audi.

CONNECT WITH AFI:
http://facebook.com/AmericanFilmInstitute
http://twitter.com/AmericanFilm
http://AFI.com/members

AFI FACEBOOK APP:
http://apps.facebook.com/afiytapp/

Category:

Entertainment

Tags:

• afifest
• AFI
• fest
• festival
• ray
• kurzweil
• inventor
• futurist
• singularity
• american
• film
• institute
• movie
• los
• angeles
• hollywood
• documentary
• intelligence
• exponential
• reverse
• engineer
• human
• brain
• technology

[siciliano29]

A modern day Einstein... I'm grateful beyond belief to have people like Ray around today (and for thousands of years to come)!

[atheelogos]

Another great interview of ray. Thanks for the upload

[QubitVector]

@Rabsputin Meant to say "You can not compare flying to the moon...." in that first comment.

[QubitVector]

@Rabsputin "how haven't we broken the light speed barrier yet, when we've broken the sound barrier?" Well yes, the sound barrier was broken, but not by sound. The electromagnetic forces that hold atoms together can't "go faster" than that speed. To break the light barrier, new technology has to be developed, and much more understanding has to be gained before we even approach that problem. That is analogous to reverse engineering the brain.

[QubitVector]

@Rabsputin I'm not pulling that number out of thin air. Kurzweil himself said in the Age of Spiritual Machines book that he thinks it will be complete by 2099. Michio Kaku, another prominent physicist supports the 50-100 years range. Also, you can not flying to the moon to reverse engineering the human brain, ever. That task involved technology that was already available and understood. To reverse engineer the brain we have to invent the technology to do it. It's like saying:

[Rabsputin]

@QubitVector you're pulling the number 50 out of the air. the whole point of what ray is saying is that technology and thusly scientific progress is accelerating at an exponential rate, so 20 years isn't an unreasonable figure at all. it only took the US 7 years to fly to the moon, that too was a monumental task.

[QubitVector]

@Rabsputin Saying that it's going to happen in 20 years vs 50 years is a difference of 30 years. Saying its going to happen in a generation's lifetime is something else. Maybe you should reread what I posted instead of putting words in my mouth. Let me be very clear for you: It will not happen for at least 50 years. We have to solve the protein folding problem first, etc., it's a monumental task. Don't just attack my numbers when you have no knowledge of biology.

[Rabsputin]

@QubitVector so looking at scientific progress over history and realising that 50 years is barely a heartbeat in comparison, you think it's utterly retarded? 20 years and 50 years in the grand scheme of scientific progress might as well be the same length of time. the fact is it's likely to happen within the current generation's lifetime.

[zoveia]

afff.. i thought that was Medicate

[QubitVector]

Utterly retarded. Reverse Engineering of the human in brain is much too monumental. 50 years minimum.

[GreenDevilAngel]

Im God, i could make you undying.

O_o

Dont you trust me, you will see when you try it.

Pay n try - pay n try - pay n try