In a message dated 99-06-12 15:09:08 EDT, spike66@ibm.net (Spike Jones) wrote:
> Alan Turing (name uttered in low reverent tones) proposed
If you revere Turing (as we all should), you'll really enjoy Stephenson's "Cryptonomicon" (which I can't praise highly enough, although I still haven't finished it). It's no spoiler to reveal that Turing is a character in the book and reading Stephenson's humorous depiction of him as a living, breathing person has been a real joy.
> Please, those in the know, give me examples of areas that
> were once considered the domain of carbon based computers,
> that are now done by silicon, and speculate on near future
> domains where the trasition is yet to occur.
I'm certainly not in the know, but Ray Kurzweil is. In his book "The Age of Spiritual Machines" he does this very thing. Examples of current achievements he gives include interpretation of naturally-spoken speech (naturally), recognizing faces and driving automobiles. Near-term accomplishments should include real-time navigation of natural environments and mediating simple social interactions.
Greg Burch <GBurch1@aol.com>----<gburch@lockeliddell.com>
Attorney ::: Vice President, Extropy Institute ::: Wilderness Guide
http://users.aol.com/gburch1 -or- http://members.aol.com/gburch1
"Civilization is protest against nature;
progress requires us to take control of evolution."
-- Thomas Huxley