From: Zero Powers (zero_powers@hotmail.com)
Date: Fri Jan 10 2003 - 17:53:21 MST
>From: "Robert J. Bradbury" <bradbury@aeiveos.com>
>I haven't read AoSM but I think it would be slanted heavily to the AI
>side of things, without much consideration that this path may not be
>the one we take (it isn't a "necessary" component). The Great Mambo
>Chicken is certainly interesting and covers a great deal of territory
>but may lack depth in certain areas.
>
>"The Spike" by Damien may be the best broad brush stroke work available
>at this time. If you want to lean more towards the science, far
>futuristic side, both Robert Freitas and I like works by Linda Nagata,
>esp. "Vast". Efforts by Greg Egan, e.g. Permutation City, are certainly
>worthy of consideration.
>
>Finally, "Beyond Humanity: Cyberevolution and Future Minds" by Paul & Cox
>is a pretty good look at things. In general, I'd put Kurzweil ~=
>Moravec ~= Paul & Cox -- you don't get a robust picture without
>reading all of them because they each have their biases. The Regis
>and Broderick works are probably better for non-technical people.
I'd second the recommendation of Beyond Humanity: Cyberevolution and Future
Minds. It's been a few years since I read it, but I recall it being very
accessible to the uninitiated. It may invoke the "snicker" response given
the kinda wacky-looking cover art and the fact that the authors don't water
down their optimisitic projections to avoid seeming kooky. But on the whole
I found AoSM a more convincing and stimulating read (even if a rehash of
ideas Kurzweil was already known for). Given Kurzweil's intelligence,
success and respect there's much less worry that the people you recommend
his book to will think of him (or you) as a kook.
-Zero
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