From: Stuart, Ian (Ian.Stuart@woolpert.com)
Date: Wed Sep 28 2005 - 14:19:17 MDT
>Why would we want to evangelize for singularity-related memes?
>Do we know whether increase social exposure to these ideas
>would hasten or delay singularity tech?
I have to agree. Widespread dispersal of the singularity meme would be
denounced by some, feared by most (think Rapture and end times and see
the statistics for the number of people in the U.S. who think that
evolution should be REPLACED by creationism in science classes),
accepted by few, understood by a handful, and actively pursued by a
number I could probably count to in a matter of minutes. I think that,
in this particular case, the harm of stirring up the masses in some
random direction far outweighs the good of attracting the few who would
most benefit the cause of bringing about a Friendly Singularity. In
fact, I would be very interested to see a breakout of shock level
populations by country or region and see how the reactions played out in
relation to shock level saturation. For instance, I would venture that
in highly tech-oriented areas of the U.S. (Los Angeles, New York,
Silicon Valley, etc. . .) the reaction would fall primarily towards the
acceptance/understanding end of the spectrum, whilst here in rural
Kentucky, shock panic and mass hysteria would ensue once the general
populace grasped that the world as they know it is about to change
drastically which, knowing the general mindset of my neighbors, is the
ONLY conceivable outcome without a serious re-education campaign. In
other words, it may be possible to start with today's children and
prepare a majority of them for the concept of a singularity by the time
they are 18, but based on the projections that I keep seeing bandied
about, this may not be complete by the time full blown singularity is
upon us.
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