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Dangerous Futures >
BREAKPOINT: terrorists vs. transhumanists
Permanent link to this article: http://www.kurzweilai.net/meme/frame.html?main=/articles/art0703.html
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BREAKPOINT: terrorists vs. transhumanists
Former counterterrorism czar Richard Clarke’s BREAKPOINT novel, set in the year 2012, is based on emerging technologies. "Globegrid," a high-speed global network, links supercomputers worldwide. Combined with advanced AI software, it promises to reverse-engineer the brain, revolutionize genomics, enable medical breakthroughs, develop advanced human-machine interfaces, and allow for genetic alterations and even uploading consciousness. But it spurs a terrorist-fundamentalist Luddite backlash against transhumanists, as hackers take down the power grid, and destroy vital international data and telecom links, communications satellites, and biotech firms.
Originally published in Breakpoint,
G.P. Putnam’s Sons, January 2007. Reprinted with permission
on KurzweilAI.net May 21, 2007. Richard A. Clarke will be featured
in Ray Kurzweil's movie, "The Singularity is Near, A True Story
about the Future," due for release in Spring 2008.
Author's Note
In The Scorpion’s Gate, I projected a world in
2010, with the United States and China competing politically and
economically for a dwindling supply of increasingly expensive oil
and gas. That competition naturally took them to the Persian Gulf,
where the largest oil deposits remained. The Persian Gulf
of 2010 was unstable, with the United States threatening Iran, and
fundamentalist Islamic forces emerging in Saudi Arabia. Corruption
and giant corporations made Washington a political battleground.
While I noted at the time of publication that the work was not meant
to be predictive, many of the trends in the novel have developed
and are dominating the news.
Breakpoint, set in 2012, is meant to be predictive, at
least about technology. It may read to some like science fiction,
but it is based on emerging technologies that are the subject of
research today. Scientists and engineers differ in their views
about when the research will result in deployed technology, but
their differences are most often a discussion of “when,”
not “if.”
This novel is intended to project you a few years ahead, to start
readers thinking now about the political, social, and economic changes
that technology is about to create. Those changes could be wrenching,
creating tensions in our society. A woman’s right to
choose, the teaching of evolution, and stem-cell research have already
created social and political discord in the United States.
The coming technological events may make these current controversies
seem like a practice round, a warm-up. For the next debate
may be about “what is a human”: Should humans change
the species with human-machine interfaces and genetic alterations?
The opening rounds have already occurred. The Transhumanist
movement is real and has regular meetings around the country.
In 2002, the National Science Foundation issued a stunning report,
“Converging Technologies for Improving Human Performance:
Nanotechnology, Biotechnology, Information Technology and Cognitive
Science.” The report, which overall has an upbeat and optimistic
tone, concludes that connections between the human brain and computers
will transform the way humans work, other technologies will eliminate
disabilities and diseases that have plagued the human condition
for centuries, and human creativity will flourish due to both improved
understanding of the human mind and enhancements to the brain. A
year later, the President’s Council on Bioethics issued its
report, “Beyond Therapy: Biotechnology and the Pursuit of
Happiness” which took a somewhat dimmer view of using technology
to enhance human beings. Chaired by Leon Kass, a fellow at the American
Enterprise Institute, the commission included conservative political
figures such as Francis Fukuyama and Charles Krauthammer. They believe
that genetic science should not be used to enhance human performance,
only to fix mistakes that make some humans less healthy than the
norm. In 2004, Californians voted on a referendum on stem
cell research and approved funding for research. Court fights
have delayed the spending of state monies.
As to some of the specifics in Breakpoint:
-- The concept of Globegrid arises from the fact that supercomputers
in Japan, the United States, and Russia have already been linked
through Internet 2, a new high speed networked being developed by
a consortium of 207 universities. U.S. and European labs are
actually engaged in a project to reverse engineer the human brain.
-- Living Software does not yet exist, but companies like Watchfire
Fortify, Coverity, and others are already developing software to
test software for human error.
-- Very Light Jets (VLJs) have been approved by the U.S. Federal
Aviation Administration and are in manufacture. They are four-to-six
seat aircraft meant to operate like taxis. Eclipse Aviation’s
Eclipse500 and Citation’s CJ-1 are among the first deployed
VLJs.
-- Intelligent video surveillance, in which the software and cameras
(not people) recognize aberrant behavior, are already being deployed
by companies such as DVTel and Vidient in subways, airports, and
other facilities.
-- Exoskeleton suits are already in the prototype phase. The U.S.
Army has teamed with the University of California at Berkeley to
develop the prototype, which will allow soldiers to carry 180 pounds
while feeling as if they were lugging five. Plans on the drawing
board at the Army’s Natick Labs in Massachusetts show soldiers
being able to run, jump, and throw the way they are described in
the baseball game in Breakpoint. The other capabilities
that make up the full suite of technologies in the exoskeleton suits
(night vision, network connections, GPS, remote cameras, and vital-system
monitoring) are all part of a program called the Objective Force
Warrior Ensemble, set to be deployed by 2010.
-- People in the United States will be driving Chinese-manufactured
cars like the Chery product line in 2007-08. Cars powered
by ethanol derived from switch grass exist today.
-- Driven by the large number of U.S. casualties in Iraq, Marine
and Army amputees are now receiving prosthetics far more advanced
than what is available in the civilian community. Known as sea legs,
these new prosthetics are driven by microprocessors at each joint.
They use innovative new materials and techniques to respond to signals
from the human brain to straighten a leg or flex a muscle. Servicemen
and women who once would have been unable to lead normal civilian
lives are now able to return to the battlefield.
-- Human nerves have already connected artificial ears directly
to the brain. Paralyzed patients are today using their thoughts
to move computer mouse devices. Some patients suffering from
severe depression and other disorders already do have miniature
wires leading to parts of their brain and do have battery packs
implanted behind their collarbones. Other Human-Machine Interfaces
(HMIs) are in development.
-- Artificial retinas for people suffering from blindness caused
by diseases such as retinitis pigmentosa or macular degeneration
are in the development phase and have already seen some success
in restoring limited vision in clinical trials. The devices work
by implanting a small chip at the back of the eye that stimulates
retinal neurons. They are powered by solar receptors fed by the
light that enters the eye. Replacing the full eye with a silicon-based
optical unit may be feasible, but is also likely that the ability
to regenerate or transplant an eye may happen sooner and be more
appealing.
-- The state of cyber security described in the novel is, unfortunately,
not fiction. Identities (name, date of birth, Social Security number,
credit-card number) are bought and sold in cyberspace hacker chat
rooms. Software coding errors are regularly used by hackers
to enter networks and computers. Scientists at U.S. government
national laboratories have demonstrated the possibility of taking
down the power grid through hacking.
--The company iRobot has sold large numbers of robots to clean
floors. Asimov, the robotic dog, could easily be a reality in the
near term. Sony’s Aibo already can mimic the actions of a
“real” dog. Moving from Aibo to the fictional Asimov
will require adding voice recognition technology, a wireless web
link, limited artificial-intelligence capabilities, and advanced
motor devices to power its arms and legs. In some form or another,
these technologies all exist today.
-- Performance-enhancing pharmaceuticals (PEPs) is my own name,
but the concept is not fiction. For memory enhancement, a
compound known as CX717 has proven effective in boosting the brain
chemical glutamate, the substance that is key in learning and memory.
Studies have shown it effective in treating narcolepsy and ADD.
It has also proven effective for otherwise healthy individuals who
need to stay focused over longer periods without sleep. For sports,
regulatory authorities are fighting an uphill battle, with gene
doping and performance enhancing pharmaceuticals becoming more sophisticated,
more effective, and safer than steroids. The Pentagon is developing
drugs that will allow soldiers to go for long periods without sleeping.
-- Cellular regeneration of organs and other body parts is in
its infancy but will likely yield real-world results by the end
of this decade. Embryonic stem cells are thought to hold the most
promise for treating a wide range of maladies, from cancer to spinal
injuries. Human adult stem cells are already used to treat a variety
of ailments. Fixing retinas, cloning hair for baldness, and regrowing
teeth are all showing promise. Progress on stem cell research
has slowed due to the Bush administration’s unwillingness
to fund research on embryonic stem cells. This decision has slowed
progress and shifted much work overseas, where governments have
embraced the promise of this research. It is quite possible the
United States will be left behind in what will be the most pivotal
medical advance since the decoding of the genome.
-- Aircraft without onboard pilots are already in use. I
fought a bureaucratic battle with CIA in 2000 to get them to use
the unmanned Predator to hunt for terrorists and in 2001 to arm
the Predator with missiles. When Predator finally was used to attack
terrorists in Afghanistan and Yemen, it was probably the first time
a robot intentionally killed a human. The U.S. Air Force is now
developing UCAVs, unmanned combat aerial vehicles, fighter planes
whose pilots will sit safely on the ground hundreds or thousands
of miles away from the aircraft. Lockheed has plans for an unmanned
version of the F-35.
-- The laser gun depicted in Breakpoint is a technology
set to emerge sometime within the next decade, depending on the
prioritization it receives in Pentagon budget negotiations. The
Airborne Laser is being built by Boeing to mount a laser on a 747
for use against ballistic missiles. When the Joint Strike Fighter
(JSF) was first put on the drawing board in 2001, plans called for
a solid-state laser as an offensive weapon. Although it has
been delayed, The Lightweight Tactical Laser weapon may now
be incorporated in the F-35 block 30.
-- The initial mapping of the human genome was complete in 2000.
Detailed mapping of the individual chromosomes is under way, with
most of the existing human chromosomes already mapped. The first
genetic therapy was approved to treat patients in 1990. Today, genetic
therapy is used to fix flaws in some human coding, including sickle-cell
anemia, Huntington’s disease, cystic fibrosis and hemophilia.
-- Nanotechnology is already in use in cosmetics, tennis racquets,
paints, and fabrics. The National Nanotechnology Initiative is the
largest new federal science project in recent years. Researchers
have successfully used gold nanoparticles to deliver DNA molecules
safely into cancer cells as part of a program to defeat cancer.
-- The field of Synthetic Biology is also real and has resulted
in the creation of Bio Fab plants, named to sound like the plants
(called Fabs) that made silicon-based computer chips. Synthetic
Biology has created bacteria that seek and invade tumor cells, yeast
that produce the anti-malarial drug precursor artemisinic acid,
and biological sources of renewable energy.
Sometimes you can tell more truth through fiction.
© 2007 RAC Enterprises, Inc.
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Mind·X Discussion About This Article:
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France
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Make up your minds about the French, you conservative & libertarian cranks. Either they screwed up their economy (apparently not, according to this article); or else they've shown the way to the future by embracing nuclear power.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/mark-weisbrot/econom ic-misinformation-p_b_47265.html
Economic Misinformation Plays a Major Role in French Election
It is important to understand that there is no economic logic to the argument that the citizens of any rich country need to reduce their living standards or government programs because of economic progress in developing countries. Once a developed country has reached a certain level of productivity, there is no economic reason for its residents to take a pay or benefit cut, or work more hours, because other countries are catching up to their level. That productivity, which is based on the country's collective knowledge, skills, capital stock, and organization of the economy, is still there, and in fact it increases every year. To the extent that international competition is being used by special interests to push down the living standards of French or German or U.S. workers -- and it is -- it just means that the rules for international commerce are being written by the wrong people. It is a problem of limited democracy and lack of representation for the majority, not a problem that is inherent to economic progress.
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Re: BREAKPOINT: terrorists vs. transhumanists
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My Brother-in-Law grew up in Iran... For w ehile he was sucked into Fanatic Islamic Ideologies, and he was from a fairly well-to-do family.
Many of those involved in the perpetration of 9/11 were educated and not exactly ignorant or poor.
Radical Ideology comes about as a perception of lack of power and a fear of what those who are perceived as having power might do with even more of it. There is also the fact that Islam is currently undergoing their own reformation. They have yet to have a pivital point like Luther Nailing his 95 thesis to Wittenburg Cathedral in the 15th century.. Ooops... 16th century... It was 1546 (not important though really)...
What I am getting at is that currently Islam as a whole is feeling as if it is being threatened, and in a way it is.. Much of current science tends to threaten historical religion by exposing that it is still just myth that it is based upon and not really the historical actions of some savior or prophet. Unfortunately for those religions, they do not realize that a religion based upon a firm foundation of myth is much stronger than one which tries to base its creed/dogma and beliefs upon an actual historical event (but, again, this is getting off the subject a bit).
The threat that religion is undergoing is proucing a lot of fear, and those whose basic faith in the world is threatened tend to react in pretty irrational manners. Seeing as they have begun from an irrational belief in a superbeing based upon what they see as a factual history it is no surprise that they then move toward an irrational reaction to that percieved source of fear (teh threat).
This threat, in Islam, as I have been told by many erudite Muslims, is mostly manifest to the Islamic world by the US and its support of Israel, in conjunction with its continued support of education that is on the verge of creating godless technologies that are the works of Satan (in their eyes). Mostly it is the education more than it is the creation of thee godless technologies.
What they said most Muslims feared the most was the Internet and its ability to bring instant information to someone. Often information that contradicts what they have been taught as good little muslims... Basically, they fear the lifting of a veil of ignorance, because the lifting of that veil brings about a change in their world for which they had no clue as to ever have to prepare for... And change brings fear... always... Seems to always come back to that... Change and fear... |
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Re: BREAKPOINT: terrorists vs. transhumanists
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Personally, I do not see the Singularity as being something that hs any kind of "good/evil" associated with it.
I view it in much the same manner that you described the cat playing with the mouse... It is just something that is going to hapen, and in the process, because of humanity being the way that humanity is (much the same way that cats are the way that cats are, adn as such , tend to jump on and "play" with small moving objects), many people will get hurt, killed, and otherwise damaged in the process.
Hopefully, much of this damage will be reparable by the very process that originaly caused said damage.
As I said in my post above... All of that depands upon the amount of fear that is created in society concerning said revolutions, whether they are pre- or post- singularity. |
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Re: BREAKPOINT: terrorists vs. transhumanists
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“Many of those involved in the perpetration of 9/11 were educated and not exactly ignorant or poor.”
All of them were educated. That ‘poverty breeds terrorism’ is a myth, propagated by jihadists and their left wing apologists, and dispelled time and time again as we learn more about the proponents of this barbaric, medieval ideology.
“Radical Ideology comes about as a perception of lack of power and a fear of what those who are perceived as having power might do with even more of it.”
“Radical”? Are we talking about Christianity, Hinduism, Judaism, Buddhism ..? No. We’re talking about Islam. “Radical Islam” then? No. Until we study the Quran and the stories and sayings of Mohammad (the Hadith) we will be under the illusion that Islam is a ‘religion of peace’. Nothing could be more further from the truth.
“Islam as a whole,” may as you said feel “as if it is being threatened” since Islam is a political and ideological project that was only disrupted in 1923 with the dissolution of the Islamic Caliphate in Ottoman Turkey after WW1: Western civil liberty and the growth of technology indeed threatens an ideology that would otherwise prescribe every detail of society in the most oppressive terms.
And I am afraid you have been duped by “ many erudite Muslims” that the cause is the “US and its support of Israel, in conjunction with its continued support of education that is on the verge of creating godless technologies”. America is the Great Satan, Israel the Little Satan: the former the champion of values anathema to Islam, the Complete and Total Explanation of the Universe and Regulator of Society; the latter the thorn in the side of the once great Islamic Empire that systematically persecuted the Jews until, as Mohummad said on his death bed, “there shall not be more than one religion on the [Saudi] peninsula”.
Until we learn more about Islam, and stop buying into the myth of Islamophobia, and understand that way before America was even conceived, there was jihad, there was sharia, there was oppression of non-Muslims (learn about the jizya, the treatment of the dhimmi), there was slavery, there was an expansionist, totalitarian political project … only then we might stop blaming ourselves, America, and Israel, and understand that the war we are in is not going to stop until Islam totally reforms or is utterly subdued.
This is the key lacking ingredient in all of Kurzweil’s analysis: a properly researched context in which we fight this war. It is not a War on Terror – it is a war on Jihadism. Read Waild Phares, Robert Spencer, Hugh Fitzgerald, Andrew Bostom, Bat Yeor … listen to Global Crisis Watch … This is the singular, specific war we are in and this will be the one that affects, limits, or stimulates breakthroughs in technology as we head toward the Singularity. |
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Re: BREAKPOINT: terrorists vs. transhumanists
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singularity: Full reality regeneration becomes available. It turns out
technology was just something to give us beliefs about advancement. A
we with you achieve a point where we merge with the universe --
converting to nano-fog or whatever else we like.
a post-singularity city:
A whole country that decided to go against the people of Singularity
decided to drop an hydrogen bomb on the most advanced of Singularity
cities.
It is too late however, the majority of the population has merged and
the bombs were taken apart within seconds of release from the aircraft
by the large gray mass of nano fog hanging around the city.
There was the attack in some universes, but most residents of the city
aren't interested in hostile relations with the rest of the world and so never
experienced it and continued to live in a peacefull world.
This was however an eventuality that was thought about by some members
of the city in terms of what scripts to run in the case of such an
eventuality.
There will probably be a few city citizens that opted for a world
of nuclear war to experience -- for a little while at least. There
were some latch ditch efforts made by the city to allow newcomers to
merge with the singularity.
A group of special ops come in from the attackers to check upon the
damage in radiation suits.
Around the city floats a constant dome of nano-fog creating the
impression of an "entrance" on some of the main streets.
The spec-ops see no movement in the city, most of the cars having been
adandoned -- perhaps long ago.
As they approach Rodni notices it looks like there is a figure vaguely
standing at the main intersection they are approaching.
Rodni alerts the group and they take cover. The figures just continue
to vaguely exist in the middle of the street, seeming relatively
unthreatening -- creating a golden halo of light emiting from them in
the sea of gray that is the nano-fog.
Sam looks carefully and sees a small blonde girl in a red coat and hat
standing amongst the figures -- it stirs vague recollection for him from
childhood and he breaks formation to stumble towards the golden
congregation.
Rodni to seems to see someone they are certain lived in the city they
thought for sure were lost to the singularitarian uploaders. In fact
everyone in the group sees someone the recognize, break formation, and
start mind-numbingly walking towards the group -- which is now casually
beckoning them with motions, glances, fruits and toys.
Except Paul. Paul was much of a loner much of his life and never really
got along with his family or anyone for that matter -- most of Paul's
existance is about the destruction of others, Singularitarians are just
the most prominent of targets. The spec-ops let Paul on the team for
his obvious ability and onemindedness about the issue.
Paul sees demons lurking in the golden green flames emiting from the
main gates -- though occasionaly the images are swept over by a girl he
once saw in childhood. This really torments Paul and he lets out a
gutural yell as he retrieves his machine gun and starts firing in the
direction of the people.
The girl in red notices and raises and eyebrow. Two giants form
seemingly from the two adjacent business towers -- which upon close
inspection are seeping nano-fog, making the building seem almost alive.
They giant/trolls have bodies of gray and carry each a gray shield that
is one with their arms -- the giant emerging from the right has a left
arm shield, and the one from the left a right arm shield. Though their
size and apparent bulk seems like it would be slow moving, they have no
trouble in getting between the explosive lazer bullets and the golden
conglomerate.
The whole spec ops faction gets really spooked, some hit the floor, some
turn on Paul -- they were torn away from the silent communication stream
that was going on between them and their loved ones of the golden
conglomerate, to them it stopped with Pauls attack.
Rodni makes some statements about pursuing non-violent action, Sam
agrees. The leader, Flip checks that the giants with shields aren't
advancing or threatening them in any matter -- makes a few value
judments about the strength of the city and his crew -- turns to
his crew and yells that it's just a reconissance mission and so they are not to engage in
combat unless absolutely necessary.
The giants on hearing this shrink into gray coloured Spartan phalanx
soldiers. The right one speaks to Flip and asks if an ambassador should
be sent for information exchange. Flip concerned for his safety and
that of the crew is relieved that they wont have to go much further,
also feels empowered by the obvious gesture and respect of power that
they gave him by asking.
Flip looks around his crew, sees Rodni nodding to him, Sam nodding while
staring at the golden conglomerate and Paul walking around yelling
something almost incoherantly while waving his arms about. The rest of
the crew seem to be staring or hiding -- immobilized. Slowly some fear
starts to creep into him as he was getting over the shock of what just
happened.
"Yes let the ambassador come!" yells Sam while stepping forward. Paul
moves his gun into position to take out Sam -- Sam believes Paul to have
been taken over by the enemy. There is a fly in Paul's ear and some
dust on his scope though, he becomes obssesively interested in cleaning the
lense, even decides to sit down.
Flip is standing biting his nails after having just seen his most
dedicated blood thirsty man become tame. Rodni, who was looking in a
different direction at the time, makes eye contact with Flip and motions
with his head towards the golden conglomerate, words come out of Rodni's
mouth but Flip doesn't seem to hear them. Rodni takes Flip by the
shoulders and turns him around softly saying in Flips ear "Derz
symuyn kyming".
Sam was up ahead of them kneeling down talking to the little girl in red
which had come forward. He stood up, turned around and said "kymon
gaiz, Lilim sez shill teik ys tu de Teacher". Flip started feeling
nauseated and vomited in his suit. "shi seiz dat iu dont hav tu uer ior
sut."
Bob chirped up saying that the radiation levels were normal. Sam
started taking off his suit with he help of the little girl in red.
Rodni looked at the now nearly non-visible Flip through his visor. "hir
ai kan ynhuk iu." It was getting brighter -- the walls of the buildings
were starting to glow golden. Flip spread his arms and turned around
almost by reflex to let Rodni unzip him, Flip needed to think, this
vomit wasn't helping.
Once the crew saw their leaders taking off their suits they followed
suit -- ;) ambiguity.
Sam came up to Flip with a bunch of white hand-towels and handed them
over. "Thanks" said Flip cleaning himself. Somehow that was really
what Flip needed, his paranoia was gone, he felt comfortable 'ar de ualz
glo,uing?' hi thought to himself while looking to the right building
casually not taking note of the golden conglomerate.
He turned towards them and found himself with his crew, mostly anyways
-- he had a nagging feeling that someone was left behind but couldn't
place it and the goldshine was really getting to him, so he really
couldn't care less.
A figure in a black cloak stepped out of the golden conglomerate, took
off its hood to reveal a stunningly pale complexing with golden flowing
hair. It decided that a male homo-sapien appearance would be most easy
to relate to with this crowd and took upon the appearance of one.
"Ai kan teik iu intu de Siti, byt ior maindz myst bi redi first."
uttered the cloaked man. Flip, Sam and Rodni nodded in agreement.
Six arms extended out of the cloak all bearing familiar looking pipes.
"iuv yl smoked marijuana before haven't you?". Rodni game a smile and
plucked his familiar decorated wooden pipe -- which he was certain he
left at home but had seen enough things today he wasn't going to argue.
He saw it was stuffed to the brim with what undoubtebly looked and
smelled like high grade Cannabis Sativa. A pale hand held out a light
and Rodni took a toke, closing his eyes in the nostalgic memory of the
pipe.
"pylz ril fain .ui" Rodni said in the half-restrained voice of someone
holding a hit for sensual extravagence and optimal effectiveness.
The rest of the crew smiled and emulated the ritual. Stout Bob voiced up
"do iu tink we kan have sym tcerz?"
"sirtenli" the man in the cloak motioned with a hand and the gaurds soon
appeared with chairs retrieved from some of the nano-fog seeping out the
buildings. "hau abaut a tcendj in sineri?" hi waved and what was fog
turned into lush plant life, a stream ran down the right side of the
street.
The golden conglomerate started mingling with their arrived familiars. A
golden fountain sprang from where the golden conglomerate had been
standing. The man in the cloak leaned back and the fountain
rock came to meet him and make him a comfortable seat.
He saw that the majority of people were occupied with their familiars
and so he had time to relax.
The girl in red led Sam up to the fountain, tapped it and said "wine" a
spout formed from the yellow rock of the fountain and started spewing
wine, it was just dropping to the floor. The girl motioned towards it.
"Perhaps a drinking vessle as well?" Sam said a little aghast at the
obvious waste of the wine just flowing down the street and into the
river. A menu popped up infront of him, floating in mid air, it said: "
drinking vessel, Cancel, Ok". Without even thinkng he clicked okay
with his right hand and felt a cup in his left.
Paul awoke to notice that he had been drooling. There was no one around
him, some suits were scattered not far from where he was.
He remmebered the Golden Conglomerate, looked up, and there it was, the
monsters he had been seeing were still present, and that figure in the
black cloak.
It stepped out of the conglomerate and revealed itself. It was a
temptress, no wait it was just a man with long hair. The man extended
his hand to reveal a new self heating pipe that Paul had been eyeing for
some time -- packed to the brim.
Paul felt for his weapon not really expecting to find them, and not. He
looked towards the man who was outstretching a bottle of what clearly
said "vitamin C -- reduces paranoia". Paul found it a little odd, but
had another glance at the monsters of the golden conglomerate and
decided that perhaps he was somewhat paranoid.
He took the bottle and looked suspiciously at the contents. Then it hit
him "Uer iz everyone!?".
"they are in a happier universe, you can join them as soon as you are
happy too" said the man waving and the holographic forms of the rest of
the group dimly were aparent, playing with their familiars and
experiencing the environment.
"they're in heaven, I don't want to go there" Paul retorted. Lokam
nodded.
"Anything I can do for you in your hell universe?"
Paul pondered. "Make me immortal and get me some slave broads"
Lokam snapped his fingers, two shape shifters stepped out of the
conglomerate. Lokam handed Paul the pipe with leather bag and a small
pamphlet.
"Eat the vitamins and smoke some pot to get closer to heaven, otherwise
read the pamphlet for your immortality, the second page is a portal to
la.ma'aSELtcan., it'll teach you LOJban and whatever else you want to
know" Lokam paused. "Hell is a free for all, cities are full of high
chaos creatures ready to consume. You can take shelter for the night,
but in the morning set out to your home base and tell them what you
like, if you like -- it's a free for all, do as thou wilt and have fun!
:D" and with that Lokam was gone. The two shape shifters pressed
close to their master and made him a shelter.
The first page of the pamphlet: http://tcana.info/maheSELkik.asc
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Re: BREAKPOINT: terrorists vs. transhumanists
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Dude,
According to all of the info I have been able to gather about lojban... there are only about 50 people on earth who speak it...
Not to mention, it SUCKS ASS as a language to do anything but communicate precise instructions, and if I wanted to do that... I'll use a programming language.
No double entendré, no innuendo, no subtlety, no poetry, no methphor, no soul... Lojban may be an excellent langauge for removing all doubt as to the intent of a speaker, but that is why we have things called "questions"... To ask someone to clarify their intentions, and statements.
The adoption of lojban would be a nightmare of laziness. Communication skills would be lost, art would be lost....
I can definitely see the worlds languages thinning out to create a sort of "lingua franca" of the world (eventually, but I doubt that all of the people will really be speaking ONE language; it will just appear that way), but lojban???
I do not see a worldwide need for such a language. If one existed... I am not aware of it.
WTF is this obsession with lojban? |
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