michael shermer

Shermer

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Singularity

Last week I interviewed Sonia Arrison for Singularity 1 on 1.

I met Sonia at the Singularity University, where she is a founder and a trustee, and there I picked up a copy of her seminal book 100 Plus: How the Coming Age of Longevity Will Change Everything, from Careers and Relationships to Family and Faith. The book is very well researched and deals with the most profound implications of life-extension and super-longevity. In the author’s own words, the main question is: “how long science will extend our lives and how that in turn will change our ecological, social, and religious worlds.”

During our conversation with Sonia we discuss issues such as: how and why she got interested in technology in general and transhumanism and regenerative medicine in particular; how science and technology will allow us to live longer and healthier lives; the most common objections against increased longevity; the implications thereof on major religions; cryonics; Sonia’s take on the technological singularity and our chances of surviving it; the fact that we cannot simply sit down and wait for longevity to happen.

Sonia Arrison: Make Regenerative Medicine A Top Priority

This week I interviewed Greg Wientjes for Singularity 1 on 1.

I met Greg at Singularity University and picked up a copy of his book Creative Genius in Technology: Mentor Principles from Life Stories of Geniuses and Visionaries of the Singularity.

The book is very well researched and examines the question: “How do you mentor, educate and cultivate the development of individuals with high potential for technology innovation and advancement?”

It is based on Greg’s conversations with some of the most influential people in technology for the past three decades. People such as: Vint Cerf, Bob Kahn, Ray Kurzweil, Bob Metcalfe, Doug Osheroff, Bill Joy, Tim Berners-Lee, Hector Cargia-Molina, James Leckie, Ernesto Sanches-Tirana, Rita Colwell, Ann Graybiel, Joanne Stubbe and Mildred Dresselhaus.

The result is Greg’s GENIUS theory:

G – Give encouragement, validation and self-confidence to the genius. “You can do it!”

E – Energize the genius to explore and experiment in engineering  and science discovery at an early age. Learn by doing.

N – Nurture creative new ideas through ‘play’ and providing the genius with an abundance of educational resources. Love learning. 

I – Inspire through role modeling and mentoring. Set the example.

U – Utilize unexpected events as opportunities for serendipitous benefit, and adapt; encourage the genius to do the same. Ride the wave.

S – Stimulate the genius to solve problems of practical importance and create beneficial technology solutions. Invent.

***

So, what is my favorite point from Creative Genius in Technology?!

“You Can Do It!”

Who is Greg Wientjes?

Greg Wientjes, Ph.D., was awarded his Stanford doctoral degree (Developmental and Psychological Sciences) in 2010.  Wientjes attended Singularity University (2009), which was cofounded by technology genius, Ray Kurzweil, and that experience served as the inspiration for this book.  Dr. Wientjes completed his Master’s of Science in Electrical Engineering (2006) and his Bachelor of Science degree in Mathematics (2004), both from Stanford.

Greg Wientjes: How do you cultivate GENIUS in technology?

This Thursday I interviewed David Orban for Singularity 1 on 1.

I have to admit that David is one of my favorite singularitarians and I enjoyed talking to him immensely. During our conversation we discuss issues such as: David’s personal background and early interest in science and technology; the motivation and goals behind his work; his involvement in Singularity University; his take on the technological singularity and our chances of surviving it; religion, death and life extension technology; the internet of things; the role of technology in liberating humanity; the value of human-centered communication; Ted Kaczynski‘s arguments against technological progress; why communicating through on-line videos is so popular and powerful.

Hope you enjoy watching the interview as much as I enjoyed talking to David!

Who is David Orban?

David Orban is an entrepreneur and visionary, and is the CEO of dotSUB, the leading technology and services provider powering video viewing via captions and translations as subtitles in any language to increase access, engagement and global reach, based in New York City.

David is also a Lecturer of, and Advisor to Singularity University, an interdisciplinary university whose mission is to assemble, educate and inspire leaders who strive to understand and facilitate the development of exponentially advancing technologies in order to address humanity’s grand challenges.

He is the was Chairman, and is on the Board of Directors of Humanity+, an organization dedicated to promoting understanding, interest, and participation in fields of emerging innovation. H+ represents a growing movement of people willing to work proactively to benefit the human condition through a commitment to scientific advancement.

He is also a Founder of WideTag, a high technology start-up company providing the infrastructure for an open Internet of Things. David shapes the strategic vision of its technologies by developing the policies and communication steps necessary to enable constructive progress.

David is Co-Founder of Startupbusiness, a social network aimed at enabling the Italian startup ecosystem. Startupbusiness is a spin-off of Questar, an Italian software publishing and distribution company, of which David is the Founder. Questar aims to enhance channel oriented electronic software distribution services, making them available to developers worldwide.

He is further a Scientific Advisory Board Member for the Lifeboat Foundation, a nonprofit organization dedicated to encouraging scientific advancements while helping humanity survive existential risks. The Foundation creates mechanisms to discourage the misuse of increasingly powerful technologies such as nanotechnology and artificial intelligence.

David is also a Founder of the Open Government Data working group. The group promotes a more robust understanding of why open government data is essential to democracy. The group utilizes increased civil discourse in order to make Government more effective, transparent, and relevant to our lives.

His educational background includes studies in Physics at both the University of Milan and the University of Padua.

David cuts across the limits of deep specialization to contribute to the new renaissance. He explains, “My vision is at the crossroads of technology and society as defined by their co-evolution.”

David Orban’s personal motto is, “What is the question I should be asking?” This concept is his vehicle to accelerating cycles of invention and innovation in order to build the new world ahead.

David Orban on the Singularity: What is the question I should be asking?

A couple of days ago I interviewed David Simpson for Singularity 1 on 1.

David Simpson is a young up-and-coming science fiction writer from Vancouver. He is the author of the sci-fi novels Post-Human – his 2009 debut, as well as Trans-Human – the sequel.

During our conversation we discuss issues such as: David’s early interest in writing; the motivation and goals behind his work; the relationship between science fiction and technology; his favorite science fiction authors; his current and future books as well as the meaning behind their titles.

Who is David Simpson?

David Simpson is the author of the sci-fi novel Post-Human, his 2009 debut, as well as Trans-Human – the sequel. He is also the author of The God Killers, which is his first sci-fi/horror novel.

David has recently taken the unusual step of re-publishing his books as Kindle ebooks so that he could offer them at extremely low prices, eliminating the overpricing caused by having a traditional publisher. He believes that this is a necessary and positive transition, as the technology that has dictated the practices of the publishing industry – paper books, is rapidly being replaced by ebooks.

Post-Human is available for free on his website. (To get a free copy click here)

Trans-Human and The God Killers are available from Amazon.com for only 99 cents each.

David has a Master’s degree in English Literature from the University of British Columbia and is the winner of over a dozen awards and scholarships, both as a student and as a Teacher at the university level.

He lives with his wife, Jennifer, in West Vancouver British Columbia.

David Simpson on Post-Human, Trans-Human and The God Killers

It is only fair that every once-in-a-while Socrates – i.e. “the man with the questions,” ought to get the table turned on him, take the other side of the microphone and answer a few questions himself.

So, when Cameron Reilly asked me to be the next guest on his popular and long-running No Illusions Podcast I was honored and agreed without hesitation.

In 2004 Cameron co-founded the Podcast Network – Australia’s first social media company, which he built into one of the largest independent Australian media sites. In 2007, Reilly was called one of the “40 Biggest Players Of Australia’s Digital Age.” Currently he is a regular speaker on issues surrounding social media, social networking and the future of media in addition to consulting for a number of Brisbane-based companies as their digital strategist.

During my conversation with Cameron we discuss issues such as: my personal history and being born Bulgarian; Canada, Toronto and becoming Canadian; my take on the concept and definition of the technological singularity; the Rapture of the Nerds criticism; the scientific method, science and religion; Moore’s Law; nanotechnology; the potential for dividing humanity into technophile transhumanists and technophobe neo-luddites and all out global war between these two fractions; the pro’s and con’s of being skeptical and using the Socratic method of inquiry.

No Illusions Podcast: Cameron Reilly Puts Socrates in the Spotlight

I couple of days ago I interviewed Michael Shermer for Singularity 1 on 1.

I met Dr. Shermer at the recent Singularity Summit in New York where he was one of the most entertaining, engaging and optimistic speakers. Since he calls himself a skeptic and not a singularitarian, I thought he would bring not only balance to my singularity podcast but also a healthy doze of skepticism, and I was not disappointed.

During our conversation we discuss a variety of topics such as: his education at a Christian college and original interest in religion and theology; his eventual transition to atheism, skepticism, science and the scientific method; SETI, the singularity and religion; scientific progress and the dots on the curve as precursors of big breakthroughs; life-extension, cloning and mind uploading; being a skeptic and an optimist at the same time; the “social singularity”; global warming; the tricky balance between being a skeptic while still being able to learn and make progress.

Who is Michael Shermer?

Dr. Michael Shermer is the Founding Publisher of Skeptic magazine (www.skeptic.com), the Executive Director of the Skeptics Society, a monthly columnist for Scientific American, the host of the Skeptics Distinguished Science Lecture Series at Caltech, and Adjunct Professor at Claremont Graduate University and Chapman University.

Dr. Shermer’s latest book is The Mind of the Market, on evolutionary economics. His last book was Why Darwin Matters: The Case Against Intelligent Design, and he is the author of Science Friction: Where the Known Meets the Unknown, about how the mind works and how thinking goes wrong. His book The Science of Good and Evil: Why People Cheat, Gossip, Care, Share, and Follow the Golden Rule, is on the evolutionary origins of morality and how to be good without God. He wrote a biography, In Darwin’s Shadow, about the life and science of the co-discoverer of natural selection, Alfred Russel Wallace. He also wrote The Borderlands of Science, about the fuzzy land between science and pseudoscience, and Denying History, on Holocaust denial and other forms of pseudohistory. His book How We Believe, presents his theory on the origins of religion and why people believe in God. He is also the author of Why People Believe Weird Things on pseudoscience, superstitions, and other confusions of our time.

According to the late Stephen Jay Gould (from his Foreword to Why People Believe Weird Things): “Michael Shermer, as head of one of America’s leading skeptic organizations, and as a powerful activist and essayist in the service of this operational form of reason, is an important figure in American public life.”

Dr. Shermer received his B.A. in psychology from Pepperdine University, M.A. in experimental psychology from California State University, Fullerton, and his Ph.D. in the history of science from Claremont Graduate University (1991). He was a college professor for 20 years (1979-1998), teaching psychology, evolution, and the history of science at Occidental College (1989-1998), California State University Los Angeles, and Glendale College. Since his creation of the Skeptics Society, Skeptic magazine, and the Skeptics Distinguished Science Lecture Series at Caltech, he has appeared on such shows as The Colbert Report, 20/20, Dateline, Charlie Rose, Larry King Live, Tom Snyder, Donahue, Oprah, Lezza, Unsolved Mysteries (but, proudly, never Jerry Springer!), and other shows as a skeptic of weird and extraordinary claims, as well as interviews in countless documentaries aired on PBS, A&E, Discovery, The History Channel, The Science Channel, and The Learning Channel. Shermer was the co-host and co-producer of the 13-hour Family Channel television series, Exploring the Unknown.

Michael Shermer on the Singularity: Be Skeptical! (Even of Skeptics)

Looking: “Talking” PrEP in the Modern Gay World w Daniel Franzese, JC Lee & Dr. Michael Gottlieb

Steven Pinker writes: “Shermer has engaged the full mantle of moral progress and considered how far we have come and how much farther that arc can be bent toward truth, justice, and freedom."

“Through copious data and compelling examples Shermer shows how the arc of the moral universe, seen from a historical vantage point, bends toward civil rights and civil liberties, the spread of liberal democracy and market economies, and the expansion of women’s rights, gay rights, and even animal rights. Never in history has such a large percentage of the world’s population enjoyed so much freedom, autonomy, and prosperity.  The steadily unfolding revolution of gay marriage gives Shermer the opportunity to show how rights revolutions of many different kinds come about.“  [Steven Pinker is the author of "The Better Angels of Our Nature".  He gave a SALT talk on “The Decline of Violence” in 02012.]

Michael Shermer’s new book is "The Moral Arc: How Science and Reason Lead Humanity toward Truth, Justice, and Freedom".  His previous books include "The Believing Brain" and "The Science of Good and Evil".  He is the founder and editor-in-chief of "Skeptic" magazine and has a monthly column in "Scientific American".

"The Long Arc of Moral Progress" was given on April 14, 02015 as part of Long Now's Seminar series. The series was started in 02003 to build a compelling body of ideas about long-term thinking from some of the world's leading thinkers. The Seminars take place in San Francisco and are curated and hosted by Stewart Brand. To follow the talks, you can:

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Michael Shermer - The Long Arc of Moral Progress

We are taught that the world is a top-down place. Acclaimed author, Matt Ridley, shows just how wrong this is in his compelling new book. 

 We are taught that the world is a top-down place. Generals win battles; politicians run countries; scientists discover truths; artists create genres; inventors make breakthroughs; teachers shape minds; philosophers change minds; priests teach morality; businessmen lead businesses; environmentalists save the planet. Not just individuals, but institutions too: Goldman Sachs, the Communist Party, the Catholic Church, Al Qaeda – these are said to shape the world.

This is more often wrong than right. ‘Tear Down the Sky Hooks’ is about bottom-up order and its enemy, the top-down twitch, the endless fascination human beings have for design rather than evolution, for direction rather than emergence. Top downery is the source of most of our worst problems in the past – why Hitler won an election, why the sub-prime bubble happened, why Africa lingered in poverty when Asia did not, why the euro is a disaster – and will be the scourge of this century too.

And although we neglect, defy and ignore them, bottom-up trends still shape the world. The growth of technology, the sanitation-driven health revolution, the quadrupling of farm yields so that more land could be released for nature – these were largely emergent phenomena. So was the internet, the mobile phone revolution and the rise of Asia.

In this wide-ranging, highly opinionated non-fiction narrative, Ridley draws on anecdotes from science, economics, history, politics and philosophy and examples drawn from the scientific literature, from historical narratives and from personal anecdotes.

The Evolution of Everything: How Ideas Emerge, By Matt Ridley, Read by Steven Crossley

Singularity.FM is the first and best known singularity podcast - the place where we interview the future. 

Singularity.FM is a series of singularity podcast interviews with the best scientists, writers, entrepreneurs, film-makers, philosophers and artists, debating issues such as the technological singularity, transhumanism, artificial intelligence, life-extension and ethics.

Past guests of this singularity podcast include people such as Ray Kurzweil, Peter Diamandis, Noam Chomsky, Stuart Hameroff, Marvin Minsky, Aubrey de Grey, Max More, Michio Kaku, Vernor Vinge, Cory Doctorow, Charles Stross and many, many others.