Special Report: The Singularity

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National Magazine Award Finalist for Single Topic Issue



	From the Magazine:	Web Exclusives:

	Waiting for the Rapture One day a machine will blink into consciousness, but it’s just wishful thinking to believe that people could escape death by uploading their minds. By Glenn Zorpette	INTERACTIVE Mapping the Body Electric Human senses and body parts are increasingly augmented by a stunning array of high-tech devices. View our three-dimensional model to gauge progress toward the age of cyborgs.


	Signs of the Singularity The writer who first postulated the singularity answers skeptics and tells us what to look for as the world slips closer to the edge. By Vernor Vinge	VIDEO How to Prepare for the Singularity Vernor Vinge on the run-up to the singularity and what technologists can do to engineer the best outcome for humans.


	The Singularity: Who’s Who A guide the singularity true believers, atheists, and agnostics. By Paul Wallich	Two Paths to the Singularity MIT professor Neil Gershenfeld and technology futurist Ray Kurzweil both believe that we are on the event horizon of a technological singularity. By Tekla S. Perry


	The Consciousness Conundrum How can we hope to create consciousness if we don't know anything about it? By John Horgan	Tech Luminaries Address the Singularity Candid assessments from leading voices such as Steven Pinker, Gordon Moore, Esther Dyson, and more


	Can Machines Be Conscious? Yes, someday—and here’s one way to determine if they are. By Christof Koch and Giulio Tononi	VIDEO Teaching Machines to Watch Blade Runner Christof Koch explains how we can use visual illusions and scenes to explore the difference between our conscious and unconscious perception. Plus: Do You Need a Quantum Computer to Achieve Machine Consciousness? And: A Bit of Theory: Consciousness as Integrated Information


	I, Rodney Brooks, Am a Robot As our machines become more like us, we will become more like them. By Rodney Brooks	VIDEO The Singularity: Neither Heaven nor Hell Rodney Brooks on why the evolution of superhuman intelligence will be a slow process.


	Rupturing the Nanotech Rapture Tiny robots that can fix all our bodily flaws sound lovely, but they violate the laws of physics. By Richard A.L. Jones	SLIDE SHOW Born Bionic These robots are pushing the envelope of humanoid design—they can play the violin, unload a dishwasher, and climb stairs.


	Reverse Engineering the Brain To David Adler, the human brain is just really advanced nanotechnology. By Sally Adee	VIDEO Tapping the Computing Power of the Unconscious Brain Neuroscientist Paul Sajda, of Columbia University, uses the human vision system for computerized image sorting.


	Economics of the Singularity Machines of merely human intellect could put humans out of work if they were cheap enough. By Robin Hanson	Teaching AI to Be Sociable Humans can already form social bonds with robots, but the real trick may be getting AI equally interested in us. By Jeremy Hsu


	Singular Simplicity The argument for technological fabulism rests on baseless extrapolations. By Alfred Nordmann	PODCAST Talking to Vernor Vinge More from the author of "Rainbow's End"


	Singularity Index A graphical guide to intelligent machines in pop culture.


	Spectral Lines: Un-assuming The Singularity


	Back Story: Of Two Minds