The Singularity Is Near: When Humans Transcend Biology (129 page)

        growth of, 324

        longevity of, 325, 329

Mind Children
(Moravec), 24

“Minds, Brains, and Science” (Searle), 458

“Minds, Machines, and Gödel” (Lucas), 259, 376

miniaturization, 245, 407, 411

        law of accelerating returns and, 42–43, 45, 57–61,
57–60
, 60, 73, 82–84,
82–84
, 96, 102

        military and, 332, 334, 335

        price-performance of electronics and, 111–112, 526
n

        shrinking transistors and, 42–43, 45, 61, 76, 111–112, 113, 351, 434

        
see also
nanobots; nanotechnology

minimax algorithm, 275–277

Minsky, Marvin, 156, 177, 189, 202, 203, 228, 260, 289, 473, 497
n
, 539
n
, 570
n
, 582
n

Minteer, Shelley, 565
n

mirror system hypothesis, 190

missiles, 423

        cruise, 255, 279–280, 335

        guidance for, 255, 276, 279–280

MIT, 157, 285, 337

        Artificial Intelligence Laboratory of, 264

        Institute for Soldier Nanotechnologies at, 332

        Media Lab, 113, 221

        Open Courseware of (OCW), 336

        visual processing studies at, 186, 194

mitochondria, 219–220, 583
n

Mobile Robot Laboratory, 529
n

model constraints, 152

modernity, 387

Modis, Theodore, 19, 501
n
–503
n
, 507
n

Mohan, Anuj, 547
n

molecular assemblers, 228–231, 261

molecular circuits, 27

molecular computing,
see
three-dimensional molecular computing

molecular manufacturing, 11, 13, 226–231, 242, 250, 258, 422, 434, 457, 557
n
–558
n

        body changes and, 310, 324, 372

        cost of, 230–231, 338–339, 340

        energy efficiency of, 245, 340

        Foresight guidelines for, 418–419

        goal of, 234

        molecular assemblers and, 228–231, 261

        safeguards for, 400

        software design for, 231

molecular photography technique, 119

molecules, 14, 16, 85, 131, 383, 499
n

        AGEs and, 220

        brain uploading and, 199–200

        “chaperone,” 209

        design of, 483

        in gas, 168

        in ice chips vs. cup of water, 510
n

        nanobots and, 28

money, 478

monkeys, 186, 193

Montemagno, Carlo, 234, 516
n
, 560
n
, 561
n
, 585
n

moon, energy harvesting on, 246

Moore, Gordon E., 56, 111–112, 485, 512
n
, 513
n
, 526
n

Moore, Patrick, 391, 414, 415, 598
n
, 601
n

Moore, T. B., 552
n

Moore’s Law, 35–36, 41–42, 56–72, 76, 114

        criticism of, 66, 111–112

        as fifth paradigm, 41, 66–72,
67
, 72, 112

        semiconductor feature size reduction and, 57–66,
57–65
, 434

moral intelligence, 8, 192

morality, 369, 374–375, 379

Moravec, Hans, 148, 290, 464, 504
n
, 513
n
, 514
n
, 531
n
, 547
n
, 582
n
, 601
n

        brain computational capacity estimated by, 123, 529
n

        on evolution of computer power/cost, 68,
69
, 122

        image processing and, 123, 187–188

        robotics and, 24, 122, 123, 187–188, 205, 285

More, Max, 262, 369, 371, 373, 510
n
, 569
n
, 593
n
, 596
n

Moreau, René, 513
n

Morgenstern, Oskar, 499
n

Morris, Michael S., 355–356, 592
n

Morris, Tom, 485

mortgage applications, 284

Moshfegh, Allen, 333, 589
n

motion, 145

        Brownian, 254, 388, 520
n
, 570
n

        detection of, 123, 156, 188, 547
n

        digital basis for, 86

        of nanobots, 254

motor cortex, 175

motor neurons, 166, 180–181

motor skills, brain region for, 173

Mottaghy, F. M., 540
n

mousepox, 398

movies:

        downloading of, 339–340

        eye’s extraction of, 186–187,
187

        
see also specific movies

Moving Object and Transient Event Search System (MOTESS), 281

MP3 files, decoding of, 276

MP3 players, 312

MRAM (magnetic random-access memory), 119

MT (visual area), 185

Muggeridge, Malcolm, 372

multielectrode recording, 163

multiple sclerosis, 308, 555
n

multiple universes (parallel multiverses; “bubbles”), 15, 360, 362, 390, 499
n
–500
n

multiplication, neurons’ performing of, 155–156

Mumford, D., 547
n

Murakami, Shuichi, 530
n

muscles, 191, 210, 232, 552
n

        cerebellum and, 179, 181, 260

        virtual reality and, 314

Musgrave, Charles B., 562
n
, 563
n

music, musician(s), 145, 191, 194, 202, 498
n

        as analog vs. digital phenomenon, 519
n

        author’s father as, 327, 339, 497
n

        of bands of cells, 297

        brain plasticity and, 174, 176

        downloading of, 100, 339

        imagining of, 379

        as knowledge, 372, 375

        live performances by, 340

        pattern and, 388

        virtual reality and, 312

music players, 473

Mussa-Ivaldi, Ferdinando, 189

mutations, 46, 219

        genetic algorithms and, 270, 539
n

        
in human evolution, 42, 92, 208, 506
n
, 539

        mitochondrial, 219–220

        protein and, 553
n

Mutschler, Ann Steffora, 526
n

mutual assured destruction, 402, 421

MYCIN system, 266–267

MYH1 gene, 506
n

Naam, Ramez, 299

Nagaosa, Naoto, 118–119, 530
n

nanobots, 28, 32, 33, 201, 232–238, 252

        in biomass, 399–400, 425–426

        in blood, 248, 253–257, 300, 303, 317, 377, 432, 472

        blood-brain barrier and, 163–165

        as brain extenders, 317

        brain scanning with, 163–167, 197, 200, 262, 293

        colonies of, 352–353

        control of, 255, 406–407

        defined, 163

        in digestive system, 303–305

        DNA, 236

        in Drexler’s molecular assembler, 229–230, 231, 236–238

        energy and, 246, 248, 249

        fat and sticky fingers problem and, 236–238

        foglets, 28, 29, 33, 310, 325, 506
n

        GNR age impact and, 302–307, 352–353, 358, 398–400, 403, 409

        human longevity and, 325

        military’s use of, 300, 333, 400

        programmable, 317

        self-replication of, 232, 237, 256, 352, 398–400, 403, 409, 411–412, 416, 425–426

        software viruses and, 406–407

        strong AI and, 261–262

        virtual reality and, 28, 29, 310, 313–317, 319, 377

        wireless communications used by, 163,
233
, 303, 304, 316

nanocatalysts, 246, 252

nanocomputing, 139, 232–236,
233
, 412

        limits of, 133–135, 349

nanoelectromechanical systems (NEMS), 309

nanofactories, 245, 340, 425

nanofilters, 246, 252

nanogrids, 117

nanolayers, 251

Nano Letters
, 113–114

nanoparticles, 242–243, 250–253

        military’s use of, 332, 335

        with recognition proteins, 583
n

nanostructures, 251

Nanosys, 250

Nanosystems
(Drexler), 228, 229–230, 234

nanotags, magnetic, 242

nanotechnology, 4, 27, 28, 84, 111, 141, 205, 206, 221, 226–259, 299–300, 323, 558
n
–568
n

        biological assembler and, 231–232

        biotechnology compared with, 227, 232, 251, 256, 257, 412

        dangers of, 11, 206, 229, 230, 237, 241, 249, 251, 256, 334, 395, 398–400, 403, 408–419, 423

        early adopters of, 242–243

        economic effects of, 102, 245–246, 249–250, 257

        energy based on, 133, 243–250, 340, 395, 397, 430, 434, 457

        energy required for, 230, 238, 244, 245, 352

        environment and, 229, 230, 250–253, 259

        ethical issues and, 229

        exponential growth and, 27, 73, 227, 396, 407, 558
n

        fat and sticky fingers problem and, 236–238

        foundations of, 139, 227–231

        limits of, 133–135, 138

        medicine and, 238, 242–243, 251, 253–255, 259, 300, 303–305, 377, 407

        military use of, 300, 332–335

        patents for, 84,
84

        relinquishment of, 395, 411

        in reversal of aging, 372, 373, 397

        science citations of, 83,
83

        self-replication and,
see
self-replicating nanotechnology

        strong AI and, 261–262, 412, 426

        technology hype cycle for, 263–264

        thermal effects and, 238

        threshold of, 60, 112

        transportation and, 230, 246, 247, 252, 457–458

        wealth creation from, 13, 107, 396–397

        
see also
molecular manufacturing

Nanotherapeutics, 243

nanotubes and nanotube circuitry, 27, 112–115, 122, 247, 248, 526
n
–528
n
, 558
n

        carbon, 27, 113, 114, 229, 230, 234–235, 238, 246, 250, 375, 527
n

        environmental applications of, 251, 253

        self-assembly in, 112–113, 115–116, 528
n

nanoweapons, 300, 334–335

nanowires, 117, 121

Nantero, 114–115

narrow AI:

        applications for, 276, 279–289, 293

        defined, 92, 264

NASA, 24, 116, 235, 250, 280–281, 333

NASDAQ, 284

Nash, Ogden, 391

Nathanson, H. C., 516
n

National Cancer Institute, 282

National Nuclear Security Agency, 307, 533
n
, 585
n

natural selection, 21–22, 127, 195

nature:

        molecular machines in, 231–232

        technology’s emulating of, 146, 149, 479–483

        transcendence and, 388, 389