Singularity

Raymond Kurzweil’s idea of Singularity, the transformation of the human race into something “nonhuman,” relates quite closely with Brave New World. World State is such a place where people are specifically made to do certain things. No one is “created” the way we are now. It is a place where, instead of worshipping a God, the father of assembly line, Henry Ford, is idolized. Kurzweil predicts that soon artificial intelligence will become so advanced that things such as death will be nonexistent. Humans will have developed technology that will be able to go against what we believe is possible today. It will be so powerful that it will be able to overcome what nature has restricted. After all, “what man has joined, nature is powerless to put asunder” (Huxley 22). As Lev Grossman said in his article, “When you enter their mind-space you pass through an extreme gradient in worldview, a hard ontological shear that separates Singularitarians from the common run of humanity” (Grossman 2). Grossman basically points out that once you start thinking the way Singularitarians do, you cross a very steep path in which the Singularitarians are separated from the normal people. It is where the technologically advanced are separated from the more basic form of humans. Is this not what occurs in Brave New World? In Huxley’s world the savages are separated from the people of World State because they do not think the way that they do; they do not use technology in every task they perform. In fact, technology is not even used by the savages. Is that what makes then so savage, the fact that they do not use technology to facilitate every aspect of their lives? Does that mean that the human race is getting closer and closer to the fictional setting of World State? Man is already merged somewhat with technology. According to a Time Magazine article, there are already a plethora of technological advancements that merge humans with machines such as “robotic prosthetic legs [that use] artificial intelligence to ‘read’ the wearer’s arm gestures via a set of crutches, simulating a natural human gait” (Park). In some cases robots are even taking over tasks that normally humans could only perform, such as driving a car (Saporito) or teaching English to Korean students (Mahr). These examples are not all available to the public but there are such technologically advanced machinery that society has wrapped around. If you walk around Clovis High before school or after school one thing that you will notice is that every other person has an iPhone in their hand. It is a piece of technology that could not have even been thought of twenty years ago yet every other person has one. Pieces of technology such as iPhones have become such a crucial part of some people’s daily lives that it would be difficult to function without it. There is so much that you can do with such a little device. Grossman questions, “Is it an unimaginable step to take the iPhones out of our hands and put them into our skulls?” (Grossman 5). When man is completely merged with technology it will be a great advancement because various “impossible” concepts will not be unattainable. Many people consider certain aspects of life in the hands of a greater being, or a God, but all belief in a religion does it explain the unexplainable. If a religious person is asked what happens after death they will most likely respond that a person will go to Heaven or Hell. But what if a person did not die? Would the need for an all-knowing God still exist? Would the future become like Brave New World in which the only godlike figure is Henry Ford and religion is nonexistent? I believe that as we progress towards Singularity we will become less and less human. Being authentically human will soon become nonexistent because man and machine will soon combine to become something new. To be authentically human means that man and technology do not intertwine with each other. In a sense, we have already crossed the line between authentic and unauthentic. In my opinion, there is no actual pristine state of existence since perfection of the human race for one human being may be complete merging with technology where for another human being it may be only minimal association with technology. Bernard has a romantic view of the world when he believes that there should be some pristine state of existence for mankind because he does  not have the same mindset as the others in his society and he believes that in order for him to fit in, things need to be different. Bernard is not seeking a pristine state of existence; he is simply seeking an existence in which he is not an outsider.