Date: Mon, 29 Jan 2001 17:05:25 -0500 From: hugh bone <hbone-AT-optonline.net> Subject: Re: singularity Steve, Haven't read Post-Modern Fables - is any of it available on the Web? Regards, Hugh ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ > Hugh and Eric > > doesn't Lyotard effectively repeat the singularity and transhuman myth in the > 'post-modern' fables... > > sdv > > hugh bone wrote: > > > Eric et. al. > > > > I found McKenna at the "dromo" link below where he made more substantive > > comments. > > The Esalen event seemed to be a cocktail party without peanuts or drinks. > > > > See other comments below, marked ** . > > > > http://www.dromo.com/fusionanomaly/singularity.html > > > > ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ > > > > > hugh bone wrote: > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > Vernor Vinge is a "new" name to me, so was surprised to > > > > > learn that he wrote many books, and found his account of the > > > > "singularity", > > > > > > I'm not really that familar with Vernor Vinge either. I know he is a > > > science fiction writer who has won big awards and is famous for a > > > novella entitled "True Names" which prophesized cyberspace long before > > > William Gibson ever came on the scene. > > > > ** He was a math professor at San Diego State. > > > > > > One of my reasons for mentioning singularity is that this is a > > > contemporary site where science is merging into the domain of religion. > > > What liberals once considered the wackiest part of fundamentalism > > > Christianity; namely its end-time rhetoric, is now being granted a new > > > currency by a strange fusion of science and technology that hurtles > > > towards the Omega point of a posthuman, trans-human apocalypse, a > machinic > > eschatology. (This might be described as the metanarrative to > > > end all other metanarratives.) > > > > **They could wear sandals and sandwich themselves between placards > > proclaiming "The End is Nigh". > > > > I think there is no metanarrative yet. Only "petite peu" narratives. Not > > in physics, not in philosophy, not in religion. > > I've counted about 20 areas of complexities that threaten us. > > By concentrating on abstractions, and slicing those abstractions them into > > ever tinier areas of specialization, the experts get further and further > > from the common "sense" world in which we live out our "be-ing". > > > > > I don't know if you are familiar with Terence McKenna or not, but, > > > during his lifetime he also espoused a similar mystical doctrine of > > > singularity, based on the notion that history is rushing towards an > > > encounter with some mysterious hyperspatial object that will soon > > > transform everything. > > > > ** The mere concept of transhuman makes us think more about "humanity", and > > that should help. > > > > > Sometimes called the Timothy Leary of the esctasy punk set, he devaloped > > > a popular alternative philisophy which reveals similar reverberations to > > > the technological singularity espoused by Vinge. > > > > > > You can sample some of McKenna's views, recorded at an interesting > > > conference that covers a number of topics at the following site: > > > > > > > > > http://www.well.com/user/suscon/esalen/dayone.html > > > > > > > > >
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