What’s thy bidding?

By MATTHEW PATE

Stephens Media

The trappings of modern life are both a reflection and consequence of technological innovation. As I write this, it is January 12th, the “birthday” of the fictional computer villain HAL 9000 from 2001: A Space Odyssey. This fact was brought to my attention during a History Channel program that provided a survey of Universal Existence (Big Bang to modernity) in two hours.

The show pointed out an interesting fact of human society: If the whole of Universal time were scaled down into a week, our part, from the Industrial Revolution forward would occupy only the last six seconds.

While watching the program, an alarm I had set on my iPhone chimed. I picked up the phone, made the noise stop and paused to notice the tiny camera lens on the front of the device. My mind went back to HAL. I briefly imagined the phone’s Siri voice controlled interface asking, “What are you doing, Matthew?”

I imagine that is hardly an original thought, but it provoked one further step. It made my mind go to futurist Ray Kurzweil’s prediction of the coming Singularity (estimated to take place in 2045), the moment when human intelligence and machine technology become united, resulting in a being with superhuman intelligence.

To be fair, the idea of a Singularity is more properly attributed to Venor Vinge, a mathematics professor and science fiction author with an appellation reminiscent of a Stan Lee character. As Vinge states, “Within thirty years, we will have the technological means to create superhuman intelligence. Shortly after, the human era will be ended.”

I’m not certain whether that implies the “Rise of the Machines,” but it sure sounds ominous. Of course sloughing off the lowly confines of the meat calculator inside our skulls could be a good thing. This might leave us room to address the future perils suggested by Nick Bostrom, director of the Future Human Institute at Oxford University.

According to Bostrom, there are six likely portals through which we could end humanity as we now know it: Climate change sufficient to make the Earth uninhabitable — death by Exxon; synthetic biology, the creation of new life forms that either by accident or design turn on us — Frankenstein, table for one; nuclear apocalypse — duck, cover, evaporate; Nanotechnology-based weaponry — death by housefly-sized drones; unknown risks, perhaps the most compelling because they are, well… unknown; and, lastly, machine superintelligence — the washing machines and DVD players of the world unite to become our micro-chipped overlords.

All of these themes has been richly explored in science fiction. Likely, they will remain the purview of that industry. Even so, I can’t help but draw comparisons between the prescient slates carried by crew members of the fictional USS Enterprise of Star Trek fame and the iPad on my bedside table.

Beyond this, I remember a page that used to be printed on the inside of every telephone book. It showed phones of the past and phones of the future, specifically a videophone. The first time I video chatted with a friend over my iPhone, I felt transported (pardon the pun) to the realm of Star Trek. It was as though I were commanding a technology greater than I should.

I’ve also used this technological miracle for confirming that I had selected the right dishwasher soap. When Gene Roddenberry penned the title dialogue, “… where no man has gone before,” I’m fairly certain he didn’t have Aisle 12 at Target in mind.

As to the coming convergence, the Singularity, I remain dubious. I feel no increasing affinity for a multi-device TV remote, tax software or the perpetually incorrect clock on my microwave.

This said, I’m no Luddite. I built computer simulation models for doctoral dissertation. I’m the guy my family calls when their computer “breaks.” As above, I am surrounded by all sorts of glowing, calculating folderol. Heck, I liked it enough that I let it move in with me. I’m just not sure I want to marry it.

Matthew Pate is a former law enforcement executive who holds a doctorate in criminal justice and who has advised police agencies around the country.