Re: Post singularity society

[kgstar@most.fw.hac.com (Kelly Starks x7066 MS 10-39)]

At 11:00 PM 6/19/96, Timothy van der Linden wrote:
>Kelly wrote:
>>Don't see the connection.  We have the technology and resources to make a
>>nice wealthy world for everyone now.  Doesn't mean everyone can or will
>>join in.  (No we don't need to shrink the population.)
>
>Many simple things still need to be done by humans, growing food, building
>houses etc. Transferring these goods also costs lots of money and human work.
>All this makes that many normal Western needs are not free at all, when
>energy is free and machines (AIs) do the work then the resources are
>available, today these resources are only available to those who have enough
>money.
>I thus don't see why you can say that technology and resources are not the
>problem.
>
>
>Timothy

Ah, I was referring to resources as in ore, fuel, etc...  We have all the
equipment (give or take) we need.  We have all the raw materials we need.
I specify this because many people assume we fundamentally don't have
enough raw material, food, etc..  Thats it is physically impossible to have
a nice weathy world for all.  I.E. we are doomed, and all civilization will
collapse, or we will survive only by stealing from everyone else.  This is
nonsence, but its geting to be common enough nonsence to worry me, and your
comment about "maybe we need to have fewer people" seemed to suggest it.

As to things that still need to be done by humans (growing food, building
houses etc) the number of humans neccisary to do that is droping rapidly
(bad news if you work in those fields.  Thats A BIG issue in the U.S.).
But the big issues are often cultural.  Everone can by the same equipment.
But often even if poor counties (or rich third world ones) do by it and the
resorces, or even if they are given them.  They can't assimilate and use
them.  The mid east spent a ton importing equip and geting international
contracts.  But then they found their people for cultural reasons
couldn't/wouldn't operate the systems correctly.  All the contracts
vanished.  All the companies left.  It wasn't a mater of training.  They
knew how, they just wouldn't.  Doing what was nessisary for the equipment
was unacceptable to them culturally.

Thats going to be a bigger issue as more technologies and issues get out to
the third world.  They will be forced to deal with things they don't want
to deal with, and may just drop it and not adapt.  But when they stay where
they are, and the rest of the world races past.  They will not blame
themselves.

Kelly


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Kelly Starks                       Internet: kgstar@most.fw.hac.com
Sr. Systems Engineer
Magnavox Electronic Systems Company
(Magnavox URL: http://www.fw.hac.com/external.html)

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