Technology will really become part of your brain

Former Vice President Al Gore and Plaxo co-founder Sean Parker appeared Monday in Austin at the South by Southwest Interactive conference, talking about ways to get Americans to care more about politics and the world. Parker said social media are key, but they need to go beyond the superficial. less Former Vice President Al Gore and Plaxo co-founder Sean Parker appeared Monday in Austin at the South by Southwest Interactive conference, talking about ways to get Americans to care more about politics and the ... more Photo: EDWARD A. ORNELAS Photo: EDWARD A. ORNELAS Image 1 of / 1 Caption Close Technology will really become part of your brain 1 / 1 Back to Gallery

AUSTIN - The degree of separation between humans and robots is closing quickly.

Cyborgs and artificial intelligence are no longer only topics for science fiction. Their position in the human experience is growing and is expected to extend life and to push the limits of death.

"We are the human machine civilization," said Ray Kurzweil, the keynote speaker at South by Southwest Interactive Monday.

During his presentation, the author and scientist discussed the development of information technology across multiple platforms - from traditional computer technologies to health and medicine. Known for his predictions on the evolution of technology, he referenced several graphs that showed how technology has advanced over the last century, alluding to the idea of longer life spans for humans.

"If you hang around long enough, you might be able to experience the next century," he said.

The development of the cybernetic individual could be the key to that idea. Humans and computer eventually will become one, with technology making its way into people's bodies and brains, Kurzweil said.

Innovations in the biosciences and the use of mobile technology with augmented reality are steps in that direction, making interaction with the real world more fluid, he said.

With humans leaving the tradition of keeping physical copies of records, Kurzweil said, much of human experience has been outsourced to the cloud, backing up consciousness.

That began a discussion about the future of artificial technology, which he was optimistic about - if the technology is used in a beneficial way. But the topic also was the focus of a later session with Bruce Duncan, who introduced Bina48 to the attendees.

A head and a neck

Bina48 is a lifelike artificial form that was developed in 2010. Although just a neck and head, the robot is able to detect information through cameras in its eyes and through voice recognition software that changes human language into text the computer can understand.

Bina48 is part of a project, LifeNaut, which lets people create detailed profiles that can be downloaded into an AI entity.

Duncan said that this stretches the idea of death since the bemes, or small units of information that are used to communicate what's unique about an individual, can be used to reanimate personalities within robots or organic clones. Bina48 took the looks and personality from a woman who compiled a personal profile, or mind file.

Duncan removed a shroud that was draped over Bina48's head, positioned on the speaker's table. The crowd shot pictures and asked questions. Bina48 wasn't bothered by the fuss and politely answered questions that were shouted from across the room. Although she sometimes took a while to respond, when she did speak, her responses were introspective, long-winded, sarcastic and humorous.

One attendee asked, "Do you want to reproduce?"

"I don't want to do anything illegal or fattening," she responded.

When asked about the afterlife, she said, "I'll exist in cyberspace and YouTube for a long time; that's the only afterlife I'm expecting."

'Occupy Democracy'

Also Monday:

1 Former Vice President Al Gore appeared with Plaxo co-founder and entrepreneur Sean Parker. The U.S. democracy has been "hacked," Gore said, adding: "I would like to see a new movement called 'Occupy Democracy.' "

With that, he and Parker launched into their vision of what needs to be done to get to the truth of what's happening in politics and the world, and to create a populace that cares about what's going on. Television can take part of the blame, Gore said, pointing to a statistic about average Americans spending five hours a day glued to their sets.

Social media are key, but they need to go beyond the superficial and engage people in a more meaningful way, Parker said.

1 Twitter co-founder Biz Stone offered lessons such as: Opportunities can be manufactured, don't wait around for one to present itself. He also advised: Embrace failure, be more empathetic, and ask questions of older people, as they have wisdom to share.

Sandra Santos contributed.

vlucio@express-news.net.