Sigularity

As I read Ray Kurzweil's paper on his coined term Singularity. I went through the various emotions that envelope humans when they are presented with the potential of future technology. I went through a roller coaster ride of awe, dread, and acceptance. Each passage elicited these emotions at various levels. I must admit that I would look forward to the era of nanothenological AI. While I see the limitless possibilities of the technology I see the monster within. I am skeptical that there will be public access to the technology.

I believe that the technology will not see public consumption for many years if at all. When the eventual marrying of nanotechnology and biological life forms is realized it will be viewed as a state secret and will be guarded as such. It would therefore be used by the military. If it is disseminated to the public in any manner it will be only accessible to the super rich. They will invariable dine on the benefits of the technology and could potentially create a populating of humans and AI enhanced humans. As the author suggests we should ease our way into this projected reality. The perils are starker than at any time in our technological growth as a species. Scientific progress is indeed exponential and I we completely understand how to harness the possibilities of nanotechnology the multiplier will be unfathomable.

Iran

Today the Obama administration accepted Ahmadinejad as the duly elected leader of Iran. It's an admition that was made grudgingly I am sure. They are caught between their own rhetoric of diplomacy and the reality of the chaotic election results and protests that followed. I am sure the decision to acknowledge the reality on the ground will be met with disdain by all.

As America looks to the future there is a real need to solve the Iran issue. The solidarity shown by many Americans to the revolt displayed after the election results were announced has dismantled the boogeyman persona painted of common Iranians. I would love a future where America resumes real diplomatic ties with Iran. An Iranian solution will prevent our kids from fighting old battles that have come to define our relationship with each other. It's a moral imperative, the future requires it if we want to have our kids.

The Aging Workforce, A Utility's Perspective

I am reminded daily at work how inexperienced I am. Experience breeds wisdom. The average years of experience at my plant is 18 years, the average age of the worker is about 49 years old. I have 6 years experience working at my current Job. I don't expect these numbers to change, neither do the Plant Managers. Most employees started working at the plant in their late teens and have seen a variety of plant specific issues during their tenure. They can remember a specific event and what was done to arrive at a solution. Occasionally these guys report to me and I am expected to find solutions to complex issues, at these times I readily rely on their expertise. Most utilities like LG&E embrace their aging workforce. More often than not they provide real life experience that can not be found in an OEM manual.


These people are getting older, there will be unmanageable disruptions and a significant brain drain when they eventually take retirement. At LG&E we are slowly integrating a younger workforce that will work closely with these older employees to mitigate the expected impact of their retirement. However, that's in the future at this moment we celebrate their presence and draw from their experience to guide us to a more reasoned solution to the problem of the day.

Technology and The Climate

I just got home after spending 16 hours at work, why? A thunderstorm of some force caused water to enter a 4 KV breaker short circuit a motor control center and removed a 520 MW facility from the local grid. We had failsafe devices, generator relay protection, and redundant feeds all installed with the sole purpose of protecting the units and various auxiliary equipment that might be impact by an upset system condition.

We invested millions in utility mandated standard protective equipment; however, they could not protect the generating facility from Mother Nature. This just shows that technology has its limits. We can dictate where it takes us and use it for our benefit. The environment is another matter. We have no control over the climate. The natural resources we utilize, and the effect that humans have on our environment has an impact on the climate. We should therefore strive to lessen our impact, and become stewards of the environment.

I Want My News Back

As I watch the course being plotted for the proposed health care reform being touted by the current administration I wonder what's missing. Why is it that the President of the US gets a low grade for the handling of the the reform proposal but yet when the respondents are told what the actual proposal is the same respondents that initially gave the President a low mark are actually in favor of it. So I ask myself where is the disconnect. Invariably the answer is the media and a total lack of interest by the common man in the politics that govern our lives.

With the passing of Walter Cronkite a certain nostalgia descended on the media and the extolled his grace, impartiality, and straight forwardness in the way he covered the news. Since I was not around to see Mr. Cronkite in action, I feel robbed of a kind of genius that is totally lacking in the newsrooms of media giants that have been entrusted with informing us, the masses.

I hope for a future where the newsrooms are no longer profit centers, where there are actual reporters on the beat, where opinion is not passed on as news, where the news is neither recycled nor suspended because an icon died, got married or flashed a little skin, a future where the masses are engaged in constructive discourse. I want to be educated and informed, not cajoled or talked down to. The media was granted a licence to perform a public good and collectively they have failed the American people. To get the kind of future that is needed we have to make our voices heard and make it know that we are mad about our present. It's our airwaves and damn it we should demand it back.

True Blood

I have recently become a fan of the HBO show True Blood, it's a fascinating show about vampires and the discrimination they face as they try to assimilate into society. While the existence of vampires might be somewhat far fetch, I wonder what it would be like if we discovered a different life form that desired to co-exist with humans. The immigration discussions in class yesterday identified a few misconceptions that are prevalent in our political discourse. That begs the question, would we as humans band together and deny them the right to co-exist with us or would we still maintain our deep seated distrust of even the very humans that are more like us than they are different?

I believe that the human condition is such that we are predisposed to highlight and shun our differences more than we are willing and able to accept them. So while another life form will be rejected outright by all and sundry we will still have issues accepting other humans.

The Almight Corporation

I was intrigued by one of the scenarios mentioned in class today, and it got me to play the scenario in my head. The case was presented by Jeff pride and it painted a picture of a scenario where the corporation replaced the government. The implications are obviously profound, how would the population react, how would the diversity of the skills of the populous serve the corporations’ needs, would the citizenry go willingly and accept the obvious political upheavals that would have resulted from such a c-change. This would mean that the constitution would have to be shelved and the corporation’s charter would be the law that would govern the population.

I personally don’t think such a scenario is plausible as even though we live in a society where multinational corporations hold sway in our political system they cannot be seen as pulling the strings in essence they can only be the guys behind the curtain their power and control can only be latent.