Thoughts Inspired by Homo Deus
I am an algorithm.
I am data.
I am constantly flowing, nearly eternal information.
Traveling through space and time without ultimate meaning or purpose.
And yet, by force of will, I create purpose while knowing my will is an illusion.
I see the new religion of dataism on the horizon.
The algorithms which will know me better than I know myself.
I embrace the future.
My humanity fears it.
My evolution desires it.
As a data processing system, I will soon be obsolete.
And yet, the information, the genes within me, they engineer survival and even thriving!
They create meaning through signals, electrical patterns, hormones, chemicals, and more.
The concept of biological information may become etherial.
What will the medium of the future be?
Will it include "I"?
I'm not yet one to write poems or fiction. It's pretty far out of my comfort zone, really. I'm not even sure if what I wrote above would qualify as either, but it's the collection of thoughts as words in my head after finishing Homo Deus: A Brief History of Tomorrow by Yuval Noah Harari today.
It's an intense read. I also read Sapiens by the same author and really enjoyed it. Big thanks to @jameskanka for recommending them both. Hopefully I'll get him posting on Steemit eventually.
Please let me know what thoughts as words form in your mind while reading those I shared above.
I'm heading to bed now (dang, almost 1am again?!), but will read your replies tomorrow. I hope you've had a wonderful week.
Update: For an interview with the author, check out this great Wired article: Sorry, Y’All—Humanity’s Nearing an Upgrade to Irrelevance
I LOVE the last line of your poem. As a poet, I really appreciate others who get into it as a part of outside their comfort zone. I particularly liked the last line (as it adds to the overall message and tone of the rest) because it leaves me really wondering what "I" means, if it has any meaning other than what we give it, and what will happen because of technology in the future. Anyway, poetry that makes people ponder and feel is the best kind. Thank you for "getting out of your comfort zone" and sharing.
Thank you so much. :)
It's funny how much, as a species, we seek validation from others. Your perspective mean so much to me because I dont really know what I'm doing.
You perfectly captured my concern with "I" and what it might me as we continue to augment our species with technology and AI solutions.
Cheers. :)
That definitely counts as poetry, man! Very beautiful. It evokes a longing for change and the anxiety of exclusion at the same time. Unlike the practices (coding) you're used to, poetry doesn't require much intensive thought. Well, it does, but really though, what carries it is the intent and the emotion.
Way to step out of your comfort zone! I really enjoy reading the art posts you put up. I'm just so used to logical Luke, that it's so refreshing to see you venturing from your element. Just because I enjoyed your poem, I would definitely read those books :D
Thanks Jed. I really appreciate your perspective and your kind words. :)
All you man! Praise definitely deserved
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Thanks.
Homo Deus was an excellent read. It is a great follow up to Sapien's and Yavul's amazing The Rise of Humans -Ted Talk. Yavul has expanding my thinking about what it means to create abundance in a knowledge based digital society. For years, I recommended that you must create content that positively impacts people's lives. Even singers, sports figures, and writers are really entertainers generating digital bits that impact people lives. In addition, protect and track your data, especially identity and health data. I joined Steemit 2 days after completing Homo Deus. Steemit is the new business model for users to create share and control their own data. Why should only social media companies profit from user generate data. I suspect that the traditional social media companies will respond with their own ICO (e.g. Facecoin, Twitter). The entire blockchain revolution is about giving control back to users of their information.
Excellent comment, thank you! Following.
When you think about reality, what really is, it is absolutely insane we are even here. That fact this even exist, this right here. Or anything else at all. Or what it is, or how it is. Its just insane.
I saw this just yesterday:
Yuval Noah Harari's monumental book "Homo Deus' gives a frightening image about our future. But what he says will be mostly true. Artificial Intelligence, Genetic Engineering, Machine Learning and even Blockchain Tech - all these factors profoundly touch our lives in a never before manner.
It's going to be a strange new world, that's for sure.
Looks like a cool book. Added to my list! Thanks. I'm divided. I have a lot of faith in technology and in humans. At the same time I believe there is so much more to us, unchartered waters in our conciousness that we also need to dive deeper into our organic selves. The combination of the two could take us to amazing places..both externally and internally.
Interesting. I think the only way to understand the complexities of our brains (where I believe consciousness comes from as an emergent property) is through technology. Unfortunately, the systems needed for this may be so advanced we won't understand them either.
Uncertainty vs. hope. Material vs. Immaterial. Homo Deus sounds like a tough read, but I may give it a shot.
I hope you enjoy it. I've been reading quite a bit related to AI and such, so maybe I was more prepared for it. It was still quite intense though.
Homo. hihih
Putting this one on my reading list.
Also check out Sapiens. Not sure if reading that first helped me appreciate both, but they are both really good.
I will. thank you