While the prospect of human-like artificial intelligence has permeated popular culture, the scientific and philosophical investigation of consciousness is far from over. While some futurists like Google’s Ray Kurzweil predict powerful and complex computers that can replicate the human brain, others, including Duke University neuroscientist Miguel Nicolelis, dismiss the possibility altogether. In an interview with MIT Technology Review, Nicolelis says that the theory of technological singularity “is a bunch of hot air,” and that people won’t be able to download their thoughts or memories into computers. “There are a lot of people selling the idea that you can mimic the brain with a computer,” Nicolelis says. “You could have all the computer chips ever in the world and you won’t create a consciousness.”
Don’t expect to download your brain into a computer
is executive editor who has obsessed over headlines and internet speeds since 2011. He previously worked as an advocate for the National Park System.
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