For people who are far from scientific research, singularity is not a completely understandable word. The sphere of borrowing this term in science is different: philosophy, astrophysics, astronomy, mathematics, psychophysiology, psychology and information technology.
Singularity - what is it?
Singularity in translation from the Latin. singularis - individual. Regardless of the fact that different fields of science apply the meaning of singularity each in its context, the term in the basis contains concepts that are common to all. Singularity is:
- special (single) phenomenon;
- the uniqueness of something;
- a point in time;
- area of space;
- short period.
Singularity in philosophy
Modern semiotics and philosophy used the concept of singularity to resolve contradictions as a result of clarifying the essence of a single, special phenomenon, as well as the connection between singular and plural, concrete and abstract. Singularity in philosophy is a phenomenon or event that generates meaning, a point of continuous refinement, turning into a series, then into a series of lines. The French philosopher J. Deleuze believed that the folding of many points into one leads to the creation of an individual scenario or event.
Singularity in psychology
Scientists explore the psyche and mind of a person in rapidly changing conditions. What does the singularity in psychology mean? Conclusions made by psychologists are far from comforting. The singular mind is a single collective subject, in which, probably in the near future, the human race evolves - what the science fiction writers described earlier may well turn out to be a reality. The singular mind can develop in stages:
- there will be a technology that allows a person to telepathically exchange thoughts with others;
- separation of consciousness from the body - bodies are used as puppets, and consciousnesses in the form of programs are laid in computers on hard disks.
Technological Singularity
Forecast the future people have been trying since ancient times. The technological singularity is the moment or hypothetical "point of no return", when the technological breakthrough will come so powerful and accelerated that it becomes inaccessible to ordinary human understanding - consider modern futurists R. Kurzweil and E. Toffler, in this their opinion is similar to the science fiction writers predicting the dominance of artificial intelligence , as in the notorious film "Terminator. Rise of the Machines".
Time "X", when technological progress will reach its climax, according to estimates of scientists will come 2020-2040. The planet Earth, according to R. Kurzweil, will turn into a giant supercomputer. Fantastic movies in which you can see the effect of technological singularity:
- "She" - tells the story of the main character's love for an operating system with perfect intelligence.
- "Matrix" - virtual reality becomes as real as human reality.
- "I, the robot" - shows the near future, where robots have become a part of human life and greatly facilitated labor. But there is a special robot that ignores the orders of a person and relies on his intellect.
Singularity of consciousness
The concept of singularity of cognitive, introduced by the American specialist studying artificial intelligence - E. Yudkovski. The founder of the Singularity Institute suggested that the maximum interaction between all the people of the planet can lead to the joint achievement of superabilities in creating a "friendly superintelligence" - a singularity effect that will help people evolve.
Singularity and black holes
The universe is full of mysteries and mysteries, the comprehension of which lasts more than one millennium. The attention of astrophysicists and astronomers is drawn to the most mysterious phenomenon of black holes. Wormholes are a region or point of singularity in the space-time continuum, where space is anomalously distorted and time flows in a different way. Singularity of black holes is a kind of portal, the point of intersection of the layers of the Cosmos, through which you can move in time - backward, forward and sideways. The past, the present and the future in black holes exist simultaneously.