Going to the next level, harder.  And that only if you come into the framework without the framework of the old (as a reference point perhaps but not with all the blinders) do you see what the new really means in its new terms.  Although of course Gelerner was prescient.  Food for thought.  

What I do find so disturbing is I think this trend does tend to atomize us.  Its like, just a little bit, the evolution of how Congressmen and Senators operate.  It used to be that there were few staffers and they worked things out so much between each other.  The politics were different but in some ways without so much staff you have to engage directly much more.  And your staff tends to be more ideological than you.  Now there is so much less interaction amongst principals.  That has a big impact.  Working these things out more amongst bites than people is, well, advantageous, but really really scary.  People so often mistake intelligence for wisdom.  We are in a world which is vastly more intelligent than the one of just a few years ago.  But more wise?  And good luck on public policy.  These gizmos give so much power to those who will do everything to avoid restricting them, its almost as if saying you might is like saying they are all Winston Smith’s.  Take care.  Go Bears!

Meanwhile I must draw your attention to a rather wonderful typo (for a twisted blogging mind like mine)

When I read of a “sic fi graphic novel” (sic);  I assume this is the special sort of sci-fi that becomes real as in def. sic –  thus was it written  

We already see the “prove you are human” sign-in to block bots.  Very soon these will not function.  There must be (if we as humans are to be served by technology) a universal “embedded distinction” convention (or law), between machine and human interest. But insofar as soon as human interest can be digitized (eg the “like”) it must also carry meta-data to support this function.

Failing this is is clear that provision by Asimov for Laws of Robotics to prevent human harm can never be regulated http://www.auburn.edu/~vestmon/robotics.html

These rules however came about in a world where machine and man occupied discrete boundaries.  

Here on this blog, playing on-line games, on stock-markets and in battle they no longer do so.

If we cannot distinguish life, we cannot value it, and if we cannot value it are we not doomed to extinguish it?