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Quote by Vernor Vinge

“All evil and good is petty before Nature. Personally, we take comfort from this, that there is a universe to admire that cannot be twisted to villainy or good, but which simply is.”

Quote by Vernor Vinge

Book:Zones of Thought: A Fire Upon the Deep, A Deepness in the Sky

Work

Zones of Thought: A Fire Upon the Deep, A Deepness in the Sky

This book is a compilation of short stories that delve into the realms of science fiction, offering readers a diverse range of imaginative narratives and thought-provoking concepts. more

Author

Vernor Vinge is an American computer scientist known for his contributions to both science fiction literature and computer science. His works often explore the impact of technological advancements on human society, with his most famous novel being 'Rainbow's End'. more

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“The illusion of self-awareness. Happy automatons, running on trivial programs. I'll bet you never guess. From the inside, how can you?”

Self Running Awareness Illusion Program Self Awareness

Book:A Fire Upon The Deep

Source: A Fire Upon The Deep

“Note that I am not proposing that AI research be ignored or less funded.”

Research Notes Ignored

Author:Vernor Vinge

“We will soon create intelligences greater than our own ... When this happens, human history will have reached a kind of singularity, an intellectual transition as impenetrable as the knotted space-time at the center of a black hole, and the world will pass far beyond our understanding.”

World Humans Kind Happens Understanding Black Space Greater Intellectual Holes Transition Human History Singularity Black Hole Space Time

Author:Vernor Vinge

“Within thirty years, we will have the technological means to create superhuman intelligence. Shortly after, the human era will be ended.”

Years Humans Mean Eras Thirty Technological Thirty Years Singularity Superhuman Human Intelligence

Author:Vernor Vinge

“Here I had tried a straightforward extrapolation of technology, and found myself precipitated over an abyss. It's a problem we face every time we consider the creation of intelligences greater than our own. When this happens, human history will have reached a kind of singularity - a place where extrapolation breaks down and new models must be applied - and the world will pass beyond our understanding.”

Source: The Collected Stories of Vernor Vinge

“One cannot make command decisions simply by assessing the tactical situation and going ahead with whatever course of action will do the most harm to the enemy with a minimum of death and damage to your own men and materiel. Modern warfare has become very complex, especially during the last century. Wars are won not by a simple series of battles won, but by a complex interrelationship among military victory, economic pressures, logistic maneuvering, access to the enemy’s information, political postures—dozens, literally dozens of factors.”

“A good sign that an army has been around too long is that it starts getting top-heavy with officers.”

Long Has Beens Army Heavy Officers

Book:The Forever War

Source: The Forever War

“Relativity propped it up, at least gave it the illusion of being there…the way all reality becomes illusory and observer-oriented when you study general relativity. Or Buddhism. Or get drafted.”

Way Reality Study Buddhism Illusion Observers Being There Relativity Illusory General Relativity

Book:The Forever War

Source: The Forever War

“Universal design systems can no longer be dismissed as the irrelevant musings of a small, localized design community. A second modernism has emerged, reinvigorating the utopian search for universal forms that marked the birth of design as a discourse and a discipline nearly a century earlier.”

Form Community Century Design Birth Discipline Universal Discourse Irrelevant Modernism Utopian Musings

Book:Thinking with Type

Source: Thinking with Type

“Working within the constraints of a problem is part of the fun and challenge of design.”

Problem Fun Challenges Design Constraints

Book:Graphic Design: The New Basics

Source: Graphic Design: The New Basics