And just in case the link to the documentary on M-theory in my previous post isn't mind-blowing enough to some of you and you want something more related to your everyday existence to elate/worry you, I offer:
http://www.kurzweilai.net
Plenty of articles on there to make yer head spin
, I read one tonight which touched on Guth's idea that we might be able to create universes and hence I figured I'd post this also as sort of a "ok how 'bout this!". I've read RK's "The Singularity Is Near" as well as Drexler's "Engines of Creation" some of whose ideas RK uses (although I read EOC about 15-20 years ago) and I think they are essentially correct about what will eventually happen with our technology provided we don't destroy ourselves first (but as I've said before, I'm an optimist). I'm less sanguine about their time-lines due to our seemingly less prolific ability to create reliable software (although RK does present some interesting historical graphs to demonstrate the doubly exponential rate of our technology development). IIRC Drexler's EOC has already been shown by time to be overly optimistic time-wise in some instances, but it's still an interesting read IMHO, and can be read here for free if one is so inclined:
http://www.e-drexler.com/d/06/00/EOC/EOC_Cover.html
Drexler has also written a recent letter reproduced on Kurzweil's site where he talks about the scientific/political ramifications of EOC that have occurred since its publication. This futuristic stuff is obviously less science and more speculation, but it is based on the science we know now (and more scientific evaluations of the ideas in EOC can be found in Drexler's Nanosystems, but it is a much harder read) and perhaps even less far out than M-theory believe it or not, and I found it interesting, perhaps you will as well. Although I imagine many will find it incredulous
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