General Information

Office Hours: MW 4-5
Textbook: The Singularity Is Near: When Humans Transcend Biology by Ray Kurzweil
Class time: TuTh 2-3:20, Deady 306

Software Tools

We will be using tools to explore various ideas during the quarter. I'll expand the list below is we move through the quarter.
• Truth table tool. When you click on this link, you will only be able to use the tool through its web site, i.e., you cannot download it to your own computer: Truth Table (TT) tool.
• Circuit tool. You should see two options when you click on this link, xLogicCircuits.jar: you can either save it or open/run it. If you run it, it should start up and you can use it directly. If you save it, don't change its name or .jar extension. Once it is saved, you should be able to double-click the file and it will start up. Why would you save it versus running it? Only reason I can think of is that once you have it saved, you do not need an Internet connection to run it. You will need an Internet connection if you run it directly.
• Turing Machine tool. You should see two options when you click on this link, xTuringMachine.jar: either save or open/run. Same issues as with xLogicCircuits.
• We will be using the Ruby programming language in the latter part of the course. More information will be given in later weeks.

Other information of interest

• http://hri2007.org/brochure-web.pdf
• http://www.technologynewsdaily.com/node/5795
• http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/8-Circuit_Model_of_Consciousness
• The Computing Center has a web tool to setup email forwarding: https://account.uoregon.edu/forward/
• Article on free will.
• Doug Lenant describing CYC to a google audience (5/06).
• Discussion of human-computer cooperation to solve problems (7/06).
• Intro to metaverse of Second Life.

Partial Syllabus

WARNING: this is a sketch of topics and may change

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Week 1 (January 7th)
1. Introduction to course and topic
2. Are computers logical and mathematical?
3. Turing-test
4. Lab on Computer building-blocks: logical circuits
5. Our author debates a famous critic, David Gelernter. As background, Professor Gelernter comments on his life after injuries suffered at the hands of Theodore Kaczynski in Drawing Life: Surviving the Unabomber. David Gelernter is on the board of The Lifeboat Foundation, an organization focused on defenses against technology that can snuff out life on the planet (we will read more on the topic of "existential threats" when we get to chapter 8 in our textbook).
   
Lab exercise: Week 1 lab exercise
Homework: Week 1 homework
Slides: Directory of slides.
Movie: The debate (370MB!).

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Week 2 (January 14th)
1. DNA computing
2. Introduction to Turing Machines
3. Lab on Turing Machines
Lab exercise: Week 2 in-lab exercise
Homework: Week 2 homework
Slides: Directory of slides.

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Week 3 (January 21st)
1. Quantum computing
2. Slides from talk: http://abyss.uoregon.edu/~js/qc/qc.html).
3. See also http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Multiverse_(science).
Lab exercise: Week 3 in-lab exercise
Homework: Week 3 homework
Slides: Directory of slides.

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Week 4 (Janurary 28th)
1. Fundamental limitations to computers
Homework: Week 4 homework
Slides: Directory of slides.

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Week 5 (February 4th)
1. Computers and evolution
2. Art Farley slides.
Genetic programming sites: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Genetic_programming, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Evolvable_hardware, http://www.genetic-programming.org/
Homework: Week 5 homework
Slides: Directory of slides.

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Week 6 (February 11th)

MIDTERM

• Homework: Week 6 homework. It's a small one!
• Tuesday: review
• Thursday: the midterm
• Midterm study guide: Midterm study guide.

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Week 7 (February 18th)

1. Informatics: Brain-scanning using EEG techniques.
2. Matt's slides.
3. Matt also sent me a note he saw related to the multiverse (kind of ).

Homework: Week 7 homework
Slides: Directory of slides.

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Week 8 (February 25th)

1. Informatics: Brain-scanning using fMRI techniques.
Homework: Week 8 homework
Slides: Directory of slides.

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Week 9 (March 3rd)

1. Nano robots and nano technology.
2. Smalley article referenced on page 236.
3. Professor Linke's slides.

Homework: Week 9 homework
Slides: Directory of slides.


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Week 10 (March 10th)
1. Wrap up.
2. Course evaluations. Below from registrar.

   	Subject: Please Announce Course Evaluations in Class this Week!
   	From: "Sue Eveland" <seveland@uoregon.edu>
   	Date: Mon, 10 Mar 2008 17:26:35 -0700
   
   	Dear Faculty:
   
   	UO’s online course evaluation system is now open for Winter 2008 evaluations.  An e-mail has been sent to
   	students in each of your classes announcing the opening of the system and asking them to log into
   	DuckWeb to participate.  Reminders will be sent throughout the week to students who have not completed
   	all of their evaluations.  Please do not be alarmed if you hear reports from students about receiving
   	multiple e-mails from the course evaluation system; we experienced technical issues over the weekend
   	and again today that have since been resolved.
   
   	Course evaluations will be open until midnight Sunday, March 16 (the night before Final Exam week).  More
   	details and FAQs can be found on the Registrar's home page at registrar.uoregon.edu.
   
   	If you have questions, comments, or feedback about the new online evaluation system, please e-mail
   	registrar@uoregon.edu or call the Registrar's Office at 541-346-2935.
   
   	We'd appreciate it if, during your classes this week, you would remind students to log into DuckWeb and
   	complete their evaluations this coming week.  Thank you for helping to make this new system a success!
   
   	Sincerely,
       Office of the Registrar
       

Homework: Make-up homework.
Final: Final Study Guide.
Slides: Directory of slides.


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Week 11 (March 17th - Finals Week)
FINAL: (our classroom)
Final study guide: Final study guide.