Gigantic late-blog Bonanza. Blogs 5, 6 and Reflection

So, i've been procrastinating awfully on these, time to get them in. On the last day of school. In 5th hour. Yeah.

Blog 5: 100 years from now.

100 years from now, I expect the world to change a great deal. Moore's law dictates an exponential increase in processor power, and according to scientists such as Ray Kurzweil, it is not improbable for processor power to soon reach a point where it roughly equates to the power of the Human Brain. When computers are as powerful as the human brain, it will hit a point known as the Singularity. Then, machines will be able to create machines more intelligent than themselves, or, more intelligent than humans. And so on, and so on, and so on. This massive exponential leap in power will result in a gigantic change in the way we view the world, from the advent of conscious AI to the gigantic jump in technology that will be associated with it. The world will change from such levels of technology, and I believe it could occur 100 years from now.

Blog 6: Somewhere in the world right now.

Out in the world, according to the population bureau's 2010 study, around 1.8 people die per second. That's around 108 deaths a minute, 156,000 a day and 56.7 million a year. That means that out there right now in the time it's taken you to read this blog post, someone has died. Many someones. Out in third world countries people who suffer under the grip of poverty starve to death, or someone is killed in a war-torn nation by a savage tyrant. There is much, much death in the world right now. So, while your life is cushy and comfortable, right now, no matter what you're doing, every second, someone dies. Someone with family, with friends, with aspirations and dreams, their lives are extinguished. Every second of every day of every year. That's what's going on in the world right now.

Reflection:

This year has been a doozy. I've spent it taking 3 AP courses, with all the finals and AP tests those entail, alongside two online courses attempting to repair damage that occurred at the end of Sophomore year. I've had to do a lot of work, and while i'm not going to say i'm responsible (the fact i'm entering this blog at the quite literal last minute shows), I have been taking a lot of effort to do work. I've pretty much had to cut off hanging out with my friends outside of school. I haven't never gone to see a movie this year, but i certainly have had a lot less social interraction, because i've been having to try to take responsibility for my actions and prepare more for my future. In that method, I think i have maybe gotten a little bit more grown. Possibly a tad. And, I have finally figured out what I want to do with the next school year, and i've chosen a mentoring project I really care about. So all in all, it's been a good year. I've scraped by in some areas, but in others i've done fine. I got my first 100 in a real class this year, which is a big accomplishment. Yes, overall Junior year was nice.