ding liver allocations to shutting down liquor plants might seem pretty short to a rationalizing machine. And if such a machine could really “think”, Vinge bet it would pretty quickly conclude that the restraints of its creators were limiting what it had been asked to do. At which point the AI would turn

consideration of smart machines. The Coming Technological Singularity: How to Survive the Post- Human Era his talk was called. “Within thirty years,” Vinge began, “we will have the technological ability to create superhuman intelligence. Shortly after, the human era will be ended.”26 Vinge’s aim was not