Bryan Appleyard,The Singulairity And The Butlerian Jihad.

I have recently been reading Bryan Appleyards latest book The Brain Is Wider Than the Sky.Bryan Appleyard has for the last twenty years been publishing books which seek to explain the frontiers of modern science and where they may be leading to the non scientific layman.In contrast to many educated people the scientists often seem to be immensely optimistic. I am reminded of reading such works as Michio Kakus Visions -How Science Will Revolutionize the 21st century which is an intensely optimistic work.When I read such stuff which is often combined with the belief in a skys the limit free market capitalism I seem to hear in my head Ethel Merman singing Everything's  Coming Up Roses.This is an excellent song but whenever I hear it I remember a snippet of fact from a book on the Vietnam War that it was the most popular song on the jukeboxes in the American bars in Saigon in the mid 1960s.The Everything's Coming Up Roses tone comes from most of the scientists and business people that Bryan Appleyard  interviews in his book.One of the most disturbing pieces of news in the book is the possible advent of what is known as the Singularity.Apparently within thirty years it is expected  that it will be possible to create superhuman intelligence and shortly after the human era will be ended.This event is known as the Singularity.