The Singularity (often referred to as the "Technological Singularity")
is the moment when a
technological entity
with greater than human intelligence
is created.
How near is this eventuality?

Consider . . .

It has been scientifically concluded that the human brain
has a "processing speed" of
twenty million billion calculations per second, otherwise known as
"twenty million MIPs."

How long before
we can purchase
twenty million MIPs
at our local Circuit City?

"We will achieve twenty million MIPs for one thousand dollars in about 2020.  By 2030, a one-thousand dollar computer will be one thousand times more powerful than the human brain; by 2050 a one-thousand-dollar computer will equal ten billion human brains."

-- Ray Kurzweil

And When That Occurs . . .