Death gives meaning to our lives. It gives importance and value to time. Time would become meaningless if there were too much of it.

There is one brain organ that is optimised for understanding and articulating logical processes and that is the outer layer of the brain, called the cerebral cortex. Unlike the rest of the brain, this relatively recent evolutionary development is rather flat, only about 0.32 cm (0.12 in) thick and includes a mere 6 million neurons. This elaborately folded organ provides us with what little competence we do possess for understanding what we do and who we do it.

Biological evolution is too slow for the human species. Over the next few decades, it's going to be left in the dust.

Machines will follow a path that mirrors the evolution of humans. Ultimately, however, self-aware, self-improving machines will evolve beyond humans' ability to control or even understand them.

The story of evolution unfolds with increasing levels of abstraction.

Our technology, our machines, is part of our humanity. We created them to extend ourselves, and that is what is unique about human beings.

People talk philosophically, Oh, I don't want to live past 100.' You know, I'd like to hear them say that when they're 99.