>but now I see life as tumbling down that slope, and making use of it. There is a synergy, as you say. We must land with a thud, but we're throwing off new forms of order.

Absolutely !

I think the saying "Necessity is the mother of all invention" is equally true for AGI :)

> We must land with a thud:

Can't help but wonder what would "Terry Pratchett's" thoughts be on the matter of intelligence, AGI and the origin of it ! That man had a unique way to look at the world and how it came to be.