Inside the Hunt for the 'Master Algorithm' of Artificial Intelligence

For nearly 30 years, Pedro Domingos has been working within artificial intelligence communities, both as a researcher and a developer. In that time, the University of Washington professor has become an expert on all things machine learning. His new book, The Master Algorithm, traces the beginnings of machine learning, and provides a road-map to where it may be headed in the future. We talked to him by phone about what lies ahead for machine learning, how the master algorithm might change everything, and why he thinks the idea of the singularlity is overstated. Can you give me the elevator pitch on what "The Master Algorithm" is?