So, for those unfamiliar witht he term, TRANSHUMANISM refers to what happens when humans augment themselves technologically, and become more than human. You edit your genes, put nanites in your blood, neural implants in brain, adamantium in your bones, and you’re just plain better than un-augmented humans in pretty much every conceivable way. That’s a possibility that been drawing closer to us every day. As people use technology to solve practical problems, like figuring how to better control that prosthetic arm you got to replace the one you lost in the war, they’re also solving broader ones, like how to control machines with your mind.
I think we’re mostly aware of research going on these areas, but the problem I’ve always had with media coverage of technological advancements, it that it speak to either the causes or results of them.
For instance, nearly every technology advancement concening the internet was made by the pornography industry. And nearly every one of those advancements was subsequently abused by thieves and con artists.
So, let’s give this matter some thought.
What makes a human, a BETTER human? More muscles? More smarts? IMMORTALITY? These are all on the table, and have been portrayed in different ways in varying media.
Science fiction laid the groundwork for this concept, and in popular media first became widely recognizes in the form of “The Six Million Dollar Man”. “Better, stronger, faster.” And it was sort of assumed that he would be a good guy, and no ethical questions were really posed.
It wasn’t until Star Trek: The Next Generation introducted THE BORG, that the concept took on a new life, asking… is it GOOD to be Borged? The answer wasn’t clear-cut. Nobody wanted to be Borged, for reasons of personal sovereigncy, but the Borg always wanted to go back.
Then we got GATTACA, and a more short-term view of what the haves and have-nots of a partial transition to transhumanism might look like, and were asked a fundamental question: is it FAIR? Is it fair, that some people could become more than human, but others could not?
AND NOW, let’s press on to objective reality.
People ARE working on technology that can read your mind, but they’re GAME CONTROLLER companies.
People ARE working on technology that can enhance your genes, but you gotta PAY
People ARE working on IRON MAN suits, but they’re selling them to mercenaries.
…
Just thinking out loud. Interested in anyone’s thoughts.