Nebs Sez
Someone in Debate Me 'asked': "Trans-humanism, yay or nay? I personally think its foolhardy and a relatively worthless pursuit."
I replied: "You're thinking of Transhumanists as purely what I call The Brain Box Mafia and most of us are not up on that end the spectrum. The largest sector is the Enhancement/ Augmentation crowd. We believe Transhumanism to be about a step by step process of improving the Baseline Human physiology via Cybernetic Augmentation, Genetic Enhancement and Nanotech.
And the Cybernetic part of that process has been underway for decades. The perfect example of that is Cochlear implants that restore hearing. That makes the subject a small 'c' cyborg, a Cybernetic Organism. But the same is true for pacemakers and things like the brain implant research being done on paraplegic US Vets, where they are linked directly into their mechanical prostheses.
Right now there is a lot of good work being done on using raw stem cells and 3D printers to create entirely new transplant organs. The stem cells are cloned from the transplant patient so there are no rejection factors. Part of the irony here is that the Christian objections to the use of fetal stem cells forced the science past their use to full on cloning.
The next 'big' step after that will be combining microcomputers 'on-board' the human body to operate Nanotech delivery systems for raw stem cells to renew human tissue and organs. Add in things like carbon sheathing of bones to increase strength and we're well on our way to the full blown Cyborg.
There are a number of important Transhumanist developments that are being held back by legal and 'ethical' blocks. But The Rich certainly want to Live Forever and many of them have no qualms about going around such. There will even be those who chose to amputate healthy limbs and have them replaced with superior prostheses.
Transhumanism is a *very* diverse movement. Don't be fooled by The Brain Box Mafia...even though that will most likely come to pass at some future point. But not all of us will follow that path even when it becomes a viable option."
I replied: "You're thinking of Transhumanists as purely what I call The Brain Box Mafia and most of us are not up on that end the spectrum. The largest sector is the Enhancement/ Augmentation crowd. We believe Transhumanism to be about a step by step process of improving the Baseline Human physiology via Cybernetic Augmentation, Genetic Enhancement and Nanotech.
And the Cybernetic part of that process has been underway for decades. The perfect example of that is Cochlear implants that restore hearing. That makes the subject a small 'c' cyborg, a Cybernetic Organism. But the same is true for pacemakers and things like the brain implant research being done on paraplegic US Vets, where they are linked directly into their mechanical prostheses.
Right now there is a lot of good work being done on using raw stem cells and 3D printers to create entirely new transplant organs. The stem cells are cloned from the transplant patient so there are no rejection factors. Part of the irony here is that the Christian objections to the use of fetal stem cells forced the science past their use to full on cloning.
The next 'big' step after that will be combining microcomputers 'on-board' the human body to operate Nanotech delivery systems for raw stem cells to renew human tissue and organs. Add in things like carbon sheathing of bones to increase strength and we're well on our way to the full blown Cyborg.
There are a number of important Transhumanist developments that are being held back by legal and 'ethical' blocks. But The Rich certainly want to Live Forever and many of them have no qualms about going around such. There will even be those who chose to amputate healthy limbs and have them replaced with superior prostheses.
Transhumanism is a *very* diverse movement. Don't be fooled by The Brain Box Mafia...even though that will most likely come to pass at some future point. But not all of us will follow that path even when it becomes a viable option."