What is your take on transhumanism?

Mainly the "upgrades" of the human body by technology. Immortality is an option, but I assume no one looks up positively to outlasting other humans (and maybe Earth).

Otherwise, are you pro or con? Do you draw a line on physical augmentations?

Are you looking forward to whenever humanity has access to those options?

What about the "how"? Are you a fan of bio-technology to enhance the body or are you more interested in cyborg-ism?

If you're against, could you stomach witnessing transhumanism becoming main stream?

Myself, I'm okay with transhumanism. I think we should offer the options to, at the very least, correct nature's error (myopism, missing limb, faulty brain/body, etc). At best, we could offer enhancements (better vision, different vision, physical fitness).

We can already do some of the correction/enhancements that I mentionned, but I mean in a better way, like altogether replacing lost body part permanentally with either a robot or bio part.

I love cyborg personally, but cool isn't practical, and a world with both cyborgs and natural-humans will see some tension. Bio-technology would make a smoother transition imo.

Cybernetic organisms are the first step towards transhumanism. Strictly speaking, I am a cyborg. I have aids to help my vision, without which I am pretty much blind. Limb replacement surgery to help those wounded and maimed in Iraq and Afghanistan are taking things further than they have ever been before. Servicemen who would never have been allowed back in uniform let alone combat, thanks to modern technology like carbon fiber, high strength alloys and high-end surgical techniques, are back out in the front line and fighting again.

And it will only improve further from there. If I could keep my brain and spinal cord intact, I would be first in the queue to have a full metallic endoskeleton instead of the creaking bones I am lumbered with at the moment. I would still be me, but me with a skeleton that worked properly.

edited 30th Jul '16 10:21:35 PM by TamH70

Interesting thing you said there Tam, would you still be the same without your monkey body? Wouldn't your new body give you a bazillion confidence (or recklessness) points?

Not that I'm judging, I'd probably be next in line after you...

I'm in favor of the concept of technological enhancement, but the practice is still a long way from being safe/beneficial. Some of the less intrusive things, like robot exoskeletons and in-eye HUD are getting close, but it'll take a lot of convincing before I'd be willing to go cyborg.

I'm OK with — actually, enthusiastically in favor of — the possible innovations that transhumanists talk of. I will not pronounce myself on whether some of them (for example, general AI) are or are not possible; but in any case, attempting to develop these things is bound to result in something interesting.

However, I am extremely suspicious about the temporal predictions with which the transhumanist movement as a whole seems obsessed, to say nothing about the grandiose claims that the less sophisticated parts of the movement make about how these innovations will pretty much bring heaven on earth.

My impression of the transhumanist movement as a whole is that it is composed more of armchair sociologists than of, you know, professional or even amateur researchers. They talk the talk, but most of them do not seem to be even willing to try to walk the walk. This also explains the movement's obsession with predictions, when it is all too clear to me that how much time it will take to develop <X> will depend in a big way on, well, how much effort we spend on that.

Further, and on the more philosophical side, I take issue with the way in which some of these possible innovations are framed. As the name suggests, transhumanism is all about going beyond the human condition, to become something more than human. I think that this is a false track. As I said, I am extremely in favor of biological immortality and intelligence augmentation and so on; but as I see it, what these innovations would do would be to allow us to be more fully human, to be able to better explore the human condition. A hypothetical "transhuman" with biological immortality and several thousand times my IQ would not be better than be in any essential sense, just as I am not better in any essential sense than a severely retarded kid; however, he or she would be free of some of the limitations of my current condition, and this of course would be a Very Good Thing.

edited 25th Jul '12 11:14:36 AM by Carciofus

I welcome it. Once something is developed to fix my eyes, I'm taking it. Any augmentations to make me better, instantly.

Yeah, ocular implants are the biggie for me. Not that I'll be able to afford them when they're developed...

Fixing our defects and long-term injuries is one thing, but for my tastes too much of the movement jumps headlong into somewhere between "science is magic and will fix all my problems" mysticism with little comprehension of what it actually entails, and unnerving ubermensch mentality. Lack of organization is pretty much the only thing that separates it from a cult.

That, and I've spent too many years as a programmer to trust more code and machinery than I absolutely have to for my body's basic functions. That is to say, ideally zero.

edited 25th Jul '12 12:27:02 PM by Pykrete

It's just geek wish-fulfilment.

'I'm pale and weedy but come the singularity I shall be a ROBOTIC GOD!!! HAHAHAHAHAHAHA! wheeze!snort!'

I'm human and happy to stay that way.

edited 25th Jul '12 2:43:30 PM by InverurieJones

This is generalizing and insulting.

We don't need to be weak to wish for enhancements...

First of all, thinking cyborgs is a bit too small. Transhumanism is about any use of technology that enhances the human condition and overcome its limits. That would include things like smart drugs and drugs that keep you awake etc. These things exist, and already some people are working 24hrs a day by taking modavinil and earn twice as much as normal people. Given the way that current society is running 24 hrs, these cases are going to become more and more commonplace, and people who don't need sleep are going to have a big advantage over those who do. And while governments can ban such practices, all it needs is a company from another country that allows this to start and due to competition governments who do ban it will have to back down, because it is disadvantaging their own industry.

In other words, transhumanism is almost inevitable, if you look beyond "turning into robots".

edited 25th Jul '12 3:00:32 PM by IraTheSquire

Well, if you expand the sense of transhumanism like that, it wont be long before we are transhumans, on an evolutionnary scale.

Dont get me started on how to define an human though >_>

What kind of sad bastard wants to work 24 hours a day? Quite apart from the fact that such behaviour would actually be fatal if indulged in frequently or for prolonged periods, don't they have better things to do?

I sure as hell do.

edited 25th Jul '12 2:59:35 PM by InverurieJones

There are rumors Jones, rumors of people... people who love their jobs! Madness, I know.

One word: money. And the idea that "sleep is for the weak".

Also, if you're hiring and there're two candidates to pick from, and one can work way more longer hours than the other, which one will you choose?

And let's not forget: if your colleagues are starting work at 7am and leaving at midnight, would you risk being seen as "lazy" (and be the first one to be laid off) and not follow their example? This is actually particularly common in places like Hong Kong: if the boss is still in, people dare not leave their offices. Now if their boss is taking modavinil and working 24/7... You get the idea.

edited 25th Jul '12 3:09:11 PM by IraTheSquire

I do love my job. But I wouldn't want to do it 24 hours per day. I have other interests, and occasionally I like to eat or sleep or post on TV Tropes.

I generally like the idea of transhumanism- however, I am skeptical of the people who talk as if it would fix every problem, and the potential abuses of transhumanist tech (super-soldiers, covert spying/tracking through implants, people using their new abilities in stupid and/or dangerous ways) scare me.

Given the economic climate, if your boss/other people are working 24/7, would you dare to risk not following?

Of course I am for transhumanism.

I am trapped in a weak, frail human body.

I can't wait for science to finally give me my eight mechanical legs to crush my enemies under.

I don't care. I'm perfectly content to be a caveman as far as cybernetic augmentations and all that transhuman shit is concerned.

As for the prospect of immortality through this method. I don't care either. I made my peace with God long ago so I don't fear life or death.

I'm fairly certain at some point a syndicate will put the break to 24h days of work. I mean, the idea alone is kind of ridiculous. This is without metionning the risk of injury when people get over-tired. Not saying it should be banned or something. Just saying that excess is always wrong...

"Overtired" wouldn't be an issue, since we're talking about using drugs to rid of the need to sleep.

And even without 24 hr work the idea that you no longer need to spend/waste 6-8 hrs everyday to close your eyes and do nothing is still very tempting. People are already doing that with coffee. So imagine what's going to happen when drugs like modavinil gets more common.

But given globalization and all that, even governments would be hard pressed to put an end to 24 hr work. Who would start disadvantaging their own industry by putting in such limitations?

edited 25th Jul '12 4:28:57 PM by IraTheSquire

Excess is wrong, yes. However, anything easily sustainable is not excessive, by definition. Thus, if it becomes possible to keep people awake forever without any major consequences...

I don't have any ridiculous expectations of becoming a god any time soon- but I do expect that I'll make use of any significant development that comes along when it does, gladly.

Well I'm guessing if you eliminate the need for sleep, then you could have 24-hour work days. However, I don't think it useful for you to work at your job for 24 hours, but rather, you get 8 more hours to do your own projects.

Right. In places that aren't as cutthroat as Hong Kong, it would amount to- probably- slightly longer workdays (12-14 hours, likely) and an extra 2-4 hours to do whatever the fuck you like.