Tuesday, September 10, 2019
Have you ever thought of the idea of living forever? Or at least expand your life span to heights never seen before? Well, thanks to transhumanism this could all be possible. In the past decades, scientific breakthroughs have been made that point us in the right direction. In the following, I will expand on this fascinating topic to the best of my ability.
Cambridge Dictionary defines transhumanism as "the theory that science and technology can help human beings develop beyond what is physically and mentally possible at present time". Quite straight forward concept. Being able to upgrade ourselves to become physically stronger, smarter, and immune to most diseases seems like a unattainable dream for most. Is it however?
The first bionic limb was created back in 1993 in Edinburgh, UK by a team from Margaret Rose Hospital. A landmark in science history without a doubt. One which particularly aided a man with muscular cancer recover a movable arm. Be that is may, we have come a long way since then. Bio-engineering and surgery have made several more major improvements since then. Not to mention the aforesaid was but one of the countless examples we could find from science in our time.
What is more, going a step further, we could be able to upload our consciousness into a computer or online network. Thus, we could live endlessly. In 2002, scientist Kevin Warwick had 100 electrodes fired into his nervous system. Consequently, this allowed his nervous system to be linked with a computer. He could feel what a robot hand was feeling and even control it with his mind from a far away distance through the internet. Even though the aforementioned is a huge breakthrough, downloading our entire mind into a digital network would be a much more complicated endeavor. One that could take decades and perhaps a hundred years from now.
In summary, the possibilities for what transhumanism can accomplish are endless. Many believe that only the wealthy will have access to this technology. Albeit, as time goes on, it could be more accessible to different kinds of people. We could also argue that people not dying could be counter-productive since the world would be overpopulated and resources would run out. Contingency measures would have to be made in that respect. Singularity is another major issue that could arise. It basically means AI taking over the world. Only time will tell what happens. For now, all we can do is be patient and hope for the best.
Sources:
- Cambridge Online Dictionary
-https://www.guinnessworldrecords.com/news/60at60/2015/8/1993-first-bionic-arm-392887/
- BBC News YouTube Channel.
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