[extropy-chat] Transhumanism: 2000 Years in the Making

[Giu1i0 Pri5c0]

With the Transhumanist movement, one sees the Gnostic strain
reasserting itself in the quest to transcend the degenerate body. The
body is held in disdain. Advocates for enhancement technology exhibit
disdain for the current status of the physical body. There is an
abhorrence of the limitations that nature has placed upon the species.
The insufficiencies of height, strength, vision, hearing, longevity
and cognition are roadblocks to happiness and perpetual fulfillment.
Nature has gotten the human race this far, but the inherent limits of
existence are hurdles to be leapt.
Like the earlier Gnostics, knowledge and insight are the keys to
overcome the deficiencies of the physical. With the accumulation of
research in genetic engineering, nanotechnology, artificial
intelligence, and neural network interfacing, man will be able to
overwhelm the frailty and deficiency inherent in the human condition
and transform that which was weak into strength. The ability to
repair, replace or enhance the various biological systems in the body
allows one to overcome the limits of finitude. A logical outcome of
this is the prospect of a multitiered view of humanity. If strong
advocates of transhumanism have their wish, a new species of Techno
sapien will emerge.
http://www.thecbc.org/redesigned/research_display.php?id=189