[extropy-chat] Transforming Humans

Giu1i0 Pri5c0 pgptag at gmail.com
Sat Jan 29 05:38:40 UTC 2005


TechNewsWorld: William Safire bid farewell to his column at the New
York Times this week, but not because he's retiring. Instead, this
Pulitzer Prize-winning, former presidential speech writer is moving on
to lead an organization concerned with what some call transhumanism.
Transhumanism is the advocacy of using life-enhancing technology to
improve the human condition. It is a forward-looking philosophy, and
savvy proponents spend a good deal of time thinking about the ethics
involved in areas such as stem-cell research, genetic engineering,
nanotechnology, and neuropharmaceuticals, to name a few.
The organization Safire will lead is called Dana, after Charles Dana,
a New York State legislator, industrialist and philanthropist. Dana's
core areas seem to be brain studies and immunology, but Safire
recently wrote that he will also tackle such issues as, "Should we
level human height with growth hormones?" and "Is cloning ever morally
sound?"
America, and indeed the world, is entering a new age where significant
advances in bio and nanotechnology might allow humans to live better
and longer lives. But they might also change who humans are. Imagine
if it becomes possible, as in the film Johnny Mnemonic, to integrate
silicon into the brain so that memory is greatly enhanced. The
question of whether that person is still human, and whether that
matters, will be of utmost import from both a legal and cultural point
of view.
The time to discuss these questions is now, so it is good to see the
issues moving from fringe to mainstream. As Mr. Safire rightly points
out, life expectancy for Americans has risen from 47 to 77 over the
last century. Moore's law, that computer power doubles every two
years, can be now combined with biotech. In the near future, we are
all likely to be living much longer lives.
http://www.technewsworld.com/story/Transforming-Humans-40103.html



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