Transcript A Talent for Living - Natasha Vita-More

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superlongevity
augmentation
pro–act
Imagine it is the year 2030 and we are looking back on our
accomplishments of the past three decades. How should our
time be best remembered? How about: Cancer reduced to a
minor health problem that is easily curable; Billions of
people enjoying lives enhanced by connection to a rich
global cultural network; nanotechnology solving the
environmental damage of past centuries; Art forms barely
imaginable today enriching the lives of a population made
more creative through new technologies and new ideas; or,
the dream of true artificial intelligence realized, adding a new
richness to the human landscape never before known.
Each of the above "future headlines" is fun, but also raises
issues implicating our basic values. The swift progress of
technology and both the promise and peril it presents are
serious concerns; the basic question of whether we will
continue to progress or turn away in fear needs our earnest
attention and ability to solve problems.
Progress Action Coalition serves as a conduit of information
and exchange for those working to counter the many biases
against advanced technologies that are growing in our culture
and the policies of our governments. Recent years have
revealed a growing feeling of fear around the world which is
a source of danger to the very value of progress itself.
Questions are raised about the development of lifetransforming technologies and the spread of freedom,
creativity and enterprise in our society, but too often now the
only answers offered are based on a pessimistic rejection of
progress. Progress Action Coalition is a resource to build
networks among people who acknowledge the challenges
before us, but who face those challenges with an optimistic
commitment to improving the human condition.
If we take action now, we can have a major impact on how the
world views efforts to prolong and improve life, advance the
world's knowledge about positive technologies, improve the
environment, promote space travel, and address fundamental
issues in education, the environment and the quality of life for
the vast majority of humanity that still lives in hunger, fear
and ignorance. As Buckminster Fuller said, it is a matter of
distribution not content. By distributing knowledge effectively,
we can encourage others to ask the right questions and find
reliable information about these and other issues.
Many of us have been discussing these concerns for years.
Now we have an organization designed to work with you in
taking action for progress. Now is the time to take a to stand to
make sure the public gets all the facts, not just the ones that
alarm them. Progress Action Coalition is an independent
organization created to fill a need in our culture. Rather than
stand by and listen to voices counseling fear and retreat
dominate the public stage, we plan to push progress. Our web
site was secured in April, awaiting its launch in time for the
Extropy Institute's Extropy-5 Conference in June, where
advocates for a positive future will gather. We hope you'll join
us in our first endeavor, a moderated email forum for sharing
information and resources among people knowledgeable about
the technologies and trends that will effect our future and
concerned that progress continue toward a brighter future.
We look forward to the years ahead and I invite you to join us
to counter the many biases against advanced technologies.
Natasha Vita-More, Director
Progress Action Coalition
(“Pro-Act”)
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Identify the Opposition
Turning Point Project
Add Campaign
A non-profit organization formed
in 1999 “to design and produce a
series of educational
advertisements concerning the
major issues of the new
millennium.”
“Watch The New York Times or return to
this site to see our next ads.
Approximately once each week a new
ad will be released. Keep watching
because this series continues will into
the year 2000.”
Nearly 100 participating
organization of the Turning Point
Project favor alternatives to the
recent practices and policies
concerning genetic engineering,
economic globalization, industrial
agriculture, extinction crisis and
megtechology.
Techno-Utopianism
“Now a terrifying new generation of technologies…”
“Descriptions of new technologies are invariably optimistic, even utopian. That’s because most
technology news originates from corporations who profit from it.”
Promise from New Technologies
Negative Possibilities Left Out
Automobile were introduced as clean, safe,
fast.
“No mention of air pollution, noise, deaths on the highway, or
oil wars.”
Pesticides were going to save crops.
“No mention of poisoned food, land, water…”
Nuclear energy was promoted as safe.
“No mention of radioactivity lasting 250,000 years.
Television was going to democratize
information.
“No mention of mind-numbing … homogenized … culture.”
Antibiotics were going to stop diseases.
“…also caused antibiotic resistance in bacteria …”
Internet was sold as boon for democracy.
“But it’s also brought bankruptcy…”
Genetic engineering is supposed to feed the
world.
“No mention of .. Heath risks from “frankenfoods…”
Who Plays God in the 21st Century?
“…we approach the gravest moral, social and ecological crises in history.”
“Who appointed the biotech industry as Gods of the 21 st Century?
Doesn’t democracy function anymore?”
Some Issues
Some Concerns
Breaking the species barrier:
“Biotech companies are blithely removing components of human beings
(and other creatures) and treating us all like auto parts at a swap meet.…
They…are dazzled by dollars and fame.”
Patenting life forms:
“Many cannot afford what corporations are asking, and more than one
million of them recently held a mass protest about it. They called it
‘biopiracy.’… Will they produce perfect ‘designer human’ embryos
creating trendy humans by the year 2050? … There’s no point in creating
superior creatures if you can’t own them.”
Genetic Roulette:
“They say its safe, but how could we know? .. Biotech creatures and
microbes are unpredictable. They can reproduce, cross-pollinate, mute and
migrate. They can jump across species using virus vectors.”
“Aids probably resulted from a virus jumping from monkeys into humans.”
Brave New World:
“Adlus Huxley predicted a society where human beings are genetically
engineered for commercial and industrial purposes. They don’t protest
because they are designed to ‘love their servitude.’ Has that already
happened to us? Not yet!”
Biotechnology = Hunger
The biotechnology industry promotes itself
as the solution to world hunger.
Some Issues
Some Concerns
Threat of Global Monoculture:
“Real farmers will become obsolete.”
Biotech suicide plants:
If you believe the biotechnology industry is
motivated to feed a hungry world, “consider the new
“terminator” technology being developed…”
Ecological roulette:
Monsanto is marketing the number one chemical
herbicide in the world: Roundup. “… they are
genetically engineering certain crops to resist
Roundup.”
X
Hunger
“Rather than destroying people’s abilities to feed
themselves, we should be encouraging it.”
International Center for
Technology Assessment
Earth Island Institute
Nature
Institute/NetFuture
Silicon Valley Toxics
Coalition
The Loka Institute
Foundation on Ethics and
Meaning
Council for Responsible
Genetics
Center for CommercialFree Public Education
Tikkun Magazine
Edmonds Institute
New York Open Center
Center for Media and
Democracy
Collective Heritage
Institute/Bioneers
Conference
Rainforest Action
Network
__________
International Center for
Technology Assessment
Food First/Institute for
Food and
Development Policy
Foundation on
Economic Trends
Council for
Responsible Genetics
Humane Society U.S.
Sierra Club
Institute for
Agriculture and Trade
Policy
Center for Food Safety
Edmonds Institute
International Forum
on Globalization
International Forum
on Food and
Agriculture
Mothers and Others
Friends of the Earth
Center for Ethics and
Toxics
Mothers for Natural
Law
Organic Consumers
Association
Campaign for
Responsible
Transplantation
Earth Island Institute
Native Forest Network
____________
Greenepeace USA
Pesticide Action Network
Religious Campaign for
Forest Conservation
Research Foundation for
Science, Technology and
Ecology
Food & Water
Rural Vermont
Idaho Sporting Congress
David Suzuki Foundation
Native Forest Council
___________
Alliance for Childhood,
Association for Waldorf
Schools of North America
The Center for
Commercial-Free
Education
The Loka Institute
TV Turnoff Network,
Jacques Ellul Society
Computer Professionals
for Social Responsibility
Center for Plain Living
_____________
Whole Earth Magazine
Planet Drum
Foundation
Yes! Magazine
The World
The Ecologist
Magazine
_________________
Some Supporters of the
Turning
Point
Project
The Foundation for
Economic Trends
Mission statement
calling
calling
Organic Molecule: Photo taken in 1986 by European Space Agency’s Giotto probe close-up of ice ball found at the core of Halley’s Comet.
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What do you do for living?
Solar Eclipse with coronal ring phenomenon: March 7, 1970. Photo by Roger Ressmeyer, Miahuatlan, Mexico.
Environmentally friendly.
Increased frequency range and parabolic hearing
with external wiring.
Uses fat for energy.
Gender changeability
Metabrain –
Prosthetic AI
layer interwoven
By nanobots.
Active prosthetic neurons route
data flow and connectivity.
Turbocharged reflex suspension.
More flexible, reconfigures by networked AI.
Prosthetic vehicle directed by sensory
nano-scale mechanics.
Network of sonar sensors
depict data through mass
and map onto visual field.
Error correction device.
Polymer chemical sensor
arrays emulate mammalian
olfactory receptor neurons.
Biosensors externally
running neuro fiber optics
to stimulate atmospheric
tensions.
20th Century Body
Primo 3M+ Future Body
Limited life span
Inherited genes
Wears out
Random mistakes
Intelligence capacity 100 trillion synapses
Single track circuits
Gender restricted
Prone to environmental damage
Corrosion by irritability, envy, depression
Prone to fat conglomerates
Elimination messy and gaseous waste
Ageless
Replaceable genes
Upgradeable
Error correction device
Intelligence capacity 100 quadrillion synapses
Multiple viewpoints running on parallel
Gender changeability
Environmentally friendly
Turbocharged optimism
Uses fat for energy
Recycles and purifies waste products
Prosthetic vehicle directed by
Sensory nano-scale mechanics.
Environmentally friendly.
Active prosthetic neurons route
data flow and connectivity.
Increased frequency range and parabolic hearing
with external wiring.
Network of sonar sensors
depict data through mass
and map onto visual field.
Uses fat for energy.
Biosensors externally
running neuro fiber optics
to stimulate atmospheric
tensions.
Gender changeability
Turbocharged reflex suspension.
More flexible, reconfigures by
networked AI.
Metabrain –
Prosthetic AI
layer interwoven
by nanobots.
Error correction device.
Polymer chemical sensor
arrays emulate mammalian
olfactory receptor neurons.
20th Century Body
Primo 3M+ Future Body
Limited life span
Inherited genes
Wears out
Random mistakes
Intelligence capacity 100 trillion synapses
Single track circuits
Gender restricted
Prone to environmental damage
Corrosion by irritability, envy, depression
Prone to fat conglomerates
Elimination messy and gaseous waste
Ageless
Replaceable genes
Upgradeable
Error correction device
Intelligence capacity 100 quadrillion synapses
Multiple viewpoints running on parallel
Gender changeability
Environmentally friendly
Turbocharged optimism
Uses fat for energy
Recycles and purifies waste products
20th Century Body
Primo 3M+ Future Body
Limited life span
Inherited genes
Wears out
Random mistakes
Intelligence capacity 100 trillion synapses
Single track circuits
Gender restricted
Prone to environmental damage
Corrosion by irritability, envy, depression
Prone to fat conglomerates
Elimination messy and gaseous waste
Ageless
Replaceable genes
Upgradeable
Error correction device
Intelligence capacity 100 quadrillion synapses
Multiple viewpoints running on parallel
Gender changeability
Environmentally friendly
Turbocharged optimism
Uses fat for energy
Recycles and purifies waste products
Hamlet
Photo by R. Ressmeyer
AI
A-Life
data data data data data data data data data data data data data data
data data data data data data data data data data data data data data data
data data data data data data data data data data data data
data data data data data data data
Get real.
A Talent for Living
20 World Class Thinkers Crack the Myths of Mortality
The race to the moon has been replaced with
the genomics and proteonomics race.
We are cracking the memetic code that
causes acceptance of limited lifespan.
A Talent for Living
20 World Class Thinkers Crack the Myths of Mortality
Ray Kurzweil
The race to the moon has been replaced with
the genomics and proteonomics race.
We are cracking the memetic code that
causes acceptance of limited lifespan.
A Talent for Living
20 World Class Thinkers Crack the Myths of Mortality
Max More
The race to the moon has been replaced with
the genomics and proteonomics race.
We are cracking the memetic code that
causes acceptance of limited lifespan.
A Talent for Living
20 World Class Thinkers Crack the Myths of Mortality
Roy Walford
The race to the moon has been replaced with
the genomics and proteonomics race.
We are cracking the memetic code that
causes acceptance of limited lifespan.
A Talent for Living
20 World Class Thinkers Crack the Myths of Mortality
Stewart Brand
The race to the moon has been replaced with
the genomics and proteonomics race.
We are cracking the memetic code that
causes acceptance of limited lifespan.
A Talent for Living
20 World Class Thinkers Crack the Myths of Mortality
John Naisbitt
The race to the moon has been replaced with
the genomics and proteonomics race.
We are cracking the memetic code that
causes acceptance of limited lifespan.
A Talent for Living
20 World Class Thinkers Crack the Myths of Mortality
Other artistic,
scientific,
technological and
cultural thinkers.
The race to the moon has been replaced with
the genomics and proteonomics race.
We are cracking the memetic code that
causes acceptance of limited lifespan.
Ageism in Sports: Two long
The securities solution
company known for
preventing damage caused
by self-replicating
technologies came out with
an IPO today.
Arnold Schwarzenegger was
revived from cryonic
suspension today and is
undergoing reentry procedures.
His long-term partner, Maria
Schriever, who has not been
suspended but underwent age
reversal therapy, recently
returned from assignment on
the L5 Colony: “He always
said, ‘I’ll be back.’”
distance swimmers competing in
this year’s triathlon were declared
disqualified today. The disqualified
swimmers are 96 and 98 years old
and under the age requirements for
for the race.
In related news: John Clark, tissue engineered athlete, will
be performing in the Moon based Tae Kwon Do match.
BioTransport (BIOT) made a big splash on the stock
market today bringing in the Bull with a bump up in its
stock price. Once thought of as a high-risk stock, along
the lines of Celera in the late 1990s, BioTransport was
added to the Dow.
The collaboration of Marvin Minsky and Ray Kurzweil
received the Nobel Peace Prize for the successful
mediation performed by their AI Arbitor, Solomon2,
who simultaneously resolved the centuries-old conflicts
between the Arabs and the Jews, the Hutu and the Tutsi
in Rwanda, and the Israelis and the PLO. The question
remains, who should receive the prize: Minsky,
Kurzweil or Solomon2? The Nobel Peace Prize
Committee wants to hire Solomon2 to make the final
decision, but Solomon2 recused itself, saying it’s far
too personal a decision.