Transcript Ethics of Human enhancement

Transhumanism
The Way Forward?
Transhumansim
H+
h+
“Transhumanism is a class of philosophies of
life that seek the continuation and
acceleration of the evolution of intelligent
life beyond its currently human form and
human limitations by means of science and
technology, guided by life-promoting
principles and values.” (Max More 1990)
Max More
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1xIQgBXw9-o
Transhumanism and the Singularity
Posthumanism
“Possible future beings whose basic capacities
so radically exceed those of present humans as
to be no longer unambiguously human by our
current standards”
Aims of Transhumanism
• to be resistant to disease and impervious to
ageing;
• to have unlimited youth and vigour; to exercise
control over their own desires, moods, and
mental states;
• to be able to avoid feeling tired, hateful, or
irritated about petty things;
• to have an increased capacity for pleasure, love,
artistic appreciation, and serenity;
• to experience novel states of consciousness that
current human brains cannot access.
Methodology of Transhumanism
• GRIN (genetics, robotics, artificial intelligence
and nanotechnology)
• Transhumanism philosophy – to use GRIN
technologies as tools to reshape our minds,
memories, offspring and perhaps even our
own souls. Humans can and should develop
beyond the boundaries of limitation.
Hollywood Dreamers
I am legend
Manchurian Candidate
I, Robot
X Men
Limitless
Inception
Captain America
Spiderman
Avatar
The Matrix
The Terminator
Tron
The Bourne films
In the News
• http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/articl
e-2017818/Embryos-involving-genes-animalsmixed-humans-produced-secretively-pastyears.html
Where are we now?
http://www.eweek.com/mobile/microsoft-google-applestrive-to-define-market-for-wearable-computers/
Will Google glasses make us cyborgs?
At what point does your everyday computing device turn
you into a cybernetic organism? We are on the cusp of a
new revolution, ushering in an age of head-mounted
computing and augmented reality. The most successful
wearable computers won’t just be smartphones strapped
to your head or arm. They will need to balance usefulness
with an ability to run unnoticed throughout most of the
day. Think of it as subconscious computing. Nov 20 2012
Are there any risks?
• International journal of Biological Sciences revealed data
that showed genetically modified food had ill effects on the
health of test rats
• However the results were supressed by the biotech
industry and led to an eight year battle before they could
be released.
• 20/07/2010 New York Times introduced a new non-profit
organisation called the Lifeboat Foundation.
• Aim: to protect people from threats posed by potentially
catastrophic technology from artificial intelligence running
amok to self-replicating nanobots – donors include Google,
Hewlett-Packard, Sun microsystems.
The Future
What are the Issues?
Ethics of Human enhancement: US Government funded project
Does human enhancement raise issues of fairness, access and equity?
What kind of societal disruptions might rise from human
enhancement?
Should there be any limits on enhancement for military purposes?
The question is not whether attaching artificial limbs or enhancing
particular traits or capacities would dehumanize or undignify persons
but whether non-biological entities introduced into or attached to
the human body contribute to the “augmentation” of human dignity.