Transgender was yesterday. Today the discussion is transhumanism.

Coined by biologist and eugenicist Julian Huxley (brother of author Aldous Huxley) in 1957, transhumanism remained the the terrain of science fiction authors and fringe philosophers for the better part of the 20th century. The movement gained broader interest as science advanced, leaping forward in credibility in the 1990s with the invention of the World Wide Web, the sequencing of the human genome and the exponential growth of computing power.

New technologies continue to push the limits of life. CRISPR enables scientists to alter specific genes in an organism and make those changes heritable, but the advancement is so recent that regulation is still up for debate. Meanwhile, participants in the “body-hacking” movement are implanting RFID microchips and magnets into their bodies to better take advantage of potentially life-enhancing technology. (Some claim, not unfairly, that these modifications aren’t so different from much more accepted technologies such as pacemakers and intrauterine devices). Just last week, in a closed-door meeting at Harvard University, a group of nearly 150 scientists and futurists discussed a project to synthesize the human genome, potentially making it possible to create humans with certain kinds of predetermined traits.

Transhumanism, in its most extreme manifestation, is reflective of an increasingly pervasive and influential school of thought: that all problems can and should be solved with the right combination of invention, entrepreneurship and resource allocation. The movement has its critics. Techno-utopianism is often described as the religion of Silicon Valley, in no small part because tech moguls are often the only ones with the resources to pursue it, and the only ones who stand to benefit in the near term.

Transhumanists advocate the advancement and application of modern biotechnology, nanotechnology and information technology to empower human beings to evolve and flourish beyond their current physical, cognitive, psychological and even moral limitations. One of the chief transhumanist objectives is to radically lengthen healthy human life expectancy, enabling people to thrive for hundreds, if not, thousands of years. On the horizon are technologies that can safely and comprehensively edit human genomes to cure illnesses and repair immune responses.

Last year, researchers at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine launched an anti-aging study using the drug metformin. Dutch researchers have recently shown that dosing fearful people with the anti-hypertension drug propranolol significantly reduces the emotional effects of bad memories. As rejuvenation treatments lengthen life spans, humans might achieve what theoretical bio-gerontologist Aubrey de Grey calls “longevity escape velocity,” in which advances in anti-aging technologies proceed faster than the people taking them age. Thus, life expectancy indefinitely lengthens. Others, such as futurist Ray Kurzweil, foresee digital technologies melding with human bodies. Think of something like cochlear implants that boost your intellectual processing power by wirelessly connecting your brain to banks of supercomputers.

Floyd Robertson wrote:Yeah, none of these sound like good ideas. Plenty of examples from Hollywood where this type of shit goes bad in less than 2.5 hours.

Dr. Strangelove wrote:

Floyd Robertson wrote:Yeah, none of these sound like good ideas.  Plenty of examples from Hollywood where this type of shit goes bad in less than 2.5 hours.

Well since we didn't learn from Deep Impact what a disaster a black President would be I don't think we'll learn from those either.

Turtleneck wrote:I just sewed my iPhone into my wrist. This is great. It looks really cool.

Floyd Robertson wrote:

Turtleneck wrote:I just sewed my iPhone into my wrist. This is great. It looks really cool.

You've just invented the iWatch.

Turtleneck wrote:

Floyd Robertson wrote:

You've just invented the iWatch.

I don't feel too well, Floyd.

Floyd Robertson wrote:

Turtleneck wrote:

I don't feel too well, Floyd.

I once had a doctor tell me that if something make you hurt or feel bad, stop doing it.

Turtleneck wrote:Kramer is vindicated!

tGreenWay wrote:

Floyd Robertson wrote:

I once had a doctor tell me that if something make you hurt or feel bad, stop doing it.

Worst BDSM slogan ever.

Floyd Robertson wrote:

tGreenWay wrote:


Worst BDSM slogan ever.

Slogan? Those are the safe words.