Is Transhumanism Worth Striving For?

Cynthia McKanzie – MessageToEagle.com – Transhumanism is a concept that has become more interesting in recent years. Many are still divided on this somewhat controversial topic. Some think transhumanism is worth striving for, and others disagree completely.

Transhumanism is about taking humanity to a new level of existence. Supporters of transhumanism think we can evolve beyond our current physical and mental limitations.

transhumanism

However, this is not a spiritual process. Instead, we rely on science and technology to enhance our physical and mental capabilities.

Transhumanism – A Quest For Immortality

So, how can transhumanism be achieved in practice? Transhumanism means slowing the ageing process. The ultimate goal is to eliminate death through the means of science and technology. This idea is not new. Our ancestors were eager to find a way to achieve immortality. In the garden of Hesperides, nymphs guarded divine immortality apples. Ancient Chinese produced jade suits of immortality. Jade, a sacred green healing stone was believed to possess magical properties that would protect the body from decay and ward off evil spirits.

Some years ago, scientists discovered Rapamycin, a mysterious bacteria on Easter Island. The finding gave researchers new hope. It could stop the aging process and be the key to immortality. Scientists are still searching for the mysterious fountain of youth, but transhumanism offers different ways to conquer death.

When the first computers appeared, many were skeptical. Today, our modern society relies on computer technology and it’s difficult to imagine life without internet, laptops, desktop, and other computer related tools.

The quick emergence of artificial intelligence has led to a development of robots capable of performing tasks that can be difficult to humans. Robots can take over jobs that are extremely boring and sometimes dangerous.

Many people still fear or are skeptical towards AI (artificial intelligence), but it’s often emphasized that we should relax because AI is not as threatening as some think. In real life AI can meaningfully improve people’s lives in ways we never thought was possible before.

Some AI developers have rather “wild” ideas that seem far-fetched, but those who are involved in certain AI related concepts are convinced they know what they are doing. For example, as mentioned earlier on MessageToEagle.com, one company announced it has come up with an idea how artificial intelligence can bring back dead people to life.

This idea raises many questions, like for example, would the resurrected person still be you or a copy of you?

Many people argue that death is natural and unavoidable, so why should we stop death or bring dead people back to life? Some people suffer from Apeirophobia, the fear of living forever, but most people are afraid of death.  Can transhumanism be a good option for those who fear death?

Conflicts Between Normal And Enhanced Humans?

Nick Bostrom, philosopher at the University of Oxford who specializes on subjects like existential risk,  the simulation argument, anthropics  (developing the first mathematically explicit theory of observation selection effects), impacts of future technology and implications of consequentialism for global strategy says there are many issues we must consider and we should ask ourselves why transhumanism can be good or bad for us.

transhumanism

“When transhumanists say they want to extend lifespans, what they mean is that they want to extend health spans. This means that the extra person-years would be productive and would add economic value to society. We can all agree that there would be little point in living an extra ten years in a state of dementia.

If people can look forward to a longer healthy, active life, they will have a personal stake in the future and will hopefully be more concerned about the longterm consequences of their actions,” Nick Bostrom explains.

See also:

Quantum Physics May Have Proved There Is Life After Death And There Is A Quantum Code For All Living Beings

Death Is Just An Illusion: We Continue To Live In A Parallel Universe

Is Death A Dream Or Illusion?

One of the fears many have voiced is that transhumanism will cause a big gap between normal and enhanced humans. What could be the consequences of this gap?

“A common worry is that inheritable genetic modifications or other human enhancement technologies would lead to two distinct and separate species and that hostilities would inevitably develop between them. The assumptions behind this prediction should be questioned. It is a common theme in fiction because of the opportunities for dramatic conflict, but that is not the same as social, political, and economic plausibility in the real world. It seems more likely that there would be a continuum of differently modified or enhanced individuals, which would overlap with the continuum of as-yet unenhanced humans. The scenario in which “the enhanced” form a pact and then attack “the naturals” makes for exciting science fiction but is not necessarily the most plausible outcome.

Even today, the segment containing the tallest 90 percent of the population could, in principle, get together and kill or enslave the shorter decile. That this does not happen suggests that a well-organized society can hold together even if it contains many possible coalitions of people sharing some attribute such that, if they unified under one banner, would make them capable of exterminating the rest.

To note that the extreme case of a war between human and posthuman persons is not the most likely scenario is not to say that there are no legitimate social concerns about the steps that may take us closer to posthumanity. Inequity, discrimination, and stigmatization – against or on behalf of modified people – could become serious issues,” Nick Bostrom said.

This brings us to another question. Shouldn’t transhumanism and spiritual development go hand in hand? Will enhanced people be better living beings if their thoughts, desires, and emotions are still the same? Living longer doesn’t guarantee that a person has higher moral and ethical standards, or are we all spiritual beings dressed in bio-body suits, as one professor said?

Transhumanism is a controversial subject and we are dealing with futurism. We don’t know if posthumans will ever become a reality, but we have said the same about many other inventions before. Many science-fiction concepts are slowly emerging in the real world, holograms and virtual reality, just to mention a few.

Currently, transhumanism raises more questions than answers. Is it worth striving for?

Written by Cynthia McKanzie – MessageToEagle.com Staff Writer

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