Transhumanism, a movement making efforts to transcend our humanity. It sounds like it could be a good thing, in theory. But in practice, what could it entail?
There’s biomedical augmentation, everything from artificial limbs to gene manipulation, in order to cure diseases and crippling conditions, and humanity’s pain and suffering—which is at times self inflicted. Elon Musk’s first Neuralink patient is now able to control a computer mouse.
There’s also artificial intelligence and machine learning; seen by some as a promising development for achieving the pinnacle of human technology. Such promises include assisting us in everything, from writing emails to ensuring national security. ChatGPT, which was considered revolutionary just last year, is now just one in a crowd.
There’s even the exploration of consciousness itself. Are we more than just our bodies, can we be anything we identify as? Another gender, perhaps? And when does consciousness begin, at conception? How do we decide? Alabama’s supreme court just ruled that frozen embryos are children with human rights.
The question with all these technological developments is: have they really improved the human condition, and our quality of life? What are they leading us toward? And can we put on the breaks if we want to?
Our guests, Joe Allen, author of “Dark Æon: Transhumanism and the War Against Humanity;” Shasta Justin, producer and director of the NTD-EpochTV documentary “Altered Humans: How Biotech Is Changing Who We Are;” and Robert J Marks, computer scientist and author of “Non-Computable You: What You Do That Artificial Intelligence Never Will,” join us to answer these challenging questions.
They’ll help us break down the transhumanist movement and the motivations of the people and curiosity driving it. They’ll reveal the promises and pitfalls of this technology, and the reliant mindset that is sweeping our world.