Future Humanity

[Lote-Tree]

Hello All,

I believe (and so do others, notably Prof Stephen Hawking and Arthur C Clarke) that in order for us to compete with advancement of computers - human technology and Humans will start to merge to create a hybrid that will surpass them both. Though I fear that may lead to us becoming the drones in the vein of Star Trek's Borgs :-(

The other possibilty I would prefer would be to download our consciousness onto our computer hard drives and explore the limitlessness of the Cyber Space with the limitlessness of our imaginations. Imagine a Future LitNet Forum where people no longer log onto web pages and post messages but actually meet up as individual interactive conscioussnesses. That would be something won't it? or would that be just terrible? :-)

Perhaps downloanding our conscioussness into android brains with beautiful bodies that feels the way humans does would be far more exciting possibility? Then we would all have the bodies we desire and live forever!!! Though I believe that immortality gets boring after first 700 hundred years :-)

Anway what say you chaps and chappeses?

Is merging of humans and technolgoy inevitable?

Regards,
Lote.

[kilted exile]

Bah, I can compete with computers easily. It's called an off switch

[Niamh]

eh... what?:confused: I dont even think i could contrabute to this topic in anyway!( Curse my luck for choosing to deal with the past and not the future!:rolleyes: )

[Lote-Tree]

Bah, I can compete with computers easily. It's called an off switch

Try it and you cut yourself from your favourite LitNet forum :-)

[Lote-Tree]

eh... what?:confused: I dont even think i could contrabute to this topic in anyway!( Curse my luck for choosing to deal with the past and not the future!:rolleyes: )

But you can have your past in the Future :-)
You will have more of the past :-)

[BlueSkyGB]

Resistance is futile........:lol:

could not resist that line....!:D

[Lote-Tree]

Resistance is futile........:lol:
could not resist that line....!:D

And you will indeed be Assimilated :-)

[kathycf]

Though I fear that may lead to us becoming the drones in the vein of Star Trek's Borgs :-(



But...but.. the Borg don't experience emotions, do they? I thought you said life was better without emotion? :p :D

Question....is it fully possible to seperate consciousness from the physical brain that contains it? All things physical have a finite life so how do you overcome that issue?

[BlueSkyGB]

But...but.. the Borg don't experience emotions, do they? I thought you said life was better without emotion? :p :D

I don't know....they always seemed rather angry to me....:lol:

[kathycf]

Hmm, isn't it the Daleks that were perpetually peeved? The Borg just seem to have one track minds...or is that mind singular? :p

[Virgil]

Hello All,

I believe (and so do others, notably Prof Stephen Hawking and Arthur C Clarke) that in order for us to compete with advancement of computers - human technology and Humans will start to merge to create a hybrid that will surpass them both. Though I fear that may lead to us becoming the drones in the vein of Star Trek's Borgs :-(

The other possibilty I would prefer would be to download our consciousness onto our computer hard drives and explore the limitlessness of the Cyber Space with the limitlessness of our imaginations. Imagine a Future LitNet Forum where people no longer log onto web pages and post messages but actually meet up as individual interactive conscioussnesses. That would be something won't it? or would that be just terrible? :-)

Perhaps downloanding our conscioussness into android brains with beautiful bodies that feels the way humans does would be far more exciting possibility? Then we would all have the bodies we desire and live forever!!! Though I believe that immortality gets boring after first 700 hundred years :-)

Anway what say you chaps and chappeses?

Is merging of humans and technolgoy inevitable?

Regards,
Lote.

Hey wasn't this on an old Star Trek episode? I wouldn't worry about it. I like Kilt's response, flip the switch.

[Lote-Tree]

But...but.. the Borg don't experience emotions, do they? I thought you said life was better without emotion? :p :D


Borg know eveything about the species they assimilate including emotions :-)



Question....is it fully possible to seperate consciousness from the physical brain that contains it?


We don't know yet.



All things physical have a finite life so how do you overcome that issue?

What do you mean?

[Lote-Tree]

Hmm, isn't it the Daleks that were perpetually peeved? The Borg just seem to have one track minds...or is that mind singular? :p

It's called the Collective Mind.

As for Daleks yes..."Exterminate Exterminate" - those words sound terrible!!!!

[Lote-Tree]

Hey wasn't this on an old Star Trek episode? I wouldn't worry about it. I like Kilt's response, flip the switch.

Go on then Virgil switch off your computer ;-)

[kathycf]

What do you mean?
What I just said about seperating consiousness from the physical brain that houses it. If it isn't fully possible, than there is a problem because all things physical decay, including brain tissue.


It's called the Collective Mind.

As for Daleks yes..."Exterminate Exterminate" - those words sound terrible!!!!

I thought it was also referred to on the show as a "hive".

[Lote-Tree]

What I just said about seperating consiousness from the physical brain that houses it.


If we find that brain is indeed is a housing for consciouness then it will be easy to create digital version of that housing.



If it isn't fully possible, than there is a problem because all things physical decay, including brain tissue.


Once uploaded onto the cybernetic brain then physical brain can be discarded - then it will raise ethical issues like - would that be murder? :-)



I thought it was also referred to on the show as a "hive".

It is known as the Borg Collective - Hive is also used.

[Niamh]

Okay i've just read over posts and i dont think its a good idea. If someone could "download your con- onto a computor, whos to say they couldnt control you in the end. bye bye freedom!

[Lote-Tree]

Okay i've just read over posts and i dont think its a good idea. If someone could "download your con- onto a computor, whos to say they couldnt control you in the end. bye bye freedom!

I think this has been explored (correct me someone if I got this wrong) in the Novel "Neuromancer" by William Gibson (or similiar later "cyberpunk" novels)

[Bii]

Is merging of humans and technolgoy inevitable?

If it's possible it will happen. Science doesn't consider the morality or ethics of the issue, just the mechanics. Can it be done - probably; should it be done - hmm, that's debatable. At the very least it shouldn't be done just because it's possible, but is it ever possible to fully take account of the benefits against the problems it might cause? That's the sticky issues!

On a side note, Dr Who should be banned. I had nightmares about weeping angels last night, and I'm a lot older than 8!

[Lote-Tree]

If it's possible it will happen. Science doesn't consider the morality or ethics of the issue, just the mechanics.


The ethics of it or course will be need to be debated. Do you think it is possible and it is inevitable?



On a side note, Dr Who should be banned. I had nightmares about weeping angels last night, and I'm a lot older than 8!

LOL :-)

I have grown up now I am no longer scared of Dr Who :-)
The latest series are indeed are really good though :-)

[Bii]

The ethics of it or course will be need to be debated. Do you think it is possible and it is inevitable?

I think if it's possible then it's inevitable.

I suppose I'm not sure whether it's possible. There are many things that we can do now which 100 years ago humans wouldn't have thought possible. With our current knowledge obviously it's not possible, and we'd have to work out the nature of consciousness before it would be possible. This could be the point where we get into a debate about whether consciousness is in some way based on experience and sense data, or whether there is an 'a priori' 'I' that sits behind it all, that would exist without the plethora of sense data available to us in thanks to human physiology, but perhaps we can save that for another day.

I think we're a long way off understanding consciousness, and it may not have a scientific answer. Take, for example, recent understanding of DNA. Whilst the scientists can explain and understand these building blocks of life, they don't yet understand how life comes from it i.e. how, from a strand of DNA, does life spark? I fully expect that science can work out the 'how' but the 'why' is still resolved in some other way.

On the ethical point, I'd be interested to see how such a development could be tested in an ethical way! Can't really test this one on a monkey first (that's if you even consider animal testing ethical, which is dubious to say the least).



I have grown up now I am no longer scared of Dr Who :-)

Didn't think I was either, but my subconscious tells me otherwise!

[Lote-Tree]

Take, for example, recent understanding of DNA. Whilst the scientists can explain and understand these building blocks of life, they don't yet understand how life comes from it i.e. how, from a strand of DNA, does life spark?


I think it is not matter of "spark" but rather a replication. How did self-replicating molecules come about?

Obiviously it was not DNA to start with. There must have been something else. RNA has been explored widely in many research programmes. But even RNA must have a precursor. So research continues but "abiogenesis" will take a long time to piece together.



I fully expect that science can work out the 'how' but the 'why' is still resolved in some other way.


The why question is now becoming in the remit of science too.

[Unbeliever]

I doubt we can envision what the far future of humanity is likely to be, but in the relatively short term, I think we will, indeed, merge with "computers", though the computers of the future won't have much in common with those of today.

Along the same lines, I've often wondered what might develop in the universe in the future - first there was matter/energy, then the four fundamental forces "froze" out, then life developed, then mind emerged. What might come after mind? The universe is still in its infancy, and given another hundred billion years or so, what else might be engendered by the universe?