Transhumanist Philosophy Essay -- Future Science Fiction

Imagine that you are able to teleport to the not too distant future. In this world you discover that disease and poverty are no longer causes for human suffering, world hunger has become eliminated from society, and space travel is as easy as snapping your fingers. Cryonics, nanotechnology, cloning, genetic enhancement, artificial intelligence, and brain chips are all common technologies at a doctor’s office. You gasp as a friendly sounding electronic voice cries out, â€Å"Welcome to the future Natural!† You are unsure of whether being called a Natural is an insult or not, so you feign a half-hearted hello at the posthuman in front of you. Getting over the initial shock you ask the posthuman, â€Å"Who are you?† The posthuman gives an electronic sounding chuckle and shakes his head. He replies, â€Å"I am a Posthuman, and you Natural, are in Utopia. Welcome.† Sounds pretty science-fiction based right? Well, to those who follow the Transhumanist philosophy, a â€Å"utopian† world could be a reality. Susan Schneider a philosophy professor at University of Pennsylvania defines Transhumanism as a â€Å"philosophical, cultural, and political movement which holds that the human species is now only in a comparatively early phase and that its very evolution will be altered by developing technologies† (271). In simple terms, transhumanists believe that the human species is in its early phase. Our species is a work in progress and our evolution will be altered by advancing technologies. With these advancements in technology, transhumanists have optimistic plans about the future. Transhumanists hope that as our current technology advances we will soon be able to create superhumans or â€Å"posthumans†. According to the World Tanshumanist Association a... ...d, working definition of what a person is, enhancing will be newest fad. Humankind is on an irreversible evolutionary journey where super-intelligence will be the normal IQ for children, war and death are no longer terms in the english dictionary, and being 1,000 years old is considered young. It is a bright and prosperous future looking through the lens of a transhumanist. One that I cannot wait to see through bionic eyes. Works Cited Brooks, R. A. 2003. Prologue, In: Flesh and Machines: How Robots Will Change Us, Vintage. Elliott, C. 2003. Humanity 2.0. The Wilson Quarterly, 27(4): 13(8). Schneider, S. 2008. Future Minds: Transhumanism, Cognitive Enhancement, and the Nature of Persons. Forthcoming in: Penn Bioethics Reader. Accessed online July 20, 2010: http:/repository.upenn.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1037&context=neuroethics pubs