Sunday, May 2, 2010

Has Transhumansim already won?

Comments to Michael Anissimov's Transhumanism Has Already Won and TransAlchemy's If Transhumanism Has Won, Who Lost?:

I agree with Michael's first statement: "It’s 2010, and transhumanism has already won. Billions of people around the world would love to upgrade their bodies, extend their youth, and amplify their powers of perception, thought, and action with the assistance of safe and tested technologies. The urge to be something more, to go beyond, is the norm rather than the exception."

Transhumanism wins by disappearing into the fabric of daily routine. As enhancement products become available, if they can really improve the quality of life consumers will buy them, regardless of the whining of "bio-ethicists". Soon we will have brain implants to boost our cognitive abilities, and later we will be able to become post-biological beings with indefinite lifespans via mind uploading. Once these options are available, many people will use them without paying attention to big philosophical words. For our generation, sending the first email was something momentous - but today's kids just use Facebook on their Iphones. And this is how it should be. Tomorrow's kids will just use their brain implants and merge with software. The Singularity will happen, but it will feel like daily routine.

Mike Treder writes: "That’s why, 20 years from now, transhumanism might be largely forgotten--because everyone will be a transhumanist. Though, of course, they won’t call themselves that. As Giulio Prisco puts it, 'That would mean transhumanism, once revolutionary and disruptive, has dissolved into the fabric of the zeitgeist, and everyone just assumes that human enhancement and transcendence of all limits is good.'"

Michael continues: "At their base, the world’s major two largest religions — Christianity and Islam — are transhumanistic. After all, they promise transcension from death and the concerns of the flesh, and being upgraded to that archetypical transhuman — the Angel... We will plant flowers and trees across the universe. All we have to do is survive our embryonic stage, stay in control of our own destiny, and expand outwards in every direction at the speed of light."

I also agree with this. The smartest strategy for traditional religious at this moment, would be to begin integrating transhumanism in their doctrine (like the Mormon Transhumanist Association). Of course they will not do this, yet, because they are power systems, they understand very well that transhumanism can be a very powerful competitor in their memetic space, and they want to preserve their power and money. Therefore, they will continue to try fighting transhumanism until is too late.

TransAlchemy is a team of two anti-transhumanist activists who publish an interesting blog and video podcast. I must admit to reading and watching them often: they are often interesting, and they often seem to understand transhumanism perhaps better than many transhumanists. They are Terrans who wish to "Save the Humans" and fight Cosmists. But the "[Angels who]... expand outwards in every direction at the speed of light" are humans: they are the next phase of the evolution of our species. They are our children, and you don't fight your children, because it would be fighting yourself.

However, TransAlchemy say: "We must accept the possibility that there is a probability, greater than 0%, that "God exists"... As transhuman-centric technologies will aim to keep you trapped within the comfortable boundaries of this universe, religions would seek to return to the creator of the universe."

I accept the possibility that perhaps God exists, in a certain sense: one or more Gods who evolved naturally (that is, not supernaturally), but created our world as a synthetic reality (we may be NPCs in their videogames) and can intervene in our reality in ways that we could only call supernatural (they cannot violate their own physics, but they can violate the simulated physics of our reality). Perhaps they will resurrect us all in a better simulation.

But transhumanists don't accept limits, not even "the comfortable boundaries of this universe". If there are ways to reach beyond, we will try to use our engineering ability to reach beyond when the time is right, and "seek to return to the creator of the universe". And of course I cannot even begin to speculate about the motivations of super-intelligent beings, but I know one thing: if we could create synthetic realities inhabited by sentient beings, I would hope that one day they find out how to talk to us as equals. The plan of God may be that we become Gods.

11 comments:

  1. Thanks for the great response!

    Yes there is much to ponder in terms of the actual substance of this universe.

    www.transalchemy.com/2009/08/reality-hacking-20.html

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  2. @ Particleion,

    You seem to share my own interpretation of transhumanism up to some degree, and to understand the cosmist drive of transhumanists.

    Then my question is, why do you dislike transhumanism so much? Please note my answer to "Save the Humans" above: "are humans: they are the next phase of the evolution of our species. They are our children, and you don't fight your children, because it would be fighting yourself.

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  3. It all just boils down to the existential risk associated with transhumanism,and the singularity. If this was done over the course of a million years then we all could collectively help decided the future direction of an entire species, but with the singularity on the horizon we don't have the luxury.

    Transhumanism is broken with many technological routes leading towards the creation of the "posthuman"

    This lack of collective cohesiveness of what transhumanism is, combined with rapid technological growth does not appear to me as the best way towards a positive singularity.

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  4. Giulio: "The plan of God may be that we become Gods."

    Amen

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  5. As Lincoln quotes, "The plan of God may be that we become Gods." Or, in other words, there may be a cosmic law which says intelligence has to grow.

    And, Particleion, we cannot always choose the time. Children grow, because there is a biological clock in their bodies which says they have to grow. You are saying "Save the Children!"... from growing up! But, despite the emotional appeal of "Save the Children!", I don't want to save children from growing up. We all know that the transition from child to teen to adult can be painful at times, but we also know that adults have a more interesting life than children, and many more options to choose.

    There is a cosmic clock ticking in the fabric of reality, and it says the time for us to grow up is now.

    There is another analogy that comes to my mind reading your posts (which, as I said, I often enjoy): Suppose I tell you that in 100 years there will not be any illiterate, sick, or poor person on the planet. You are saying something like "Save the illiterate! Save the sick! Save the poor!". But they do not need being saved, because they will not be harmed -- on the contrary, they will be in much better conditions: literate, healthy, and rich.

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  6. Well said Giulio.

    However, I don't think religion will ever integrate with transhumanism. At some point, anyone with religious and tranhumanistic views will have to chose which they will follow, at least if they follow a Western Religion. The philosophy of nearly all Western religions is based on victimization. To be a good follower you must be a victim, who can appeal to a higher authority to save them from further victimization. It is inherent in the entire philosophy of external salvation. Humanity can't "save itself" it must always be subservient to a "master" who is the sole savior, and who is always unaccountable to his followers. A philosophy of human empowerment is anathema to it.

    Far too much of transhumanism seems caught up in this same mentality as well, relying on "AI Superintelligences" or other Technosaviors, all of which will "save humanity from itself"

    We're the only ones who can save ourselves.

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  7. Thanks Valkyrie,

    What you say is probably true for Christianity, Judaism and Islam, which are the religions we in the West are more familiar with. But these three example hardly exhaust the space of religious thought and belief.

    I am calling for a transhumanist religion of human empowerment, leaving all limits behind, boundless expansion in the universe, exploring all possible modes of being, and make reality of the promises of traditional religions.

    This is more compatible with some non-Western religions, but I think these thoughts are penetrating Western thoughts as well (see the Apocalyptic AI book review on this blog).

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  8. The Eastern religions in many ways are far more philosophical, and less dictatorial. That gives them a much better chance of surviving post singularity. The big 3 Western's appear more and more to be disintegrating into smaller and smaller sub groups and losing the cohesiveness they once had, making them far less of a threat to progress than they once were. Hopefully the good parts will be salvaged, while the bad parts are abandoned, but only time will tell.

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  9. "However, I don't think religion will ever integrate with transhumanism. At some point, anyone with religious and tranhumanistic views will have to chose which they will follow, "

    Valkyrie why do you seem bothered with religion integrating with transhumanism?

    The future is not so cut and dry, the singularity itself represents a "singularity" point of ideas concepts and philosophies.

    I take the concepts put fourth by cosmism very seriously not for it's own right but for the overall trend it will help to facilitate.

    I suggest that instead of denying the eventual mixture of science and religion you attempt to understand it...

    After all this is what I have done with your core beliefs ;-)

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  10. Re "religion integrating with transhumanism"

    In my worldview transhumanism, and in particular its cosmist interpretation, plays the role of a religion.

    If religion is defined as belief in the supernatural, then I cannot call my cosmist interpretation of transhumanism a religion, because in my worldview there is no place for the supernatural: everything, including our bodies and mind, is a natural machine that follows the laws of physics. And I definitely do not think there are things beyond science -- on the contrary, I believe science is in principle able to explain everything.

    But, and actually as an implication of this worldview, I believe someday technology will be able to realize all promises of religions, including immortality, the resurrection of the dead, and building/becoming gods.

    So, starting from a purely materialist and atheist worldview, I have become more and more "religious" in this sense. I don't believe in supernatural gods, or immortal souls, or resurrection, but as an engineer I want to build gods, immortality and resurrection, by scientific means.

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  11. I 'science can explain everything' how come it cannot explain either 'matter' or 'consciousness'?

    How come the natural world is being attacked with the cutting extincting of other species, the mass deforestation, ruination of soil, and of soul--IF 'scinece knows everything'?

    Didn't that what was said bout 'God' PRE-'science'--? That 'HE' knew everything'? Get me feel me. haven't 'you' become 'He'?

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