TRANSHUMANISM (H+)

Human plus more. Transhumanism, an inevitable wave or an exciting parallel? Ever since I heard about H+ and transhumanism, as a purist, I didn’t like the idea very much. My first worry was obviously that we would be evolving into something outside the field of the creator.

Silicon-based creatures without the ability to feel the world around them, what would happen to our souls? However, as more days, weeks, months and years pass me by since hearing about H+, the less I fight with the idea. With that being said, will it be the kind of event that will be a choice for people? Or will the world make it a necessity?

Let’s start by elaborating on what H+ or transhumanism is, for those of you who may not be aware of it. Transhumanism is the process of augmenting the human body with technologies that enhances our abilities. Man has become bored with his limitations and WILL go down this road of transhumanism. The question is, will we all be forced to follow suit or will there be a life for those of us who choose not to? What will that life look like?

Will those of us who don’t transform be looked down upon? Will we be happy not augmenting? If you’d like to get a sense for what it might be like to live as an augmented person, I recommend you watch the movie ‘Upgrade’ by Leigh Whannell, starring Logan Marshall-Green, Betty Gabriel, and Harrison Gilbertson.

Now this movie leans towards a narrative of mistrust for the technology, that would facilitate our enhanced reality when it comes to transhumanism. Great story, perfectly fine approach, however, what I am asking here has to do with choice. This subject is also intertwined to the story of ‘Upgrade’. And because I would hate to completely ruin the movie for you, let’s leave it at that.

But yes, the matter of choice. To better explain this concern, let’s look at this from the perspective of our abilities to properly function in modern society. Your ability to keep up, is often not only expected, but demanded of you depending on your will to remain a member of modern society. Which, let’s not front here, has many wonderful things to offer.

In my lifetime, I have watched the world evolve from only being able to have phones in homes and offices (landlines) to the introduction of cellphones. It was such an exciting time, however there were concerns, but at the end of the day, it was more efficient to have and carry a cellphone. Because someone trying to reach you could do so at any time, and didn’t have to wait for the hours you would be close to a landline. And if you did have a cellphone, you had an economic advantage over someone who didn’t. This meant that for anyone who wanted to keep up with the modern world and all it has to offer, you had to upgrade to a cellphone regardless of how you felt about it.

Now, some of you are probably thinking, or saying “But Simon, you’re talking about a movie, science fiction. Transhumanism won’t happen in our lifetime”.

First of all, even if it couldn’t happen in our lifetime, you should still think about it and what it means for the sake of your children. Second of all, have you heard of a man named Elon Musk and his neural link lace? This is happening. If you’re in your seventies now and live for another twenty to thirty years, this is going to happen in your lifetime, let alone what those who are eighteen will see happen.

This is a phenomenon that begun the day man realized he could use technology to make his life easier. Ever since that day, man has only narrowed the gap between himself and his integration with technology. Narrowing the gap between fiction and reality.

And once again I ask, will we have a choice in the matter? An inevitable wave of existence or an exciting parallel? One thing for sure, those of us who will choose to transform, will be a different species. Because they will feel and process reality very differently from those of us who will choose not to. Whether that will be a good or bad thing, I guess we’ll just have to wait and see for ourselves.

By –Simon D.M. Karanja