Anybody who argues for the benefits of eugenics doesn’t know what they are talking about. We can say today that X trait is beneficial for whatever reason, but we must not forget that tomorrow’s environment may see the same trait as a maladaptation. People who think they know which traits will be advantageous tomorrow don’t fully understand evolution.
I believe in some proportion of what you just said, but I also argue that base traits that are obviously beneficial can’t be ignored. The ability to absorb and process information, as well as heighten cognitive prowess is impossible to declare useless in any certain environ. To say that mental fortitude is invalid in the arctic but not in the desert is madness.
Heightened cognitive powers come at a cost, namely the cost of growing and maintaining (nourishing) whatever physical machinery/organs provides that extra cognitive power. It may be dangerous to carry around, heavy, and maybe even hackable. These can negatively affect the utility of having such a trait. There is a reason not all animals are as intelligent as us. How do you think a mouse with a human-sized brain would fare?
Eugenics aside, I don’t see any problem with individuals wanting to augment their own bodies or genetics, provided they are not coerced.
Anybody who argues for the benefits of eugenics doesn’t know what they are talking about. We can say today that X trait is beneficial for whatever reason, but we must not forget that tomorrow’s environment may see the same trait as a maladaptation. People who think they know which traits will be advantageous tomorrow don’t fully understand evolution.
I believe in some proportion of what you just said, but I also argue that base traits that are obviously beneficial can’t be ignored. The ability to absorb and process information, as well as heighten cognitive prowess is impossible to declare useless in any certain environ. To say that mental fortitude is invalid in the arctic but not in the desert is madness.
Heightened cognitive powers come at a cost, namely the cost of growing and maintaining (nourishing) whatever physical machinery/organs provides that extra cognitive power. It may be dangerous to carry around, heavy, and maybe even hackable. These can negatively affect the utility of having such a trait. There is a reason not all animals are as intelligent as us. How do you think a mouse with a human-sized brain would fare?
Eugenics aside, I don’t see any problem with individuals wanting to augment their own bodies or genetics, provided they are not coerced.
It would set mantraps and eat them piece by piece….
I’ve heard of the futurists… so speculative, I’m involved in real technology and their ideas always just seem off the wall, starting with a mere grain of truth and inflating it to grand proportions. I don’t understand that personality.
But as far as our relationship with technology goes, some people see it as separating from nature and different than normal, but not me. Technology is normal, it is human, it has been with us forever, never has there been a time when people didn’t want a tool, a device, a machine. Whether it be old stone aged technology in the Great Pyramids of Gisa, the sharpening stone, the motor and pestle; or modern metals, chemicals, electronics, agriculture; we want technology, we love it, we depend on it, we need it. You disagree? That’s fine just turn off the lights tonight, go ahead and see if you don’t turn them back on tomorrow night. I will gladly listen to the result of that test, I’m sure some people will want to keep the lights off, but I doubt there are many. Technology often is, a good thing, sometimes is a bad thing, people choose to make good of it or bad of it, we have choices.
We are united with the technologies, they are our creation, we’ve put our heart and soul (well, you know what I mean ) into creating them and why would we want to separate from them?
It always amuses me how many people bitch about nature and ‘being natural’ and how technology is bad. Then they turn right around and blog about it or turn on their AC when it’s hot or use their refrigerator to keep their organic fruits and juices cold. I sear. I’m getting facial cramps from all the smirking and eye rolling they’re causing me.
And as for futurists: Hah! They’re the scientific versions of soothsayers. Bunch of goobers.
It always amuses me how many people bitch about nature and ‘being natural’ and how technology is bad. Then they turn right around and blog about it or turn on their AC when it’s how use their refrigerator to keep their organic fruits and juices cold. I sear. I’m getting facial cramps from all the smirking and eye rolling they’re causing me.
And as for futurists: Hah! They’re the scientific versions of soothsayers. Bunch of goobers.
You are dead right. It is not the technology that will kill us, it’s how we use our technology that is the key factor.
We have awesome mental powers which set us apart from all other life on earth, but philosophically we are like children playing with a loaded gun.
You are dead right. It is not the technology that will kill us, it’s how we use our technology that is the key factor.
We have awesome mental powers which set us apart from all other life on earth, but philosophically we are like children playing with a loaded gun.
I don’t think it’s a problem of a philosophy so much as our basic nature. Despite all our prodigious brain power we’re still beholden to the same instincts, irrational emotional responses, and bizarre cognitive biases we’ve always been. Ironically, those responses and biases that are such a pain in our collective ass now are what kept us alive through our first few millennia of existence.
I’ve heard of the futurists… so speculative, I’m involved in real technology and their ideas always just seem off the wall, starting with a mere grain of truth and inflating it to grand proportions. I don’t understand that personality.
But as far as our relationship with technology goes, some people see it as separating from nature and different than normal, but not me. Technology is normal, it is human, it has been with us forever, never has there been a time when people didn’t want a tool, a device, a machine. Whether it be old stone aged technology in the Great Pyramids of Gisa, the sharpening stone, the motor and pestle; or modern metals, chemicals, electronics, agriculture; we want technology, we love it, we depend on it, we need it. You disagree? That’s fine just turn off the lights tonight, go ahead and see if you don’t turn them back on tomorrow night. I will gladly listen to the result of that test, I’m sure some people will want to keep the lights off, but I doubt there are many. Technology often is, a good thing, sometimes is a bad thing, people choose to make good of it or bad of it, we have choices.
We are united with the technologies, they are our creation, we’ve put our heart and soul (well, you know what I mean ) into creating them and why would we want to separate from them?
Ignorance and reason are defunct? Huh?
Hehe. It’s a personal motto regarding the near paradoxical nature all humans contain in them, one the complete opposite of the other.
I’m not sure I would be so quick to dismiss futurists. Look at the technology we have now compared to just 10 or 20 years ago. We can fit tiny, relatively powerful computers in our pockets now. You probably didn’t even expect that would be possible. And look at how much we can do on the internet, from our own smartphones and on the go, no less. They don’t call it the information age for nothing. We now have an online encyclopedia that’s free. Newspapers are dying out. I think there’s some kind of hindsight blindness going around or something. Don’t you see how much has changed in so little time? We have a computer that can play goddamn jeopardy! Even I didn’t expect we were anywhere near able to do that when we did
I’m not sure I would be so quick to dismiss futurists. Look at the technology we have now compared to just 10 or 20 years ago. We can fit tiny, relatively powerful computers in our pockets now. You probably didn’t even expect that would be possible. And look at how much we can do on the internet, from our own smartphones and on the go, no less. They don’t call it the information age for nothing. We now have an online encyclopedia that’s free. Newspapers are dying out. I think there’s some kind of hindsight blindness going around or something. Don’t you see how much has changed in so little time? We have a computer that can play goddamn jeopardy! Even I didn’t expect we were anywhere near able to do that when we did
We have to wait until the space age for planetary colonization….......
I don’t have the patience for the hype I have over building my own geo-synchronous orbital strip club.
Anybody who argues for the benefits of eugenics doesn’t know what they are talking about. We can say today that X trait is beneficial for whatever reason, but we must not forget that tomorrow’s environment may see the same trait as a maladaptation. People who think they know which traits will be advantageous tomorrow don’t fully understand evolution.
I believe in some proportion of what you just said, but I also argue that base traits that are obviously beneficial can’t be ignored. The ability to absorb and process information, as well as heighten cognitive prowess is impossible to declare useless in any certain environ. To say that mental fortitude is invalid in the arctic but not in the desert is madness.
Heightened cognitive powers come at a cost, namely the cost of growing and maintaining (nourishing) whatever physical machinery/organs provides that extra cognitive power. It may be dangerous to carry around, heavy, and maybe even hackable. These can negatively affect the utility of having such a trait. There is a reason not all animals are as intelligent as us. How do you think a mouse with a human-sized brain would fare?
Eugenics aside, I don’t see any problem with individuals wanting to augment their own bodies or genetics, provided they are not coerced.
1. “Plausibility”
Genetic manipulation of the entire human system is not impossible. To systematically create an “Improved” generation of humans is not far-fetched, and their ability to nourish themselves that comes with the demanding input of resources to maintain it is also plausible. Why think small, when you can change yourself into an entirely new “Version” of biological hardware.
2. “Repetition”
I can’t express how many times it annoys me when someone even remotely suggests that I have even the slightest desire to coerce others to improve their bodies through cybernetic/implanted augmentations. It’s all about personal freedom, and in my case, personal freedom to modify yourself as you see fit.
I will gladly listen to the result of that test, I’m sure some people will want to keep the lights off, but I doubt there are many. Technology often is, a good thing, sometimes is a bad thing, people choose to make good of it or bad of it, we have choices. 
