Advanced Human Evolution (The Stories behind the Future Book 1)

by R E Kearney

  Another sub-class of the Humani Machina caste are the Cyborgs. With their biomechatronic body parts, Cyborgs are the executors. Cyborgs usually interface and team with robots to accomplish their assignments in law enforcement, industry and the military, for example. Cyborgs are made not born. Cyborgs will come to resemble their assigned tasks.

  Without work or wealth. Completing the pyramid is the huge, ninety-five percent majority consisting of people subsisting or the Sist caste. The use of robotics and Artificial Intelligence increasingly supplants humans from employment resulting in society disintegration. Sists suffer income deprivation, capability deprivation and optimism deprivation. The fully automated economy has made them not just redundant, but powerless. They acquire the necessities of life by performing non-repetitive tasks too menial for automating or robots.

  Life as a Sist is uncertain, often brutal and a constant hustle of low-paying, temporary jobs or existing from day to day through scavenging or crime. Without work, Humani Machina and Sists are suffering an overall malaise about their lives as they search for reasons for being and seek reasons for living. Sists suffer a myriad of lifestyle, health problems such as obesity, diabetes, drug abuse, alcoholism and cancers resulting from poor diets, living in polluted environments and insufficient medical care. The diseases of despair, use of drugs, and alcoholism have skyrocketed. Crime, violence, homicide, depression and suicide are prevalent among Sists.

  Edging toward eradication. Growing violence and anger among the Sists is making them a dangerous threat to the Elites and Humani Machina. Bellicose Sists are a burden without benefit. Due to the fully automated Economy, Sists are no longer a working class and of no value. So for those particularly troublesome Sists the Elites and Humani Machina are conducting ‘Exterminism’ – ‘genocidal wars of the rich against the poor’.

  Should mankind be playing God when it comes to Genetic Engineering?

  Suppose for the sake of discussion that the concept of God and ethics are one and the same, being basically philosophies dealing with values relating to human conduct, with respect to the rightness and wrongness of certain actions and to the goodness and badness of the motives and ends of such actions. Then is genetic engineering with its motive of improving humanity to a position of survivable perfection not a good action and a good motive? If genetic engineering is the only way that mankind can survive the onslaught of new super viruses, bacteria and severe environmental changes, is it not ethical and necessary to conduct genetic engineering? Do you want your grandchildren to live?

  When considering the survival of society through genetic engineering, I defer to Situation Ethics. Situation ethics takes into account the particular context of an act when evaluating it ethically, rather than judging it according to absolute moral standards. In situation ethics, within each context, it is not a universal law that is to be followed, but the law of love. I love my children and their children therefore if genetic engineering is required for their survival and the survival of their offspring, I advocate genetic engineering. By advocating genetic engineering, I do not consider that I am playing God, but that I am simply employing common sense in an effort to continue humanity.

  What do you consider the risks associated with cyborg (part human/part machine) technology? Do you think Cyborg Tech could have military applications?

  Cyborgs live among us. One definition of a Cyborg is an organism, often a human that has certain physiological processes enhanced or controlled by mechanical or electronic devices, especially when they are integrated with the nervous system. So, by this definition, a person with a pace maker imbedded in their chest is a Cyborg. Millions of people relying on their pace makers to live face the risk that their pace maker may fail or may be hacked.

  On the other hand, others define a Cyborg as a human being whose body has been taken over in whole or in part by electromechanical devices; "a cyborg is a cybernetic organism”. Individuals born deaf who now hear via computerized electromechanical cochlear implants in their skulls are closer to this definition. But even closer are individuals with severed spinal cords who are now capable of movement and activity due to combining digital implants in their brain with a thin prosthetic ribbon, embedded with electrodes, which is placed along the spinal cord and delivers electrical impulses and medications to the site of injury.

  Mind over matter. In Cyborgs, the human brain engages and controls the electromechanical devices as replacements for missing parts or as an extension of a particular person’s skill set – skill needs. Requiring the employing of the human brain with the devices ensures the human remains in control of its Cyborg applications and appliances. However, Cyborgs may fall victim to hacking through the Internet of Things. Also, Cyborgs may become so enamored to their electromechanical devices that they suffer Mechanophilia and ignore human contact and human communications.

  Humans may lose their humanity. Today’s war fighters are basically Cyborgs, as they conduct operations covered with a variety of sensors and weapons, and encased in protective gear – ‘full battle rattle’. Many of these war fighters rely more upon the data from their sensors than they do their senses. They will ignore their senses deciding not to believe what they see. When operating in full battle rattle among civilian populations, these war fighters are often not recognized as humans. Conversely, these Cyborg warriors’ protective encasement excludes them from human interaction creating a fear-filled, isolated individual insulated from the civilian population surrounding them.

  What do you think (medically) is the greatest risk to mankind’s future?

  Mankind’s greatest risk to mankind’s future is mankind itself. Mankind created the problems which are becoming its biggest medical challenges and risks for the future. Air, water, ocean and soil pollution are creating numerous health problems for people living today, as well as causing genetic damage for future generations. This same pollution is impacting food production through polluted water, loss of top soil and the killing of necessary, beneficial insects, such as pollinating bees.

  Cures create killer diseases. Viruses and bacteria that antibiotics and other pharmaceuticals once subdued are returning stronger and more virulent. Changes in the genetics of old viruses are creating new diseases, which current medicines cannot defeat. Searches for new antibiotics are proving unsuccessful leaving more and more people vulnerable to disease and death.

  Epidemics become epidemic. Mankind is on the move. Wars, droughts, floods and famine are driving millions of people out of their homelands and forcing them to squeeze into heavily populated regions. Traveling with these migrating millions are viruses, bacteria and diseases unfamiliar to the people they are joining. Spreading illnesses become epidemics that become pandemics in increasing numbers causing millions to die.

  How can the planets population continue to expand and be accommodated if people are living longer because of better health?

  Humans are eating themselves out of house and home. Negative population growth may be the only salvation for mankind. Earth cannot and will not be able to accommodate a population that is continuing to expand due to climate change reducing the capacity of the Earth’s surface to support life.

  Humanity is caught in a big squeeze. Heat and drought are expanding uninhabitable deserts in China, northern Africa, Australia, Middle East and throughout the western hemisphere. In the Earth’s oceans, heat is killing the food of the fish, such as coral reefs, and many varieties of fish. Simultaneous reduction of the fish stocks with an increase in demand for fish as human food is resulting in over-fishing, which is creating more shortages. Ocean fish are a major source of food for entire nations. Losing their food source will decimate them.

  Survival will require humans to accept genetically modified foods. Genetically modified plants developed to survive in harsh environments are proving capable of feeding far more people than traditional plants. Proteins are being grown in laboratories in urban centers, which do not require acres of grass and grain. Fish are bei
ng bred for farming. The unnatural must become natural.

  Should gene modification be acceptable on fetuses to remove hereditary diseases?

  You are sitting in your doctor’s office and the doctor tells you that according to genetic tests your unborn child is inheriting a hereditary disease. Would you condemn your child to suffering a lifetime of pain from Multiple Sclerosis or Muscular Dystrophy, if you could use gene modification to prevent their suffering? Would that not be the most extreme form of cruelty and child abuse? When your child is struggling to breathe or to walk, how will you tell them that you decided that they should suffer a lifetime of pain because you did not want their genes modified to prevent their suffering?

  Fetus genetic modification enables persons known to carry the genes for a hereditary disease to birth children free of that disease. Many individuals, but definitely not all, who know they may possess genes for hereditary disease have themselves tested and if found positive decide not to pass their hereditary diseases forward, voluntarily choosing to remain childless. Otherwise, persons known to possess genes for hereditary disease may only be counselled to not have children. Voluntary restraint is basically the best humanity can expect. Enforcing a ban or restriction on reproduction by everybody with hereditary diseases would require the forcible genetic testing of millions, possibly billions, of people, which is not possible.

  Gene modification to remove hereditary diseases is little different from vaccinating children against polio, small pox, measles, etc. These vaccinations result in the vaccinated child’s body modifying itself to resist these diseases. Although a minority refuse these vaccinations, to the vast majority vaccinations are not only acceptable, but required.

  Life is for the living. Living is no fun if it is not a pleasure.

  Genetic Engineering – The Human Quest for Perfection

  The human genetic composition is what determines our health, personal traits and even our behaviour. Genes are passed on to us from our parents, and can also be the source of many imperfections as well as hereditary diseases. As humans we are always trying to make everything better, including ourselves. This has resulted in the desire to modify the genes in embryos, and fetuses, in order to improve our genetic make-up. The biggest controversy associated with genetic engineering is whether or not it is an ethical practice and should be continued, or even advanced.

  ‘Gene therapy’ is currently as far as human genetic engineering has extended, meaning that the process is applied to non-reproductive cells. It achieves this by replacing malfunctioning genes in our cells, and the new ones are introduced to the system to take the place of those that are no longer serving us. Doing this has facilitated the ability to find cures for certain diseases. As a result, it has become a revered application in the medical field.

  There are two types of gene therapy.

  In-body gene therapy.

  Researchers transport new cells within our bloodstream by using viruses. These organisms facilitate the reproduction of the cells as they are naturally designed to replicate. The first attempts at in-body therapy used the virus that causes the common cold, but scientists found that this wasn’t very effective because of the automatic immunity the body develops against it. A genetically modified adeno-associated virus has replaced this, as it is not known to cause any reaction in humans.

  Out-of-the-body gene therapy.

  This involves removing the blood or bone marrow of a patient and separating immature cells. A modified gene is then added to these and they are reintroduced into the patient’s bloodstream by injection. The cells automatically go to the bone marrow where they mature and multiply, eventually replacing the defective ones. Doctors are working on refining this process in order to be able to replace all of an individual’s bone marrow or bloodstream. This would then enable them to treat diseases which affect the entire body, such as sickle cell.

  These advancements have made it also possible for us to clone entire species, and in 1996 the first ever fully cloned mammal, Dolly the sheep, was ‘born.’ She lived for six years and, even after her death, is still the cause of much speculation about whether this is a procedure that should ever have been undertaken because with the ability to clone another mammal comes the ability to ‘make’ a human. This is a possibility that comes too close to playing God for the majority of society to handle.

  Europe, for ethical reasons, has a ban on the cloning of human embryos. There is no limit on what many other countries can experiment with, however, and China has recently genetically engineered embryos with the intention of modifying the gene responsible for thalassaemia (a fatal blood disorder). The embryos used in their experiments were non-viable and obtained from IVF banks where they had been fertilized by two sperm, and had no possibility of a live birth. There has still been public demand that action be taken to stop this from continuing, due to the fact that nobody can be certain whether or not the embryos used will remain non-viable.

  China isn’t the only country experimenting with human genetic engineering, and in the western world there is a lot of development in the field as well. In the United States, James Grifo has found a way to transfer cell nuclei from eggs of older women to younger ones with the aim of overcoming infertility. The infants that will be born, from these eggs, will genetically have three parents.

  The search for perfection has always been a fascination for humans, and James Watson conducts seminars promoting the use of genetic engineering for enhancing ourselves. He is adamant that as soon as the technology is available people should be able to add genes to themselves, to improve who they are. There has also been the suggestion made by French Anderson, a US gene therapy pioneer, that we do gene therapy on fetuses to treat genetic conditions. These modified genes will then continue to be passed on to all future generations, stopping the undesirable genes from returning altogether.

  Gene therapy will introduce one of its greatest achievements to the market in 2017. A cure developed for blindness, caused by the condition hereditary retinal dystrophies, is in its final stages of being approved by the FDA. The procedure works by directly targeting the hereditary mutation which is the cause of blindness. New cells will be injected into the patient in a 45 minute surgery. Within thirty days it is expected that the majority of sufferers will experience vision improvements.

  Made by Spark-Therapeutics, the product is currently known as SPK-RPE65. One of the obstacles that the company had to overcome in their development was to ensure that patients would not have an immune reaction to the treatment. This scenario has been the cause of at least one death in the past, when gene therapy was first introduced. There is still much speculation about how the product will be received, but Sparks-Therapeutics is confident that it will be met positively. In the company’s initial tests 27 out of 29 patients experienced a noticeable change in their ability to see, without any observed side effects. This product is expected to provide new insight into gene therapy altogether.

  Human genetic engineering does bring with it the possibility of becoming ‘perfect.’ The question that arises from this, however, is whether this should really be our aim? It is quite possible that our imperfections are what actually make us human in the first place.

  Part Human, Part Machine – Mind controlled Cyborg Technology is already here

  The idea of making ourselves superhuman via technological advancements used to be a hypothetical concept. Becoming a cyborg has always been supported by a part of the population but considered taboo by others. Regardless of personal beliefs and opinions it is a concept that has started becoming a reality, much quicker than anybody really expected. Even though it is normally portrayed as ideas that will make our species more advanced, in reality they are also allowing people with disabilities to enjoy doing the things that the rest of us consider normal.

  As this technology increases our cyborg prospects will expand rapidly, and eventually there may be full body enhancements that will be accepted as the norm. Until then, let’s
look at some of the ones that have already begun to change our lives.

  Prosthetic Limbs – One of the first set of experiments with cyborg technology included attempting to make artificial limbs that work as well as our human ones do. This gives amputees the opportunity to move in the best way possible.

  The Bionic limb is taking this goal to new heights. It is a prosthetic hand that’s connected to the wearer’s skin and muscles in their upper arm. It is operated via muscular movements, and each individual finger joint can be moved separately. This means that it enables amputees to do some of the things that other prosthetic hands don’t allow, such as being able to tie their own shoelaces.

  Eyeborg – Designed by Neil Harbisson, an artist who was born completely color blind, the eyeborg is a one of a kind invention. Harbisson wears a color sensor that is mounted on an antenna on his head and then connected to a microchip in his skull. The sensor turns colors into sounds which he hears via bone conduction. This means instead of seeing colors he is actually hearing them. It took him a while to differentiate the different sounds each color makes on the spectrum, but he is now able to recognise many more than the average person can see. After a battle between Harbisson and the British government, the eyeborg is now acknowledged as a part of his body.

  RFID – Meaning radio frequency identification, these are chips that are imbedded between the index finger and the thumb. They allow the wearer to connect to Android devices, open doors, turn on lights and other useful every day activities. The surprising thing about having an RFID implanted is that it can be done anywhere, by anybody. There are even DIY kits available online for those that are daring enough to undertake the process themselves.