When man meets metal: rise of the transhumans

Earlier this year I went to an event in Austin, Texas, billed as a sneak preview of the evolution of our species. The #Bdyhax Conference, which took place in a downtown exhibition complex, promised a front-row insight into the coming “singularity” – that nirvana foretold by science fiction in which biology and technology would fuse and revolutionise human capability and experience.

The headline acts of the conference were mostly bodyhackers – DIY experimenters who, in their basements and garages, seek to enhance their own flesh and blood with biometric implants and cognitive enablers. These brave pioneers were extending their senses, overcoming physical limitation, Dan-Daring themselves and the rest of us into the future.

This will only get more advanced as the years go by. For now, actual technological augmentations and implants are mostly reserved for people who actually need them – things like prosthetic legs or a pacemaker – but eventually, we’ll start to develop augmentations to enhance the senses or abilities of the human body for people who are otherwise healthy.

Your body, your rules, but scary nonetheless.

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  1. 2017-10-31 5:25 am
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