A

 

H

ISTORY

 

OF

 

T

RANSHUMANIST

 

T

HOUGHT

 

 

Nick

 

Bostrom

 

Faculty

 

of

 

Philosophy,

 

Oxford

 

University

 

www.nickbostrom.com

  

(2005)

 

[Originally

 

published

 

in

 

Journal

 

of

 

Evolution

 

and

 

Technology

  ‐  

Vol.

 

14

  

Issue

 

1

 ‐ 

April

 

2005;

 

reprinted

 

(in

 

its

 

present

 

slightly

 

edited

 

form)

 

in

 

Academic

 

Writing

 

Across

 

the

 

Disciplines

,

 

eds.

 

Michael

 

Rectenwald

 

&

 

Lisa

 

Carl

 

(New

 

York:

 

Pearson

 

Longman,

 

2011)]

 

 

1.

 

Cultural

 

and

 

philosophical

 

antecedents

 

The

 

human

 

desire

 

to

 

acquire

 

new

 

capacities

 

is

 

as

 

ancient

 

as

 

our

 

species

 

itself.

 

We

 

have

 

always

 

sought

 

to

 

expand

 

the

 

boundaries

 

of

 

our

 

existence,

 

be

 

it

 

socially,

 

geographically,

 

or

 

mentally.

 

There

 

is

 

a

 

tendency

 

in

 

at

 

least

 

some

 

individuals

 

always

 

to

 

search

 

for

 

a

 

way

 

around

 

every

 

obstacle

 

and

 

limitation

 

to

 

human

 

life

 

and

 

happiness.

 

 

Ceremonial

 

burial

 

and

 

preserved

 

fragments

 

of

 

religious

 

writings

 

show

 

that

 

prehistoric

 

humans

 

were

 

disturbed

 

by

 

the

 

death

 

of

 

loved

 

ones.

 

Although

 

the

 

belief

 

in

 

a

 

hereafter

 

was

 

common,

 

this

 

did

 

not

 

preclude

 

efforts

 

to

 

extend

 

one’s

 

earthly

 

life.

 

In

 

the

 

Sumerian

 

Epic

 

of

 

Gilgamesh

 

(approx.

 

1700

 

B.C.),

 

a

 

king

 

sets

 

out

 

on

 

a

 

quest

 

for

 

immortality.

 

Gilgamesh

 

learns

 

that

 

there

 

exists

 

a

 

natural

 

means

 

–

 

an

 

herb

 

that

 

grows

 

at

 

the

 

bottom

 

of

 

the

 

sea.

1

 

He

 

successfully

 

retrieves

 

the

 

plant,

 

but

 

a

 

snake

 

steals

 

it

 

from

 

him

 

before

 

he

 

can

 

eat

 

it.

 

In

 

later

 

times,

 

explorers

 

sought

 

the

 

Fountain

 

of

 

Youth,

 

alchemists

 

labored

 

to

 

concoct

 

the

 

Elixir

 

of

 

Life,

 

and

 

various

 

schools

 

of

 

esoteric

 

Taoism

 

in

 

China

 

strove

 

for

 

physical

 

immortality

 

by

 

way

 

of

 

control

 

over

 

or

 

harmony

 

with

 

the

 

forces

 

of

 

nature.

 

The

 

boundary

 

between

 

mythos

 

and

 

science,

 

between

 

magic

 

and

 

technology,

 

was

 

blurry,

 

and

 

almost

 

all

 

conceivable

 

means

 

to

 

the

 

preservation

 

of

 

life

 

were

 

attempted

 

by

 

somebody

 

or

 

other.

 

Yet

 

while

 

explorers

 

made

 

many

 

interesting

 

discoveries

 

and

 

alchemists

 

invented

 

some

 

useful

 

things,

 

such

 

as

 

new

 

dyes

 

and

 

improvements

 

in

 

metallurgy,

 

the

 

goal

 

of

 

life

 

extension

 

proved

 

elusive.

 

  

The

 

quest

 

to

 

transcend

 

our

 

natural

 

confines

 

has

 

long

 

been

 

viewed

 

with

 

ambivalence

,

 

however.

 

Reining

 

it

 

in

 

is

 

the

 

concept

 

of

 

hubris

:

 

that

 

some

 

ambitions

 

are

 

off

‐

limits

 

and

 

will

 

backfire

 

if

 

pursued.

 

The

 

ancient

 

Greeks

 

exhibited

 

this

 

ambivalence

 

in

 

their

 

mythology.

 

Prometheus

 

stole

 

fire

 

from

 

Zeus

 

and

 

gave

 

it

 

to

 

humans,

 

thereby

 

permanently

 

improving

 

the

 

human

 

condition.

 

Yet

 

for

 

this

 

act

 

he

 

was

 

severely

 

punished

 

by

 

Zeus.

 

The

 

gods

 

are

 

repeatedly

 

                                                        

1

 

(Mitchell

 

2004).

 

 

1

challenged,

 

quite

 

successfully,

 

by

 

Daedalus,

 

the

 

clever

 

engineer

 

and

 

artist,

 

who

 

uses

 

non

‐

magical

 

means

 

to

 

extend

 

human

 

capabilities.

 

In

 

the

 

end,

 

disaster

 

ensues

 

when

 

his

 

son

 

Icarus

 

ignores

 

paternal

 

warnings

 

and

 

flies

 

too

 

close

 

to

 

the

 

sun,

 

causing

 

the

 

wax

 

in

 

his

 

wings

 

to

 

melt.

 

 

Medieval

 

Christians

 

held

 

similarly

 

conflicted

 

views

 

about

 

the

 

pursuits

 

of

 

the

 

alchemists,

 

who

 

were

 

attempting

 

to

 

transmute

 

substances,

 

create

 

homunculi

 

in

 

test

 

tubes,

 

and

 

invent

 

a

 

panacea.

 

Some

 

scholastics,

 

following

 

the

 

anti

‐

experimentalist

 

teachings

 

of

 

Augustine,

 

believed

 

that

 

alchemy

 

was

 

an

 

ungodly

 

activity.

 

There

 

were

 

allegations

 

that

 

it

 

involved

 

the

 

invocation

 

of

 

daemonic

 

powers.

 

But

 

other

 

theologians,

 

such

 

as

 

Albertus

 

Magnus

 

and

 

Thomas

 

Aquinas,

 

defended

 

the

 

practice.

2

 

 

The

 

otherworldliness

 

and

 

stale

 

scholastic

 

philosophy

 

that

 

dominated

 

Europe

 

during

 

the

 

Middle

 

Ages

 

gave

 

way

 

to

 

a

 

renewed

 

intellectual

 

vigor

 

in

 

the

 

Renaissance.

 

The

 

human

 

being

 

and

 

the

 

natural

 

world

 

again

 

became

 

legitimate

 

objects

 

of

 

study.

 

Renaissance

 

humanism

 

encouraged

 

people

 

to

 

rely

 

on

 

their

 

own

 

observations

 

and

 

their

 

own

 

judgment

 

rather

 

than

 

to

 

defer

 

in

 

every

 

matter

 

to

 

religious

 

authorities.

 

Renaissance

 

humanism

 

also

 

created

 

the

 

ideal

 

of

 

the

 

well

‐

rounded

 

person,

 

one

 

who

 

is

 

highly

 

developed

 

scientifically,

 

morally,

 

culturally,

 

and

 

spiritually.

 

A

 

landmark

 

of

 

the

 

period

 

is

 

Giovanni

 

Pico

 

della

 

Mirandola’s

 

Oration

 

on

 

the

 

Dignity

 

of

 

Man

 

(1486),

 

which

 

proclaims

 

that

 

man

 

does

 

not

 

have

 

a

 

ready

‐

made

 

form

 

and

 

is

 

responsible

 

for

 

shaping

 

himself:

 

 

We

 

have

 

made

 

you

 

a

 

creature

 

neither

 

of

 

heaven

 

nor

 

of

 

earth,

 

neither

 

mortal

 

nor

 

immortal,

 

in

 

order

 

that

 

you

 

may,

 

as

 

the

 

free

 

and

 

proud

 

shaper

 

of

 

your

 

own

 

being,

 

fashion

 

yourself

 

in

 

the

 

form

 

you

 

may

 

prefer.

 

It

 

will

 

be

 

in

 

your

 

power

 

to

 

descend

 

to

 

the

 

lower,

 

brutish

 

forms

 

of

 

life;

 

you

 

will

 

be

 

able,

 

through

 

your

 

own

 

decision,

 

to

 

rise

 

again

 

to

 

the

 

superior

 

orders

 

whose

 

life

 

is

 

divine.

3

 

 

The

 

Age

 

of

 

Enlightenment

 

is

 

often

 

said

 

to

 

have

 

started

 

with

 

the

 

publication

 

of

 

Francis

 

Bacon’s

 

Novum

 

Organum

,

 

“the

 

new

 

tool”

 

(1620),

 

which

 

proposes

 

a

 

scientific

 

methodology

 

based

 

on

 

empirical

 

investigation

 

rather

 

than

 

a

‐

priori

 

reasoning.

 

4

 

Bacon

 

advocated

 

the

 

project

 

of

 

“effecting

 

all

 

things

 

possible,”

 

by

 

which

 

he

 

meant

 

using

 

science

 

to

 

achieve

 

mastery

 

over

 

nature

 

in

 

order

 

to

 

improve

 

the

 

living

 

condition

 

of

 

human

 

beings.

 

The

 

heritage

 

from

 

the

 

Renaissance

 

combines

 

with

 

the

 

influence

 

of

 

Isaac

 

Newton,

 

Thomas

 

Hobbes,

 

John

 

Locke,

 

Immanuel

 

Kant,

 

the

 

Marquis

 

de

 

Condorcet,

 

and

 

others

 

to

 

form

 

the

 

basis

 

for

 

rational

 

                                                        

2

 

See

 

e.g.

 

(Newman

 

2004).

 

3

 

(Pico

 

della

 

Mirandola

 

1956).

  

4

 

(Bacon

 

1620).

 

 

2

humanism,

 

which

 

emphasizes

 

empirical

 

science

 

and

 

critical

 

reason

 

–

 

rather

 

than

 

revelation

 

and

 

religious

 

authority

 

–

 

as

 

ways

 

of

 

learning

 

about

 

the

 

natural

 

world

 

and

 

our

 

place

 

within

 

it

 

and

 

of

 

providing

 

a

 

grounding

 

for

 

morality.

 

Transhumanism

 

has

 

roots

 

in

 

rational

 

humanism.

 

 

In

 

the

 

18

th

 

and

 

19

th

 

centuries

 

we

 

catch

 

glimpses

 

of

 

the

 

idea

 

that

 

humans

 

themselves

 

can

 

be

 

developed

 

through

 

the

 

application

 

of

 

science.

 

Condorcet

 

speculated

 

about

 

extending

 

human

 

life

 

span

 

by

 

means

 

of

 

medical

 

science:

 

 

Would

 

it

 

be

 

absurd

 

now

 

to

 

suppose

 

that

 

the

 

improvement

 

of

 

the

 

human

 

race

 

should

 

be

 

regarded

 

as

 

capable

 

of

 

unlimited

 

progress?

 

That

 

a

 

time

 

will

 

come

 

when

 

death

 

would

 

result

 

only

 

from

 

extraordinary

 

accidents

 

or

 

the

 

more

 

and

 

more

 

gradual

 

wearing

 

out

 

of

 

vitality,

 

and

 

that,

 

finally,

 

the

 

duration

 

of

 

the

 

average

 

interval

 

between

 

birth

 

and

 

wearing

 

out

 

has

 

itself

 

no

 

specific

 

limit

 

whatsoever?

 

No

 

doubt

 

man

 

will

 

not

 

become

 

immortal,

 

but

 

cannot

 

the

 

span

 

constantly

 

increase

 

between

 

the

 

moment

 

he

 

begins

 

to

 

live

 

and

 

the

 

time

 

when

 

naturally,

 

without

 

illness

 

or

 

accident,

 

he

 

finds

 

life

 

a

 

burden?

5

 

 

Benjamin

 

Franklin

 

longed

 

wistfully

 

for

 

suspended

 

animation,

 

foreshadowing

 

the

 

cryonics

 

movement:

 

 

I

 

wish

 

it

 

were

 

possible...

 

to

 

invent

 

a

 

method

 

of

 

embalming

 

drowned

 

persons,

 

in

 

such

 

a

 

manner

 

that

 

they

 

might

 

be

 

recalled

 

to

 

life

 

at

 

any

 

period,

 

however

 

distant;

 

for

 

having

 

a

 

very

 

ardent

 

desire

 

to

 

see

 

and

 

observe

 

the

 

state

 

of

 

America

 

a

 

hundred

 

years

 

hence,

 

I

 

should

 

prefer

 

to

 

an

 

ordinary

 

death,

 

being

 

immersed

 

with

 

a

 

few

 

friends

 

in

 

a

 

cask

 

of

 

Madeira,

 

until

 

that

 

time,

 

then

 

to

 

be

 

recalled

 

to

 

life

 

by

 

the

 

solar

 

warmth

 

of

 

my

 

dear

 

country!

 

But...

 

in

 

all

 

probability,

 

we

 

live

 

in

 

a

 

century

 

too

 

little

 

advanced,

 

and

 

too

 

near

 

the

 

infancy

 

of

 

science,

 

to

 

see

 

such

 

an

 

art

 

brought

 

in

 

our

 

time

 

to

 

its

 

perfection.

6

 

 

After

 

the

 

publication

 

of

 

Darwin’s

 

Origin

 

of

 

Species

 

(1859),

 

it

 

became

 

increasingly

 

plausible

 

to

 

view

 

the

 

current

 

version

 

of

 

humanity

 

not

 

as

 

the

 

endpoint

 

of

 

evolution

 

but

 

rather

 

as

 

an

 

early

 

phase.

7

 

The

 

rise

 

of

 

scientific

 

physicalism

 

might

 

also

 

have

 

contributed

 

to

 

the

 

belief

 

that

 

technology

 

might

 

well

 

improve

 

the

 

human

 

organism.

 

For

 

example,

 

a

 

simple

 

kind

 

of

 

materialist

 

view

 

was

 

boldly

 

proposed

 

in

 

1750

 

by

 

the

 

French

 

physician

 

and

 

materialist

 

philosopher

 

Julien

 

Offray

 

de

 

La

 

Mettrie

 

in

 

L’Homme

 

Machine

,

 

in

 

which

 

he

 

argued

 

that

 

“man

 

                                                        

5

 

(Condorcet

 

1979).

 

6

 

(Franklin

 

et

 

al.

 

1956),

 

pp.

 

27

‐

29.

 

7

 

(Darwin

 

2003).

 

 

3

is

 

but

 

an

 

animal,

 

or

 

a

 

collection

 

of

 

springs

 

which

 

wind

 

each

 

other

 

up.”

8

 

If

 

human

 

beings

 

are

 

constituted

 

of

 

matter

 

obeying

 

s

 

the

 

same

 

laws

 

of

 

physics

 

that

 

operate

 

outside

 

us,

 

then

 

it

 

should

 

in

 

principle

 

be

 

possible

 

to

 

learn

 

to

 

manipulate

 

human

 

nature

 

in

 

the

 

same

 

way

 

that

 

we

 

manipulate

 

external

 

objects.

 

 

The

 

Enlightenment

 

is

 

said

 

to

 

have

 

expired

 

as

 

the

 

victim

 

of

 

its

 

own

 

excesses.

 

It

 

gave

 

way

 

to

 

Romanticism

 

and

 

to

 

latter

‐

day

 

reactions

 

against

 

the

 

rule

 

of

 

instrumental

 

reason

 

and

 

the

 

attempt

 

to

 

rationally

 

control

 

nature,

 

such

 

as

 

can

 

be

 

found

 

in

 

some

 

postmodernist

 

writings,

 

the

 

New

 

Age

 

movement,

 

deep

 

environmentalism,

 

and

 

parts

 

of

 

the

 

anti

‐

globalization

 

movement.

 

However,

 

the

 

Enlightenment’s

 

legacy,

 

including

 

a

 

belief

 

in

 

the

 

power

 

of

 

human

 

rationality

 

and

 

science,

 

is

 

still

 

an

 

important

 

shaper

 

of

 

modern

 

culture.

 

In

 

his

 

famous

 

1784

 

essay

 

“What

 

Is

 

Enlightenment?”,

 

Kant

 

summed

 

it

 

up

 

as

 

follows:

 

 

Enlightenment

 

is

 

man’s

 

leaving

 

his

 

self

‐

caused

 

immaturity.

 

Immaturity

 

is

 

the

 

incapacity

 

to

 

use

 

one’s

 

own

 

understanding

 

without

 

the

 

guidance

 

of

 

another.

 

Such

 

immaturity

 

is

 

self

‐

caused

 

if

 

its

 

cause

 

is

 

not

 

lack

 

of

 

intelligence,

 

but

 

by

 

lack

 

of

 

determination

 

and

 

courage

 

to

 

use

 

one’s

 

intelligence

 

without

 

being

 

guided

 

by

 

another.

 

The

 

motto

 

of

 

enlightenment

 

is

 

therefore:

 

Sapere

 

aude!

 

Have

 

courage

 

to

 

use

 

your

 

own

 

intelligence!

9

 

 

It

 

might

 

be

 

thought

 

that

 

a

 

major

 

inspiration

 

for

 

transhumanism

 

was

 

Friedrich

 

Nietzsche,

 

famous

 

for

 

his

 

doctrine

 

of

 

der

 

Übermensch

:

  

 

I

 

teach

 

you

 

the

 

overman.

 

Man

 

is

 

something

 

that

 

shall

 

be

 

overcome.

 

What

 

have

 

you

 

done

 

to

 

overcome

 

him?

 

All

 

beings

 

so

 

far

 

have

 

created

 

something

 

beyond

 

themselves;

 

and

 

do

 

you

 

want

 

to

 

be

 

the

 

ebb

 

of

 

this

 

great

 

flood

 

and

 

even

 

go

 

back

 

to

 

the

 

beasts

 

rather

 

than

 

overcome

 

man?

10

 

 

What

 

Nietzsche

 

had

 

in

 

mind,

 

however,

 

was

 

not

 

technological

 

transformation

 

but

 

a

 

kind

 

of

 

soaring

 

personal

 

growth

 

and

 

cultural

 

refinement

 

in

 

exceptional

 

individuals

 

(who

 

he

 

thought

 

would

 

have

 

to

 

overcome

 

the

 

life

‐

sapping

 

“slave

‐

morality”

 

of

 

Christianity).

 

Despite

 

some

 

surface

‐

level

 

similarities

 

with

 

the

 

Nietzschean

 

vision,

 

transhumanism

 

–

 

with

 

its

 

Enlightenment

 

roots,

 

its

 

emphasis

 

on

 

individual

 

liberties,

 

and

 

its

 

humanistic

 

concern

 

for

 

the

 

welfare

 

of

 

all

 

humans

 

(and

 

other

 

sentient

 

beings)

 

–

 

probably

 

has

 

as

 

much

 

or

 

more

 

in

 

                                                        

8

 

(La

 

Mettrie

 

1996).

 

9

 

(Kant

 

1986).

 

10

 

(Nietzsche

 

1908).

 

 

4

common

 

with

 

Nietzsche’s

 

contemporary

 

the

 

English

 

liberal

 

thinker

 

and

 

utilitarian

 

John

 

Stuart

 

Mill.

 

 

2.

 

Speculation,

 

science

 

fiction,

 

and

 

twentieth

‐

century

 

totalitarianism

 

In

 

1923,

 

the

 

noted

 

British

 

biochemist

 

J.

 

B.

 

S.

 

Haldane

 

published

 

the

 

essay

 

Daedalus;

 

or,

 

Science

 

and

 

the

 

Future

,

 

in

 

which

 

he

 

argued

 

that

 

great

 

benefits

 

would

 

come

 

from

 

controlling

 

our

 

own

 

genetics

 

and

 

from

 

science

 

in

 

general.

 

He

 

predicted

 

a

 

wealthier

 

society,

 

with

 

abundant

 

clean

 

energy,

 

where

 

genetics

 

would

 

be

 

employed

 

to

 

make

 

people

 

taller,

 

healthier,

 

and

 

smarter

 

and

 

where

 

ectogenesis

 

(gestating

 

fetuses

 

in

 

artificial

 

wombs)

 

would

 

be

 

commonplace.

 

He

 

also

 

commented

 

on

 

what

 

has

 

in

 

recent

 

years

 

become

 

known

 

as

 

the

 

“yuck

 

factor”:

 

 

The

 

chemical

 

or

 

physical

 

inventor

 

is

 

always

 

a

 

Prometheus.

 

There

 

is

 

no

 

great

 

invention,

 

from

 

fire

 

to

 

flying,

 

which

 

has

 

not

 

been

 

hailed

 

as

 

an

 

insult

 

to

 

some

 

god.

 

But

 

if

 

every

 

physical

 

and

 

chemical

 

invention

 

is

 

a

 

blasphemy,

 

every

 

biological

 

invention

 

is

 

a

 

perversion.

 

There

 

is

 

hardly

 

one

 

which,

 

on

 

first

 

being

 

brought

 

to

 

the

 

notice

 

of

 

an

 

observer

 

from

 

any

 

nation

 

which

 

has

 

not

 

previously

 

heard

 

of

 

their

 

existence,

 

would

 

not

 

appear

 

to

 

him

 

as

 

indecent

 

and

 

unnatural.

11

 

 

Haldane’s

 

essay

 

became

 

a

 

bestseller

 

and

 

set

 

off

 

a

 

chain

 

of

 

future

‐

oriented

 

discussions,

 

including

 

The

 

World,

 

the

 

Flesh

 

and

 

the

 

Devil

,

 

by

 

J.

 

D.

 

Bernal

 

(1929)

12

,

 

which

 

speculated

 

about

 

space

 

colonization

 

and

 

bionic

 

implants

 

as

 

well

 

as

 

mental

 

improvements

 

arising

 

from

 

advanced

 

social

 

science

 

and

 

psychology;

 

the

 

works

 

of

 

Olaf

 

Stapledon,

 

a

 

philosopher

 

and

 

science

 

fiction

 

author;

 

and

 

the

 

essay

 

“Icarus:

 

the

 

Future

 

of

 

Science”

 

(1924)

 

by

 

Bertrand

 

Russell.

13

 

Russell

 

took

 

a

 

more

 

pessimistic

 

view,

 

arguing

 

that

 

without

 

more

 

kindliness

 

in

 

the

 

world,

 

technological

 

power

 

would

 

mainly

 

serve

 

to

 

increase

 

our

 

ability

 

to

 

harm

 

one

 

another.

 

Science

 

fiction

 

authors

 

such

 

as

 

H.

 

G.

 

Wells

 

and

 

Stapledon

 

got

 

many

 

people

 

thinking

 

about

 

the

 

future

 

evolution

 

of

 

the

 

human

 

race.

 

 

Aldous

 

Huxley’s

 

Brave

 

New

 

World

,

 

published

 

in

 

1932,

 

has

 

had

 

an

 

enduring

 

impact

 

on

 

debates

 

about

 

human

 

technological

 

transformation

14

 

matched

 

by

 

few

 

other

 

works

 

of

 

fiction

 

(possibly

 

excepting

 

Mary

 

Shelley’s

 

Frankenstein

15

).

 

Huxley

 

describes

 

a

 

dystopia

 

where

 

psychological

 

conditioning,

 

promiscuous

 

sexuality,

 

biotechnology,

 

and

 

the

 

opiate

 

drug

 

“soma”

 

keep

 

the

 

population

 

placid

 

in

 

a

 

static,

 

conformist

 

caste

 

society

 

governed

 

by

 

ten

 

                                                        

11

 

(Haldane

 

1924).

 

12

 

(Bernal

 

1929[1969]).

 

13

 

(Russell

 

1924)

 

14

 

(Huxley

 

1932).

 

15

 

(Shelley

 

1818).

 

 

5

world

 

controllers.

 

Children

 

are

 

manufactured

 

in

 

fertility

 

clinics

 

and

 

artificially

 

gestated.

 

The

 

lower

 

castes

 

are

 

chemically

 

stunted

 

or

 

deprived

 

of

 

oxygen

 

during

 

their

 

maturation

 

process

,

 

in

 

order

 

to

 

limit

 

their

 

physical

 

and

 

intellectual

 

development.

 

From

 

birth,

 

members

 

of

 

every

 

caste

 

are

 

indoctrinated

 

during

 

their

 

sleep,

 

by

 

recorded

 

voices

 

repeating

 

the

 

slogans

 

of

 

the

 

official

 

“Fordist”

 

religion,

 

and

 

conditioned

 

to

 

believe

 

that

 

their

 

own

 

caste

 

is

 

the

 

best

 

one

 

to

 

belong

 

to.

 

The

 

society

 

depicted

 

in

 

Brave

 

New

 

World

 

is

 

often

 

likened

 

to

 

another

 

influential

 

20

th

 

century

 

dystopia,

 

that

 

of

 

George

 

Orwell’s

 

Nineteen

 

Eighty

‐

Four

.

16

 

Nineteen

 

Eighty

‐

Four

 

features

 

a

 

more

 

overt

 

form

 

of

 

oppression,

 

including

 

ubiquitous

 

surveillance

 

by

 

“Big

 

Brother”

 

and

 

brutal

 

police

 

coercion.

 

Huxley’s

 

world

 

controllers,

 

by

 

contrast,

 

rely

 

on

 

less

 

blatant

 

means

 

(bio

‐

engineered

 

predestination,

 

psychological

 

conditioning,

 

soma)

 

to

 

prevent

 

people

 

from

 

wanting

 

to

 

think

 

for

 

themselves.

 

Herd

 

mentality

 

and

 

promiscuity

 

are

 

promoted,

 

while

 

high

 

art,

 

individuality,

 

knowledge

 

of

 

history,

 

and

 

romantic

 

love

 

are

 

discouraged.

 

It

 

should

 

be

 

noted

 

that

 

in

 

neither

 

Nineteen

 

Eighty

‐

Four

 

nor

 

Brave

 

New

 

World

 

is

 

technology

 

employed

 

to

 

increase

 

human

 

capacities;

 

rather,

 

society

 

is

 

set

 

up

 

to

 

repress

 

the

 

full

 

development

 

of

 

humanity.

 

Both

 

dystopias

 

curtail

 

scientific

 

and

 

technological

 

exploration

 

for

 

fear

 

of

 

upsetting

 

the

 

social

 

equilibrium.

 

Nevertheless,

 

Brave

 

New

 

World

 

in

 

particular

 

has

 

become

 

an

 

emblem

 

of

 

the

 

dehumanizing

 

potential

 

of

 

the

 

use

 

of

 

technology

 

to

 

promote

 

social

 

conformism

 

and

 

shallow

 

contentment.

 

 

In

 

the

 

early

 

decades

 

of

 

the

 

20

th

 

century,

 

not

 

only

 

racists

 

and

 

right

‐

wing

 

ideologues

 

but

 

also

 

a

 

number

 

of

 

left

‐

leaning

 

social

 

progressives

 

became

 

concerned

 

about

 

the

 

effects

 

of

 

medicine

 

and

 

social

 

safety

 

nets

 

on

 

the

 

quality

 

of

 

the

 

human

 

gene

 

pool.

 

They

 

believed

 

that

 

modern

 

society

 

enabled

 

many

 

“unfit”

 

individuals

 

to

 

survive—individuals

 

who

 

would

 

in

 

earlier

 

ages

 

have

 

perished—and

 

they

 

worried

 

that

 

this

 

would

 

lead

 

to

 

a

 

deterioration

 

of

 

the

 

human

 

stock.

 

As

 

a

 

result,

 

many

 

countries

 

(including

 

the

 

USA,

 

Canada,

 

Australia,

 

Sweden,

 

Denmark,

 

Finland,

 

and

 

Switzerland)

 

implemented

 

state

‐

sponsored

 

eugenics

 

programs,

 

which

 

infringed

 

in

 

various

 

degree

 

on

 

individual

 

rights.

 

In

 

the

 

United

 

States,

 

between

 

1907

 

and

 

1963

 

some

 

64,000

 

individuals

 

were

 

forcibly

 

sterilized

 

under

 

eugenics

 

laws.

 

The

 

principal

 

victims

 

of

 

the

 

American

 

program

 

were

 

the

 

mentally

 

disabled,

 

but

 

the

 

deaf,

 

the

 

blind,

 

the

 

epileptic,

 

the

 

physically

 

deformed,

 

orphans,

 

and

 

the

 

homeless

 

were

 

also

 

sometimes

 

targeted.

  

But

 

even

 

such

 

widespread

 

compulsory

 

sterilization

 

pales

 

in

 

comparison

 

with

 

the

 

German

 

eugenics

 

program,

 

which

 

resulted

 

in

 

the

 

systematic

 

murder

 

of

 

millions

 

of

 

people

 

regarded

 

as

 

“inferior”

 

by

 

the

 

Nazis.

 

 

The

 

holocaust

 

left

 

a

 

scar

 

on

 

the

 

human

 

psyche.

 

Determined

 

not

 

to

 

let

 

history

 

repeat

 

itself,

 

most

 

people

 

developed

 

an

 

instinctive

 

revulsion

 

to

 

all

 

ideas

 

appearing

 

to

 

have

 

any

 

kind

 

of

 

association

 

with

 

Nazi

 

ideology.

 

(And

 

yet,

 

it

 

must

 

be

 

remembered,

 

history

 

did

 

repeat

 

itself

,

 

                                                        

16

 

(Orwell

 

1949).

 

 

6

e.g.

 

in

 

the

 

Rwandan

 

genocide

 

of

 

1994,

 

in

 

which

 

the

 

world

 

did

 

nothing

 

but

 

wring

 

its

 

hands

 

as

 

800,000

 

Africans

 

were

 

slaughtered.)

 

In

 

particular,

 

the

 

eugenics

 

movement

 

as

 

a

 

whole,

 

in

 

all

 

its

 

forms,

 

became

 

discredited

 

because

 

of

 

the

 

terrible

 

crimes

 

that

 

had

 

been

 

committed

 

in

 

its

 

name,

 

although

 

some

 

of

 

the

 

milder

 

eugenics

 

programs

 

continued

 

for

 

many

 

years

 

before

 

they

 

were

 

finally

 

scrapped.

 

These

 

programs

 

are

 

all

 

now

 

almost

 

universally

 

condemned.

 

The

 

goal

 

of

 

creating

 

a

 

new

 

and

 

better

 

world

 

through

 

a

 

centrally

 

imposed

 

vision

 

became

 

passé.

 

The

 

Stalinist

 

tyranny,

 

too,

 

underscored

 

the

 

dangers

 

of

 

totalitarian

 

utopianism.

 

 

In

 

the

 

postwar

 

era,

 

many

 

optimistic

 

futurists

 

who

 

had

 

become

 

suspicious

 

of

 

collectively

 

orchestrated

 

social

 

change

 

found

 

a

 

new

 

home

 

for

 

their

 

hopes

 

in

 

scientific

 

and

 

technological

 

progress.

 

Space

 

travel,

 

medicine,

 

and

 

computers

 

seemed

 

to

 

offer

 

a

 

path

 

to

 

a

 

better

 

world.

 

The

 

shift

 

of

 

attention

 

also

 

reflected

 

the

 

breathtaking

 

pace

 

of

 

development

 

in

 

these

 

fields.

 

Science

 

had

 

begun

 

to

 

catch

 

up

 

with

 

speculation.

  

Transhumanist

 

themes

 

during

 

this

 

period

 

were

 

discussed

 

and

 

analyzed

 

chiefly

 

in

 

the

 

science

 

fiction

 

literature.

 

Authors

 

such

 

as

 

Arthur

 

C.

 

Clarke,

 

Isaac

 

Asimov,

 

Robert

 

Heinlein,

 

and

 

Stanislaw

 

Lem

 

explored

 

how

 

technological

 

development

 

could

 

come

 

to

 

profoundly

 

alter

 

the

 

human

 

condition.

 

 

The

 

word

 

“transhumanism”

 

appears

 

to

 

have

 

been

 

first

 

used

 

by

 

Aldous

 

Huxley’s

 

brother,

 

Julian

 

Huxley,

 

a

 

distinguished

 

biologist

 

(who

 

was

 

also

 

the

 

first

 

director

‐

general

 

of

 

UNESCO

 

and

 

a

 

founder

 

of

 

the

 

World

 

Wildlife

 

Fund).

 

In

 

Religion

 

Without

 

Revelation

 

(1927),

 

he

 

wrote:

 

 

The

 

human

 

species

 

can,

 

if

 

it

 

wishes,

 

transcend

 

itself

 

–

 

not

 

just

 

sporadically,

 

an

 

individual

 

here

 

in

 

one

 

way,

 

an

 

individual

 

there

 

in

 

another

 

way

 

–

 

but

 

in

 

its

 

entirety,

 

as

 

humanity.

 

We

 

need

 

a

 

name

 

for

 

this

 

new

 

belief.

 

Perhaps

 

transhumanism

 

will

 

serve:

 

man

 

remaining

 

man,

 

but

 

transcending

 

himself,

 

by

 

realizing

 

new

 

possibilities

 

of

 

and

 

for

 

his

 

human

 

nature.

17

 

 

 

3.

 

Technological

 

genies:

 

AI,

 

the

 

singularity,

 

nanotech,

 

and

 

uploading

 

Human

‐

like

 

automata

 

have

 

always

 

fascinated

 

the

 

human

 

imagination.

 

Mechanical

 

engineers

 

since

 

the

 

early

 

Greeks

 

have

 

constructed

 

clever

 

self

‐

moving

 

devices.

 

 

In

 

Judaic

 

mysticism,

 

a

 

“golem”

 

refers

 

to

 

an

 

animated

 

being

 

crafted

 

from

 

inanimate

 

material.

 

In

 

the

 

early

 

golem

 

stories,

 

a

 

golem

 

could

 

be

 

created

 

by

 

a

 

holy

 

person

 

who

 

was

 

able

 

to

 

share

 

some

 

of

 

God’s

 

wisdom

 

and

 

power

 

(although

 

the

 

golem,

 

not

 

being

 

able

 

to

 

speak,

 

was

 

never

 

more

 

than

 

a

 

shadow

 

of

 

God’s

 

creations).

 

Having

 

a

 

golem

 

servant

 

was

 

the

 

ultimate

 

symbol

 

of

 

                                                        

17

 

(Huxley

 

1927),

 

quoted

 

from

 

(Hughes

 

2004).

 

 

7

wisdom

 

and

 

holiness.

 

In

 

the

 

later

 

stories,

 

which

 

were

 

influenced

 

by

 

the

 

more

 

Islamic

 

concern

 

about

 

humanity

’s

 

getting

 

too

 

close

 

to

 

God,

 

the

 

golem

 

became

 

a

 

creation

 

of

 

overreaching

 

mystics

 

who

 

were

 

inevitably

 

punished

 

for

 

their

 

blasphemy.

 

The

 

story

 

of

 

the

 

Sorcerer’s

 

Apprentice

 

is

 

a

 

variation

 

of

 

this

 

theme:

 

The

 

apprentice

 

animates

 

a

 

broomstick

 

to

 

fetch

 

water

 

but

 

is

 

unable

 

to

 

make

 

the

 

broom

 

stop

 

–

 

like

 

Frankenstein

,

 

it

 

is,

 

a

 

story

 

of

 

technology

 

out

 

of

 

control.

 

The

 

word

 

“robot”

 

was

 

coined

 

by

 

the

 

Czech

 

writer

 

Karel

 Č

apek,

 

in

 

his

 

dark

 

play

 

R.U.R.

 

(1921),

 

in

 

which

 

a

 

robot

 

labor

 

force

 

destroys

 

its

 

human

 

creators.

18

 

With

 

the

 

invention

 

of

 

the

 

electronic

 

computer,

 

the

 

idea

 

of

 

human

‐

like

 

automata

 

graduated

 

from

 

the

 

kindergarten

 

of

 

mythology

 

to

 

the

 

school

 

of

 

science

 

fiction

 

(Asimov,

 

Lem,

 

Clarke)

 

and

 

eventually

 

to

 

the

 

college

 

of

 

technological

 

prediction.

 

 

Could

 

continued

 

progress

 

in

 

artificial

 

intelligence

 

lead

 

to

 

the

 

creation

 

of

 

machines

 

that

 

think

 

in

 

the

 

same

 

general

 

way

 

as

 

human

 

beings?

 

Alan

 

Turing

 

gave

 

an

 

operational

 

definition

 

to

 

this

 

question

 

in

 

his

 

classic

 

“Computing

 

Machinery

 

and

 

Intelligence”

 

(1950)

 

and

 

predicted

 

that

 

computers

 

would

 

eventually

 

pass

 

what

 

came

 

to

 

be

 

known

 

as

 

the

 

Turing

 

Test.

 

In

 

the

 

Turing

 

Test,

 

a

 

human

 

experimenter

 

interviews

 

a

 

computer

 

and

 

another

 

human

 

via

 

a

 

text

 

interface

;

 

the

 

computer

 

succeeds

 

if

 

the

 

interviewer

 

cannot

 

reliably

 

distinguish

 

it

 

from

 

the

 

human.)

19

 

Much

 

ink

 

has

 

been

 

spilt

 

in

 

debates

 

on

 

whether

 

this

 

test

 

furnishes

 

a

 

necessary

 

and

 

sufficient

 

condition

 

for

 

a

 

computer

 

being

 

able

 

to

 

think,

 

but

 

what

 

matters

 

more

 

from

 

a

 

practical

 

perspective

 

is

 

whether

 

and,

 

if

 

so,

 

when

 

computers

 

will

 

be

 

able

 

to

 

match

 

human

 

performance

 

in

 

tasks

 

involving

 

general

 

reasoning

 

ability.

 

With

 

the

 

benefit

 

of

 

hindsight,

 

we

 

can

 

say

 

that

 

many

 

of

 

the

 

early

 

AI

 

researchers

 

turned

 

out

 

to

 

be

 

overoptimistic

 

about

 

the

 

timescale

 

for

 

this

 

hypothetical

 

development.

 

Of

 

course,

 

the

 

fact

 

that

 

we

 

have

 

not

 

yet

 

reached

 

human

‐

level

 

artificial

 

intelligence

 

does

 

not

 

mean

 

that

 

we

 

never

 

will,

 

and

 

a

 

number

 

of

 

people,

 

e.g.

 

Marvin

 

Minsky,

 

Hans

 

Moravec,

 

Ray

 

Kurzweil,

 

and

 

Nick

 

Bostrom

 

have

 

put

 

forward

 

reasons

 

for

 

taking

 

seriously

 

the

 

possibility

 

that

 

this

 

could

 

happen

 

within

 

the

 

first

 

half

 

of

 

this

 

century.

20

 

 

In

 

a

 

1958

 

tribute,

 

the

 

Polish

 

mathematician

 

Stanislaw

 

Ulam,

 

referring

 

to

 

a

 

meeting

 

with

 

his

 

late

 

colleague

 

John

 

von

 

Neumann,

 

wrote:

 

 

One

 

conversation

 

centered

 

on

 

the

 

ever

 

accelerating

 

progress

 

of

 

technology

 

and

 

changes

 

in

 

the

 

mode

 

of

 

human

 

life,

 

which

 

gives

 

the

 

appearance

 

of

 

approaching

 

some

 

essential

 

singularity

 

in

 

the

 

history

 

of

 

the

 

race

 

beyond

 

which

 

human

 

affairs,

 

as

 

we

 

know

 

them,

 

could

 

not

 

continue.

21

 

                                                        

18

 

(Capek

 

2004).

 

19

 

(Turing

 

1950).

 

20

 

(Minsky

 

1994;

 

Moravec

 

1999;

 

Bostrom

 

1998,

 

2002;

 

Kurzweil

 

1999).

 

21

 

(Ulam

 

1958).

 

 

8

 

The

 

rapidity

 

of

 

technological

 

change

 

in

 

recent

 

times

 

leads

 

naturally

 

to

 

the

 

idea

 

that

 

continued

 

technological

 

innovation

 

will

 

have

 

a

 

profound

 

effect

 

on

 

humanity

 

in

 

the

 

decades

 

ahead.

 

This

 

prediction

 

is

 

strengthened

 

if

 

one

 

believes

 

that

 

some

 

of

 

those

 

variables

 

that

 

currently

 

exhibit

 

exponential

 

growth

 

will

 

continue

 

to

 

do

 

so

 

and

 

that

 

they

 

will

 

be

 

among

 

the

 

main

 

drivers

 

of

 

change.

 

Gordon

 

E.

 

Moore,

 

co

‐

founder

 

of

 

Intel,

 

noticed

 

in

 

1965

 

that

 

the

 

number

 

of

 

transistors

 

on

 

a

 

chip

 

exhibited

 

exponential

 

growth.

 

This

 

led

 

to

 

the

 

formulation

 

of

 

“Moore’s

 

law”,

 

which

 

states

 

(roughly)

 

that

 

computing

 

power

 

doubles

 

every

 

eighteen

 

months

 

to

 

two

 

years.

22

 

More

 

recently,

 

Kurzweil

 

has

 

documented

 

similar

 

exponential

 

growth

 

rates

 

in

 

a

 

number

 

of

 

other

 

technologies.

 

It

 

is

 

interesting

 

to

 

note

 

that

 

the

 

world

 

economy,

 

a

 

general

 

index

 

of

 

humanity’s

 

productive

 

capacity,

 

has

 

doubled

 

about

 

every

 

fifteen

 

years

 

in

 

modern

 

times.

 

 

The

 

singularity

 

hypothesis,

 

to

 

which

 

von

 

Neumann

 

seemingly

 

alludes

 

in

 

the

 

quoted

 

passage

 

above,

 

holds

 

that

 

these

 

changes

 

will

 

lead

 

to

 

some

 

kind

 

of

 

discontinuity.

 

But

 

nowadays

 

it

 

often

 

refers

 

to

 

a

 

more

 

specific

 

prediction

:

 

namely

,

 

that

 

the

 

creation

 

of

 

self

‐

improving

 

artificial

 

intelligence

 

will

 

at

 

some

 

point

 

result

 

in

 

radical

 

changes

 

within

 

a

 

very

 

short

 

time

 

span.

 

This

 

hypothesis

 

was

 

first

 

clearly

 

stated

 

in

 

1965

 

by

 

the

 

statistician

 

I.

 

J.

 

Good:

 

 

Let

 

an

 

ultraintelligent

 

machine

 

be

 

defined

 

as

 

a

 

machine

 

that

 

can

 

far

 

surpass

 

all

 

the

 

intellectual

 

activities

 

of

 

any

 

man

 

however

 

clever.

 

Since

 

the

 

design

 

of

 

machines

 

is

 

one

 

of

 

these

 

intellectual

 

activities,

 

an

 

ultraintelligent

 

machine

 

could

 

design

 

even

 

better

 

machines;

 

there

 

would

 

then

 

unquestionably

 

be

 

an

 

‘intelligence

 

explosion,’

 

and

 

the

 

intelligence

 

of

 

man

 

would

 

be

 

left

 

far

 

behind.

 

Thus

 

the

 

first

 

ultraintelligent

 

machine

 

is

 

the

 

last

 

invention

 

that

 

man

 

need

 

ever

 

make.

23

 

 

Vernor

 

Vinge

 

discussed

 

this

 

idea

 

in

 

a

 

little

 

more

 

detail

 

in

 

his

 

influential

 

1993

‐

paper

 

“Technological

 

Singularity”,

 

in

 

which

 

he

 

predicted:

  

 

Within

 

thirty

 

years,

 

we

 

will

 

have

 

the

 

technological

 

means

 

to

 

create

 

superhuman

 

intelligence.

 

Shortly

 

after,

 

the

 

human

 

era

 

will

 

be

 

ended.

24

 

 

Transhumanists

 

today

 

hold

 

diverging

 

views

 

about

 

the

 

singularity:

 

some

 

see

 

it

 

as

 

a

 

likely

 

scenario,

 

others

 

believe

 

that

 

it

 

is

 

more

 

probable

 

that

 

there

 

will

 

never

 

be

 

any

 

very

 

sudden

 

and

 

dramatic

 

changes

 

as

 

the

 

result

 

of

 

progress

 

in

 

artificial

 

intelligence.

 

                                                        

22

 

(Moore

 

1965).

 

23

 

(Good

 

1965).

 

24

 

(Vinge

 

1993).

 

 

9

 

The

 

singularity

 

idea

 

also

 

comes

 

in

 

a

 

somewhat

 

different

 

eschatological

 

version,

 

which

 

traces

 

its

 

lineage

 

to

 

the

 

writings

 

of

 

Pierre

 

Teilhard

 

de

 

Chardin,

 

a

 

paleontologist

 

and

 

Jesuit

 

theologian

 

who

 

saw

 

an

 

evolutionary

 

telos

 

in

 

the

 

development

 

of

 

an

 

encompassing

 

noosphere

 

(a

 

global

 

consciousness)

 

–

 

via

 

physicist

 

Frank

 

Tipler,

 

who

 

argued

 

that

 

advanced

 

civilizations

 

might

 

come

 

to

 

have

 

a

 

defining

 

influence

 

on

 

the

 

future

 

evolution

 

of

 

the

 

cosmos,

 

and,

 

in

 

the

 

final

 

moments

 

of

 

the

 

Big

 

Crunch,

 

might

 

manage

 

to

 

extract

 

an

 

infinite

 

number

 

of

 

computations

 

by

 

harnessing

 

the

 

sheer

 

energy

 

of

 

the

 

collapsing

 

matter.

25,26

 

However,

 

while

 

these

 

ideas

 

might

 

appeal

 

to

 

those

 

who

 

fancy

 

a

 

marriage

 

between

 

mysticism

 

and

 

science,

 

they

 

have

 

not

 

caught

 

on

 

either

 

among

 

transhumanists

 

or

 

the

 

larger

 

scientific

 

community.

 

Current

 

cosmological

 

theories

 

indicate

 

that

 

the

 

universe

 

will

 

continue

 

to

 

expand

 

forever

 

(falsifying

 

Tipler’s

 

prediction).

 

But

 

the

 

more

 

general

 

point

 

that

 

the

 

transhumanist

 

might

 

make

 

in

 

this

 

context

 

is

 

that

 

we

 

need

 

to

 

learn

 

to

 

think

 

about

 

“big

‐

picture

 

questions”

 

without

 

resorting

 

to

 

wishful

 

thinking

 

or

 

mysticism.

 

Big

‐

picture

 

questions,

 

including

 

ones

 

about

 

our

 

place

 

in

 

the

 

world

 

and

 

the

 

long

‐

term

 

fate

 

of

 

intelligent

 

life

 

are

 

part

 

of

 

transhumanism;

 

however,

 

these

 

questions

 

should

 

be

 

addressed

 

in

 

a

 

sober,

 

disinterested

 

way,

 

using

 

critical

 

reason

 

and

 

our

 

best

 

available

 

scientific

 

evidence.

 

One

 

reason

 

why

 

such

 

questions

 

are

 

of

 

transhumanist

 

interest

 

is

 

that

 

their

 

answers

 

might

 

affect

 

what

 

outcomes

 

we

 

should

 

expect

 

from

 

our

 

own

 

technological

 

development,

 

and

 

therefore

 

–

 

indirectly

 

–

 

what

 

policies

 

it

 

makes

 

sense

 

for

 

humanity

 

to

 

pursue.

 

 

In

 

1986,

 

Eric

 

Drexler

 

published

 

Engines

 

of

 

Creation

,

 

the

 

first

 

book

‐

length

 

exposition

 

of

 

molecular

 

manufacturing.

27

 

(The

 

possibility

 

of

 

nanotechnology

 

had

 

been

 

anticipated

 

by

 

Nobel

 

laureate

 

physicist

 

Richard

 

Feynman

 

in

 

his

 

famous

 

after

‐

dinner

 

address

 

in

 

1959

 

entitled

 

“There

 

is

 

Plenty

 

of

 

Room

 

at

 

the

 

Bottom”.

28

)

 

In

 

this

 

seminal

 

work,

 

Drexler

 

not

 

only

 

argued

 

for

 

the

 

feasibility

 

of

 

assembler

‐

based

 

nanotechnology

 

but

 

also

 

explored

 

its

 

consequences

 

and

 

began

 

charting

 

the

 

strategic

 

challenges

 

posed

 

by

 

its

 

development.

 

Drexler’s

 

later

 

book

 

Nanosystems

 

(1992)

 

supplied

 

a

 

more

 

technical

 

analysis

 

that

 

seemed

 

to

 

confirm

 

his

 

original

 

conclusions.

29

 

To

 

prepare

 

the

 

world

 

for

 

nanotechnology

 

and

 

work

 

towards

 

its

 

safe

 

implementation,

 

he

 

founded

 

the

 

Foresight

 

Institute

 

together

 

with

 

his

 

then

 

wife,

 

Christine

 

Peterson,

 

in

 

1986.

 

 

                                                        

25

 

(Teilhard

 

de

 

Chardin

 

1964).

 

26

 

(Tipler

 

1994).

 

27

 

(Drexler

 

1985).

 

28

 

(Feynman

 

1960).

 

29

 

(Drexler

 

1992).

 

 

10