Friday, 14 February 2014
Regency C (Hyatt Regency Chicago)
Can humanity remake itself with science? We may someday download our brains into computers or other technologies yet to be invented, or we may live in virtual universes so well developed that we can no longer tell created worlds from reality. Our technology has developed at an unprecedented rate in recent years. This talk considers where we might be in another few decades, in particular in regards to artificial intelligence, virtual reality, and biomechanics, the combination of robotics and neural prosthetics with the living body. We may someday reach a point where we can augment our minds and bodies to such a great extent that we are no longer purely human as we know that term today. The possibilities of genius machines, super humans both physically and intellectually, and immortality are considered, with applications in the government, civilian, commercial, and military arenas.