Transhumanism And Open Bionics

The book Frankenstein by Mary Shelley is arguably one of the most well known books ever written. What many people don't realize is with modern technology humans might not be far from creating artificial life. Through research involving STEM cells and “designer babies” we are near the point of creating parts of the human body. The problem is, seemingly immutable laws have restricted scientists abilities to study STEM cells. The unremitting battle between the two sides is what holds this country back from reaching its full health potential.

3D printing is an effective and innovative way to print three-dimensional objects to get a better look at things that might be a little complicated to look at through a computer screen or on a piece of paper. We incorporated 3D printing in our project because in order to accomplish a successful voice activated prosthetic

With a respectable argument against the idea of pharmaceutical advances eventually leading to immortality, Lexchin uses multiple forms of rhetoric, mostly logos, to sway the readers. He sets our deep fantasies of someday being able to live forever against our rational minds and backs up his case with sound logic and viable examples that leave us no doubts about human limitation.

Bionic Body (“Bionic”), a SEC registrant, is a biological medical device company that focuses on the development of implantable biological devices, surgical

A major impetus to improving artificial limbs started when the United States encouraged companies to improve prosthetics instead of munitions (Norton, 2007). The combination of lighter materials and robotics assist has created huge advancements in functionality and has dramatically improved quality of life and potential for independent living. Even with the advancement of these limbs, the basic mechanical principals are still the same. Modern times allow for many different types of limbs to be created. Limbs can be created to match skin tone, freckles and fingerprints. There are three many ways a limb can be made to move. The first is attaching the limb to a moving body part to act as a gear shifter. Another variation is a motor attached and the person can switch modes by a mechanical toggle shift. The most advanced movement is the myoelectric capability. This is when electrodes are placed on the muscles of the residual limb. When contracted the arm will move according to which electrode fired. A microprocessor can also be attached to learn exactly how the person walks (Clements, 2008). Modern prosthetics offer valuable life skills, yet are very

The evolution of technology has been hand in hand with the human subjugation of earth, but the question persists, when does the use of technology go too far? Advances in medical science have increased the average human lifespan and improved the quality of life for individuals. Medical science and biology are steadily arriving at new ways to alter humans by the use of advanced genetic alteration. This technology gives rise to the question of how this new technology ought to be used, if at all. The idea of human enhancement is a very general topic, since humans are constantly “enhancing” themselves through the use of tools. In referring to human enhancement, I am referring specifically to the use of genetic intervention prior to

In the afterward to this book, author Lee Silver, professor of molecular ecology and evolutionary biology and neuroscience at Princeton, states, "My goal has been to present both the scientific and the political realities of reprogenetic technologies as I see them, along with the ethical dilemmas their use will raise. I leave it to philosophers and bioethicists to figure out how these ethical dilemmas might be resolved." As the book opens, the reader is moved scene by scene further into the future when, ultimately, the development of genetic engineering and its accessability will have formed a world even more polarized

Millions suffer from preventable causes, yet billions of dollars go towards enhancing technologies for consumers of the developed world. It is unfair to continue to let the poor and disadvantaged suffer while working toward further increasing the quality of life of relatively wealthy consumers. Furthermore, the point is made in the documentary that technologies used to bring people up to par with the rest of society are used to bring people above what is normal. This is to say that a technology such as a robotic limb developed to help someone walk, will, by virtue of humanity, be further developed to make someone run faster or jump higher than the rest of society. After medical necessity is met, the alteration becomes a luxury. In observing the nature of how humans handle medical advancements and biotechnology, the argument for justice not being met by the trans-humanist perspective is coherent. Thus, the trans-humanist perspective cannot be said to be ethical by principilist

Today we live in a society that is constantly evolving.This evolution has outpacing our society expectations. With technological advances’ unfolding right in front of our eyes, the line between what is moral and immoral has been blurred. In Peter Singer’s “Visible Man: Ethics in a World Without Secrets” and the Dalai Lama’s “Ethics and the New Genetics” both authors present the potential benefits of today’s advancements but also make it clear that theses advancements have molded our ethical and moral standards. With technological advancements moving at a unfathomed pace we must develop a moral compass. We must craft ethical standards to manage technology by restricting what we make private and what should be genetically mutated.

C. Joy Bell C. once said, “There is some kind of a sweet innocence in being human, in not having to be just happy or just sad, in the nature of being able to be both broken and whole, at the same time.” Blade Runner, the film directed by Ridley Scott, brings one to ask oneself: what really makes someone human? The replicants in this film are an advanced version of humans, bioengineered and cloned to be stronger, faster, and smarter than humans. Replicants do not last long, and are “retired” before they can evolve to have their own emotions or thoughts, many of them know that they are replicants, but there are a few who have lived believing they are human. Deckard shows no emotion when he is assigned to “retire”

Prosthetic limbs have been around for centuries, but what is one thing they all have in common? They have all been a nuisance. In recent years technology of the modern day Prosthesis has ventured to new heights, but they have not perfected an artificial limb yet. With the amount of people in need of prosthetic limbs, the demand for a perfect prosthesis is tremendous. The perfect prosthesis shouldn’t feel or even look like an artificial limb. Prosthetics should go unnoticed throughout the rest of the amputee’s life.

Bionic eyes were made to restore the vision of blind men and women. Bionic eyes aren’t really eyes yet. They are a pair of glasses connected to a tiny camera and its transmits high frequency radio signals to a microchip that implanted in the top of the eyes. Electrodes that are implanted in the microchip send signals to stimulated cells in the retina, which connect to the optic nerve. These signals are passed down the optic nerve to the brain, which illuminate a

Today scientist have pushed robotic transplants as far as creating avatars to control with their mind. This technology is being tested on monkeys. Russian research projects claim the next stage in science is to create a human body. They are offering immortality in 10 years. This seems a little outrageous to create robotic bodied to place human brains inside of.

who want limbs that function faster and better. Their demands push the limits of prosthetic

There is a Project called the “E-Nabling” that receives donations from people around the world and then use the donations to make prosthetic arms and hands. This is possible because of the low cost to print a prosthetic arm. A regular 3D-printed prosthetic arm costs around $30-50. In two years, 6,000 volunteers have printed over 1,500 devices in over 50 countries. The low cost of these prosthetics allows this to be possible (Julia Lull, See How Kids Are Getting 3D-printed Hands for Free).