In the context of our perception of linear time, the march toward radically upgrading the human experience is not a “switch-on” process, it’s not sudden, it’s not merely a download away. It’s an ongoing-for-quite-a-while-now, subtle, and steadily accelerating merger.
Let’s say you are in some serious trouble. You need some heavy altruistic help of a very selfless nature. Who would you want to decide your fate? The “purer” Bronze Age human from 5000 years ago? Or the hyper-augmented cyborg from 2061?
The robot revolution has been imminent for several decades, ironically. Regardless of timeframe, the fact of the matter is that we’re now pushing and developing at such a pace that it’s inevitable – at some point robots have to match our sci-fi expectations – and I think it’s now actually factually …
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I get this feeling that she’s having kind of a Bill Joy knee-jerk reaction to the technology she’s not quite able to keep up with any longer – that sort of, middle-aged-onward conservatism that sets in… But what the hell do I know – it’s just a trailer at the moment.
“To celebrate the launch of their new game Deus Ex: Human Revolution, Square Enix have commissioned Eyeborg to investigate prosthetics, cybernetics and human augmentation and ask: how far are we from the future presented in the game?” Excellent showcase of current and upcoming human augmentation and cyborg technologies. [VIA EYEBORG PROJECT]
“Reverse Electrowetting,” a phrase that conjures images of a robot peeing the bed backwards (Osaka University’s CB2, perhaps), is actually the process of generating electricity via, in this case, walking on electric shoe juice. Which is pretty hott. Not only could this power my phone, GPS, and A/C underwear, in theory such systems could be applied to a wide variety of energy-consuming devices including prosthetics, larger wearable robotics, and full-on exoskeletal human augmentation systems. AND, in developing countries where electrical infrastructure might be lacking, these shoes might be a nice peripheral for the OLPC! I’m certainly hip to powering my [read full post]
Well, we’ve got three uplifting success stories of flesh-to-metal human augmentation/cyborg making here. These are all pretty sexy – to a point where it almost feels like you’re watching special effects. Only a matter of time until this becomes a voluntary amputation/augmentation sorta industry. My knees and ankles are counting the days… VIDEO: The Knee that Knows What You’re Going to Do [VIA ABC] VIDEO: Oscar Pistorius is Taking His Blades to the Olypics Proper [VIA YOUTUBE] RADIO INTERVIEW: Biophysicist’s Legs Frozen Off, Builds Himself Better Ones [VIA NPR]