Research Analysis
I’ve always been incredibly interested in human culture and history. With our topic being technology, it seemed perfect to me to write about cyborgs. I crafted this idea while reading David Nye’s Technology Matters, I was reading about technology going hand in hand with human development. He says, “It is easy to imagine human beings as pre-literate, but it is difficult to imagine them as pre-technological” (5 Nye) Humans are mostly hairless, sensitive skinned, and relatively low on the food chain without technology. Everything from our cloths to our shelter is built with tools designed by human beings. We are technology, that’s our evolutionary advantage. If we were to suddenly leave all technology, we would go extinct. To deny technology is to deny what makes us a species. A human to deny technology is like a lion denying roaring, or a cheetah denying running. Our power is in our tools, we are technology. This got me thinking, I wondered what was next for humans, both physically and technologically. That’s when I thought about it, what if we became a product of our own ingenuity?
We are flying head first into the digital age at the speed of light. Computers are shrinking in price and size and doubling in power at literally exponential rates (Moore’s Law). Research in nanotechnologies and cybernetics are becoming hot industries. With the possibility of greatly increasing life spans, curing cancer, and cosmetically reducing times effect on the body, it’s not hard to see why these little robots aren’t a popular idea. With these technologies, humans will cease to become we humans as we know of today. To me, cyborgs are the next step in evolution. If we can run faster, jump higher, think quicker, and live longer we are by Darwin’s standards, evolving. That’s an interesting idea, and I felt it deserved to be written about. A decision like that would be the most morally challenging, difficult decisions to make. Are you willing to give up your past and start a new age, are you willing to leave some of yourself behind. I don’t know if I could. Even if it was just living a few extra decades, it is not what you know as natural. It’s not human.
Researching cyborgs wasn’t easy, especially because academic texts on it are limited. I tried to find a lot of medical texts and draw my research from those. We were instructed to stay away from popular media like magazines and news and stick to more “academic” sources. The problem with that is a lot of the current information on the technologies is in magazines and it’s hard to find current information in journals.
While writing I found it was hard to stick to my controlling purpose because it was so broad. Evolution is a big subject and there are a lot of issues that fall under it. I found myself focusing on the sociological side more than anything. I found that the most interesting, how people would react to a possible evolution. I thought how older generations react to modern technology and I figured something as radical as nanobots would be a hundred times more intense. My grandmother can barely use her own computer, if this revolution occurred today and everyone was asked to change, she would probably have a heart attack. What about my generation, how would we react? Would we embrace and adapt or would we finally discover a common tipping point. We are already plugged in twenty four hours a day, seven days a week. Our devices never leave us, would we really care if they were just permanently connected to our being?
I covered the medical side of cyborgs greatly as well. I felt that if I didn’t it would just be a “what if?” paper. I wanted to stress that cyborgs aren’t just a thing of fiction, they’re very real. I did want to focus on the “what if?” of future cybernetics but I felt people would take me more seriously if I made cyborgs look more believable
Tuesday, April 28, 2009
Tuesday, April 14, 2009
Assignment 8
A Not So Distant Future
“Asta La Vista Baby”
-The Terminator
If we were using free association and I asked you what comes to mind first when I said the word cyborg, what would you respond? You would probably think of popular fiction like The Terminator or I, Robot. The Oxford English Dictionary defines a cyborg as, “A person whose physical tolerances or capabilities are extended beyond normal human limitations by a machine or other external agency that modifies the body's functioning; an integrated man-machine system” (OED online). Now according to this definition, we have cyborgs walking among us today. A paraplegic with metal prosthetics could be considered a cyborg, a deaf person with cochlear implants that help him hear could be considered a cyborg, even our ex-VP Dick Cheney could be considered a cyborg with the pace maker that keeps his black heart running at a consistent pace. All these inventions do constitute a technical merging of man and machine. But what if we wanted to take that standard a bit further, what about a pace maker that not only uses the body’s natural electrical charge for power but also could adjust to the bodies environment? It would be a machine that would be totally self sufficient and also function in sync with the body as an organic component would. I believe that we are coming close to an age where that machine and many more like it are going to become very real, machines that enhance the human body to limits unimaginable by today’s standards.
Cybernetics 101
First coined by science fiction writers Manfred Clynes and Nathan Kline, the original idea was nothing but that, fiction. The 1960 article defined it as an enhanced human being capable of surviving in space and life on foreign planets without the need of a suit or earthlike conditions. Cyborgs in fictions have taken all sorts of titles. In The Terminator, human like machines are sent back in time to both kill and save John and Sarah Conner, the future saviors of the human race. In Robocop Detroit policeman Alex J. Murphey, is brutally mutilated and is brought back to life as a half man, half machine, state of the art police officer. In reality, cyborgs don’t quite resemble these examples. There are no machine gun prosthetics or computer eyes that can see in ever different light spectrum. The most advanced by today’s standards are probably the cochlear ear implants that allow the deaf to hear, “Cochlear implants bypass damaged portions of the ear and directly stimulate the auditory nerve. Signals generated by the implant are sent by way of the auditory nerve to the brain, which recognizes the signals as sound” (www.nidcd.nih.gov). Though it can’t detect a pin dropping in a loud room, this is an incredible real life example of man and machine merging to enhance human life.
So what kinds of cyborgs are there? According to Craig M. Klugman’s “From Cyborg Fiction to Medical Reality”, there are two and they are separated by the Cartesian school of thought that the mind is a separate entity from the body, “A non-Cartesian cyborg would have only parts of the body or mind replaced. Cyborg bodies, therefore, fall along a second continuum, Cartesian and non-Cartesian” (45 Klugman). Many of today’s medical wonders fall under the non-Cartesian thought of cyborgs, “Cochlear implants, eye telescopes, and dental implants transform people into transplantable bodies” (46 Klugman). Though the least likely of the cyborg examples, the theory of the “disembodied mind” is certainly the most thought provoking; a mind taken from a damaged, organic body and placed into a machine that would act as a host. Almost as if the idea came from a horror novel the idea brings forth many possible ethical and intense psychological problems. Klugman uses Damon Knight’s 1958 story “Masks” as an example:
The head of the project, Babcock, transplants Jim’s brain into a mechanical body. Although he looks human, Jim wears a metallic mask that more accurately reflects his self-image as a machine, not a human…Jim loses touch with his humanity and finds all things organic and repulsive. Disgusted by biological processes, he brutally murders a small, innocent dog. Jim desires total separation from humanity to the extent that he wants his brain placed in a bulky mechanical body designed for solo space exploration
(48 Klugman). This is one of the biggest fears that I have about a possible evolution of man and machine. What if we lose the essence that makes us human? If we lose touch with humanity we lose what makes us build and strive to do better, if we become machines that can’t better themselves then what the point of evolving?
“Asta La Vista Baby”
-The Terminator
If we were using free association and I asked you what comes to mind first when I said the word cyborg, what would you respond? You would probably think of popular fiction like The Terminator or I, Robot. The Oxford English Dictionary defines a cyborg as, “A person whose physical tolerances or capabilities are extended beyond normal human limitations by a machine or other external agency that modifies the body's functioning; an integrated man-machine system” (OED online). Now according to this definition, we have cyborgs walking among us today. A paraplegic with metal prosthetics could be considered a cyborg, a deaf person with cochlear implants that help him hear could be considered a cyborg, even our ex-VP Dick Cheney could be considered a cyborg with the pace maker that keeps his black heart running at a consistent pace. All these inventions do constitute a technical merging of man and machine. But what if we wanted to take that standard a bit further, what about a pace maker that not only uses the body’s natural electrical charge for power but also could adjust to the bodies environment? It would be a machine that would be totally self sufficient and also function in sync with the body as an organic component would. I believe that we are coming close to an age where that machine and many more like it are going to become very real, machines that enhance the human body to limits unimaginable by today’s standards.
Cybernetics 101
First coined by science fiction writers Manfred Clynes and Nathan Kline, the original idea was nothing but that, fiction. The 1960 article defined it as an enhanced human being capable of surviving in space and life on foreign planets without the need of a suit or earthlike conditions. Cyborgs in fictions have taken all sorts of titles. In The Terminator, human like machines are sent back in time to both kill and save John and Sarah Conner, the future saviors of the human race. In Robocop Detroit policeman Alex J. Murphey, is brutally mutilated and is brought back to life as a half man, half machine, state of the art police officer. In reality, cyborgs don’t quite resemble these examples. There are no machine gun prosthetics or computer eyes that can see in ever different light spectrum. The most advanced by today’s standards are probably the cochlear ear implants that allow the deaf to hear, “Cochlear implants bypass damaged portions of the ear and directly stimulate the auditory nerve. Signals generated by the implant are sent by way of the auditory nerve to the brain, which recognizes the signals as sound” (www.nidcd.nih.gov). Though it can’t detect a pin dropping in a loud room, this is an incredible real life example of man and machine merging to enhance human life.
So what kinds of cyborgs are there? According to Craig M. Klugman’s “From Cyborg Fiction to Medical Reality”, there are two and they are separated by the Cartesian school of thought that the mind is a separate entity from the body, “A non-Cartesian cyborg would have only parts of the body or mind replaced. Cyborg bodies, therefore, fall along a second continuum, Cartesian and non-Cartesian” (45 Klugman). Many of today’s medical wonders fall under the non-Cartesian thought of cyborgs, “Cochlear implants, eye telescopes, and dental implants transform people into transplantable bodies” (46 Klugman). Though the least likely of the cyborg examples, the theory of the “disembodied mind” is certainly the most thought provoking; a mind taken from a damaged, organic body and placed into a machine that would act as a host. Almost as if the idea came from a horror novel the idea brings forth many possible ethical and intense psychological problems. Klugman uses Damon Knight’s 1958 story “Masks” as an example:
The head of the project, Babcock, transplants Jim’s brain into a mechanical body. Although he looks human, Jim wears a metallic mask that more accurately reflects his self-image as a machine, not a human…Jim loses touch with his humanity and finds all things organic and repulsive. Disgusted by biological processes, he brutally murders a small, innocent dog. Jim desires total separation from humanity to the extent that he wants his brain placed in a bulky mechanical body designed for solo space exploration
(48 Klugman). This is one of the biggest fears that I have about a possible evolution of man and machine. What if we lose the essence that makes us human? If we lose touch with humanity we lose what makes us build and strive to do better, if we become machines that can’t better themselves then what the point of evolving?
Tuesday, April 7, 2009
Blog #9
Annotated Bibliography
Levy, David. Love and Sex with Robots. New York: HarperCollins, 2007.
As an internationally known artificial intelligence expert and the International computer games association, David Levy seems to represent…something not offensive. Stereotypically, his audience is not widely known for their social skills. As his subject involves future intercourse with robots, this stereotype may hold true. Levy graduated from Acadia University in 1972 and received his masters in English from Queens University in 1979. The author’s audience is targeted at anyone who has an interest in technology in general, or specifically robots. The demand of Levy audience is the curiosity in just how far technology can go. Author David Levy is primarily trying to address the things that technology bring us to today, showing how absurd the new ideas that people create are. A main argument that Levy makes is that what we may have imagined never happening, could happen a lot sooner than we think, or could already be happening right before our eyes. For example in briefly describing what the book is about, Levy states: “Love, marriage, and sex with robots? Not in a million years? Maybe a whole lot sooner.”
Just the term, “Robot-human sexual intercourse” is a controversial issue. It’s no question sex in society has been a constantly changing argument, for centuries views have differed and changed by public opinion. But even in today’s society where sex seems to be a little less taboo, (even if no one wants to admit it but advertisements can publicly resemble at pin up poster) it’s unclear how people will react to sexual relations with inanimate objects. Considering the openness of the subject, it’s hard to tell if the author is “cropping out” certain topics. It’s possible that these robots might turn on their masters or become some sort of undercover devices for the government. A threat to privacy could be eminent, but that’s the risk you run with dating a computer. The idea of being able to have a real relationship with a robot in and of itself, is interesting; thinking that someone can have real feelings for an object hardly considered anything but programmed. I think Levy’s main purpose in talking about this issue, is to make us aware of how technology is literally changing the world. This source could prove as very useful in terms of our final research papers, because it not only helps us to see the different affects technology has on us in just this aspect, but it opened our eyes showing us that it can relate to more topics than just our own.
Klugman, Craig M. "From Cyborg Fiction to Medical Reality." Literature and Medicine 20 (2001): 39-54.
With masters in both anthropology and bioethics, Craig Klugman has the credentials to back his essay on the future for cybernetic medicine. Obviously, he has no education in the technical aspect of cybernetics but he does have education in both history and medical ethics, which make him a good foreteller of the coming changes in science. He acts as almost a third party to the human race, narrating the current changes happing in our society. His narration feels like an address to everyone, a simple enlightening into the not so distant future. He analyzes the possibilities of different cyborg combinations in literature and reality and their various outcomes. Using both negative and positive examples, Klugman acts as a fair bioethicist showing the different faces of medical experimention. He writes mainly on the relationship of cybernetics and medicine, which is understandable because that’s what he essay is on. He doesn’t try to comment much about the possible social effects of cybernetics relating to crime and justice but rather on the psychological effects on the social surrounding the physical changes.
Geertsema, Henk G. "Cyborg: Myth or Reality?." Zygon: Journal of Religion & Science 41.2 (June 2006): 289-328
As a professor of Reformational Philosophy at the universities of Utrecht and Groningen and of the Dooyeweerd-chair at the Vrije Universiteit in Amsterdam, Henk Geertsema still teaches for the English master programme Christian Studies of Science and Society. As a professor of philosophy, it’s fitting that Geertsema writes about the thought that humans and machines are separate and cyborgs are the future. He suggests that we are already integrated with machines in both physical and mental levels.
Through my sources I've learned about factors I didn't foresee when I started this project. Most are from fiction but still hold a small amount of fear in my mind. Factors like a disconnect from the human world were things I didn't think about. I have seen a lot of the same sources used by my sources, gives me more to look up for paper. Most of the root sources are older, which find interesting. Sources like Rene Descartes, whose over 400 years old. The fact that the thought has gone back that far is something to write about.
Levy, David. Love and Sex with Robots. New York: HarperCollins, 2007.
As an internationally known artificial intelligence expert and the International computer games association, David Levy seems to represent…something not offensive. Stereotypically, his audience is not widely known for their social skills. As his subject involves future intercourse with robots, this stereotype may hold true. Levy graduated from Acadia University in 1972 and received his masters in English from Queens University in 1979. The author’s audience is targeted at anyone who has an interest in technology in general, or specifically robots. The demand of Levy audience is the curiosity in just how far technology can go. Author David Levy is primarily trying to address the things that technology bring us to today, showing how absurd the new ideas that people create are. A main argument that Levy makes is that what we may have imagined never happening, could happen a lot sooner than we think, or could already be happening right before our eyes. For example in briefly describing what the book is about, Levy states: “Love, marriage, and sex with robots? Not in a million years? Maybe a whole lot sooner.”
Just the term, “Robot-human sexual intercourse” is a controversial issue. It’s no question sex in society has been a constantly changing argument, for centuries views have differed and changed by public opinion. But even in today’s society where sex seems to be a little less taboo, (even if no one wants to admit it but advertisements can publicly resemble at pin up poster) it’s unclear how people will react to sexual relations with inanimate objects. Considering the openness of the subject, it’s hard to tell if the author is “cropping out” certain topics. It’s possible that these robots might turn on their masters or become some sort of undercover devices for the government. A threat to privacy could be eminent, but that’s the risk you run with dating a computer. The idea of being able to have a real relationship with a robot in and of itself, is interesting; thinking that someone can have real feelings for an object hardly considered anything but programmed. I think Levy’s main purpose in talking about this issue, is to make us aware of how technology is literally changing the world. This source could prove as very useful in terms of our final research papers, because it not only helps us to see the different affects technology has on us in just this aspect, but it opened our eyes showing us that it can relate to more topics than just our own.
Klugman, Craig M. "From Cyborg Fiction to Medical Reality." Literature and Medicine 20 (2001): 39-54.
With masters in both anthropology and bioethics, Craig Klugman has the credentials to back his essay on the future for cybernetic medicine. Obviously, he has no education in the technical aspect of cybernetics but he does have education in both history and medical ethics, which make him a good foreteller of the coming changes in science. He acts as almost a third party to the human race, narrating the current changes happing in our society. His narration feels like an address to everyone, a simple enlightening into the not so distant future. He analyzes the possibilities of different cyborg combinations in literature and reality and their various outcomes. Using both negative and positive examples, Klugman acts as a fair bioethicist showing the different faces of medical experimention. He writes mainly on the relationship of cybernetics and medicine, which is understandable because that’s what he essay is on. He doesn’t try to comment much about the possible social effects of cybernetics relating to crime and justice but rather on the psychological effects on the social surrounding the physical changes.
Geertsema, Henk G. "Cyborg: Myth or Reality?." Zygon: Journal of Religion & Science 41.2 (June 2006): 289-328
As a professor of Reformational Philosophy at the universities of Utrecht and Groningen and of the Dooyeweerd-chair at the Vrije Universiteit in Amsterdam, Henk Geertsema still teaches for the English master programme Christian Studies of Science and Society. As a professor of philosophy, it’s fitting that Geertsema writes about the thought that humans and machines are separate and cyborgs are the future. He suggests that we are already integrated with machines in both physical and mental levels.
Through my sources I've learned about factors I didn't foresee when I started this project. Most are from fiction but still hold a small amount of fear in my mind. Factors like a disconnect from the human world were things I didn't think about. I have seen a lot of the same sources used by my sources, gives me more to look up for paper. Most of the root sources are older, which find interesting. Sources like Rene Descartes, whose over 400 years old. The fact that the thought has gone back that far is something to write about.
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