Category Archives: Transhumanism/Singularity

Podcast #47: Technology and The Brain, with Laura Cabrera

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“The chief function of the body is to carry the brain around.”–Thomas Edison

 

Richard Dawkins might disagree with Thomas Edison.  He’d likely say the purpose of our bodies and our brains is to carry around–and perpetuate– our genes.  Increasingly, though, the purpose of body is to carry around our technology and interface it with our brains.  Wearable electronics…VR goggles…smart phones…our devices are becoming more than tools.  They are merging with our being.  Add to this the onrush of emerging BCI (brain-computer interface) technologies and one thing becomes clear.  We are becoming what we build.

The IEEE brain initiative seeks to set standards for, and explore the ethics of, many of these technologies.  Laura Cabrera is a brain researcher working with the initiative.   In this episode of Seeking Delphi™ I talk to her about many issues surrounding the accelerating use of technology to diagnose, treat, and eventually enhance, the brain.

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Click image for link

Laura Cabrera-click image for bio

 

 

 

 

 

 

Episode #47: Technology and The Brain with Laura Cabrera

YouTube Slideshow, episode #47

Neuralink

Smartdust

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After Shock, Podcast #12 redux: Artificial Emotional Intelligence with Richard Yonck

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“Your intellect may be confused, but your emotions will never lie to you.”–Roger Ebert

The upcoming volume, After Shock, features 50 of the world’s most renowned futurists reflecting on the 50-year legacy of Alvin Toffler’s Future Shock, and looking ahead to the next 50 years.  Seven of the contributors have been guests on Seeking Delphi™  This is the first in a series of repeats of these podcasts, which will lead up to panel discussion with some of the authors, on the book and the Toffler legacy.

Richard Yonck is an author and futurist based in Seattle Washington.

The day I read Futre Shock, just a couple of years after it came out, was the day that started me on the course to becoming a futurist.  Here’s what I wrote on this blog when Toffler died in July of 2016.

Links to relevant stories appear after the audio file and embedded YouTube video below.  A reminder that Seeking Delphi is available on iTunes and PlayerFM,  and has a channel on YouTube.  You can also follow us on Facebook.

 

 

 

 

Podcast #12: Artificial Emotional Intelligence

 

OrigintalYouTube slide show of episode #12

Richard Yonck’s background on Intelligent-Future.com

Heart of The Machine on Amazon and Barnes and Noble.

Ray Kurzweil’s review of Heart of The Machine in the New York Times.

News items:

Atlanta sets goal to run on 100% renewable energy by 2035.

SpaceX plans to begin launch of global network of internet providing satellites in 2019

University of Houston Master of Science in Foresight web page

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Follow me on twitter @MarkSackler

 

 

 

 

Podcast #40: Scenarios for a Post-Aging Future, with Aubrey de Grey, Elizabeth Parrish, David Wood, and Keith Comito.

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“For me, the key to longevity – and immortality, in a sense – has to do with transformation.”–Marilyn Manson

Is transformation the key to immortality?  A better question is: will radical life extension–the end of aging–in itself be transformative?  I believe the answer to that second question is a resounding yes.

In this special Seeking Delphi™ podcast, four of the world’s biggest thought leaders and advocates for ending aging discuss implications and issues involved in achieving human rejuvenation therapy, and begin the discussion of what a post-ageing world might look like.  We only scratched the very surface on the latter issues–there will be more to come on the subject.

You can subscribe to Seeking Delphi™ on Apple Podcasts, PlayerFM, MyTuner,  Listen Notes, and YouTube You can also follow us on Facebook and on twitter @Seeking_Delphi

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Episode#40–The Dawn of Superlongevity: Scenarios for a Post-Aging Future.

 

 

YouTube video of the complete unedited program

 

Panelist Biographies

Aubrey de Grey

Elizabeth Parrish

David Wood

Kieth Comito

Mark Sackler

Panelist Organizations

SENS Research Foundation

BioViva Sciences, Inc.

Life Extension Advocacy Foundation (LEAF)

London Futurists

Association of Professional Futurists.

 

 A reminder that this and all Seeking Delphi ™podcasts are available on iTunes, PlayerFM, and  YouTube.  You can also follow us on Facebook and on twitter

Podcast #38: Science Fiction, The Evolutionary Mythology of The Future, with Tom Lombardo

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“Politicians should read science fiction, not westerns and detective stories.”– Arthur C. Clarke

“I’m leaving my body to science fiction.”–Steven Wright

 

Science fiction pervades our culture.  Movies, television, books, even stage productions.  It’s rich history, and its significance in shaping our views of the future–or for that matter, inspiring us to invent the future–is the subject of this wide ranging discussion with author Tom Lombardo.   Among the subjects we cover:

  • Science Fiction as a pervasive view of the future; all aspects of human experience, not just technology and science.
  • Parallels between mythology and science fiction
  • Science Fiction as social satire and even humor (think Kurt Vonnegut and Douglas Adams, for instance).
  • The danger of Hollywood’s apocalyptic future visions becoming self-fullfilling prophecies
  • Some of the best future predictions from scifi.

You can subscribe to Seeking Delphi™ on Apple podcasts , PlayerFM, MyTuner,  Listen Notes, and YouTube

 

Tom Lombardo, click image for bio

Science Fiction, The Evolutionary Mythology of The Future. Click for Amazon link.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Episode #38, Science Fiction, The Evolutionary Mythology of The Future

YouTube slide show of episode #38

 

Center for Future Consciousness (Tom’s web site)

Books by Tom Lombardo

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News of The Future This Week: July 26, 2019

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“Shoot for the moon.  You might get there.”–Buzz Aldrin

“Shoot for the moon.  If you miss you’ll end up in the stars.”–Artie Shaw

Questions of the day: 1. Is a manned return to the moon possible by 2024?  Is a fusion-generated power plant possible by 2025?  Will cyborgs rule the world in 2100?  Answers: 1. Maybe. 2. Maybe 3. Most of us are already cyborgs.    Read on for details.

While you’re reading about all this week’s future-related  news, don’t forget that you can subscribe to Seeking Delphi™ podcasts on Apple Podcasts, PlayerFM, or YouTube (audio with slide show) and you can also follow us on Twitter and Facebook.

Moon/NASA/SpaceX–Can NASA make it back to a manned landing on the moon by their target date of 2024?  Elon Musk  wants to do them one better, claiming his SpaceX may make a cargo landing on the lunar surface by 2021 and follow that up with a manned mission in 2022.  Take that with a grain of salt,  along with all of Elon’s other projections.

–One thing NASA will likely need, if American astronauts will make it back to the moon by 2024, is an updated space suit.  The current model dates to 1977.

Sustainable energy/fusion–The world’s first fusion powered reactor cleared a key hurdle on the road to projected commercial fusion energy by 2025.  It seems as if Fusion power has been 10-20 years away for the last 40 years. We’ll see…

Image: Shutterstock

Transhumanism–British scientist James Lovelock is predicting that the world will be ruled by cyborgs in the year 2100.  Really?  The definition of cyborg, according to Dictionary.com, is a person whose physiological functioning is aided by or dependent on a mechanical or electronic device.  Based on the way most of us are welded to our smart phones, I’d say this has already happened.

Transport--Sorry Back to The Future fans, the hoverboard is still a work in progress.  Frenchman Franky Zapata failed in his attempt to fly a hoverboard of his own invention across the English Channle.  OK, who ever heard of a Frenchman named Franky? (video below)

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Artificial Intelligence–A new study commissioned by the Association for Psychological Science has some bad news for companies, big and small, that are selling A.I. that detects human intelligence.  They say it can’t be trusted.

Aging/Longevity–Nucleotide synthesis–or lack thereof–has been identified as a key factor in cellular senescence.   A study by researchers at the University of South Carolina suggest that preventing cells from losing nucleotide synthesi–which creates the building blocks of DNA–could slow the aging process.

Computing/chip technology–IEEE has issued a new roadmap for device design and manufacturing.  A varitey of technologies are discussed in the document which lays out a path to one nanometer devices by 2033.

The latest Seeking Delphi™ podcast features a conversation with Matt Ward, host of The Disruptors.

Seeking Delphi™ podcasts are available on Apple Podcasts,, PlayerFM, or YouTube (audio with slide show) and you can also follow us on Twitter and Facebook 

News of The Future This Week: July 17, 2019

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Returning after an extended summer break.

“I poured spot remover on my dog.  Now he’s gone.”–Steven Wright

Is your dog gone? Not to worry, it seems that similar technology to human facial recognition might help you find it.

While you’re reading about all this week’s future-related  news, don’t forget that you can subscribe to Seeking Delphi™ podcasts on Apple Podcasts, PlayerFM, or YouTube (audio with slide show) and you can also follow us on Twitter and Facebook.

Artificial Intelligence/Dogs–If you think being tracked by facial recognition is creepy, how do you think your dog will react to being tracked by its nose prints? A Chinese A.I. company is doing just that–for the expressed purpose of identifying lost dogs.

–If that sounds odd, a group of cognitive biologists and computer scientists wants to grant internet access to higher intelligence members of the animal kingdom like apes, elephants and dolphins.  And you thought human tweet storms were crazy?

 Transhumanism/Neuroscience–Elon Musk unveiled details of his Neurolink venture, and its plans to interlace the brain with a chip or sensors connected by hundreds of microwires.  The initial plan is to help individuals with neurological or sensory impediments;  the long range plan is…well…maybe the Matrix?  YouTube video of Musk’s presentation here.

–In a somewhat related sphere, Intel reports that its most advanced neuromorphic system now consists of 8 million neurons, and will reach 100 million by 2020.  (Compare that, though, to the 100 billion neurons in a human brain).

Space/Moon/Apollo 11–As the U.S. celebrates the 50th anniversary of the Apollo 11 moon landing, a Gallup poll shows that for the first time public opinion swings in favor of a manned mission to Mars.  In the mean time, Fast Company reminds us that the Apollo program was unpopular enough, at the time, for Eisenhower to call JFK “nuts.

—The New York Times reported over the weekend that India’s population is “pumped” in anticipation of its first unmanned lunar launch, which was scheduled for this week.   Unfortunately, technical glitches have delayed the mission until at least late July.

–In the mean time, Engadget reports that France is creating a “Space Command” to defent its satellites.  The venture will be part of the country’s air force.

Ready for prime tme? Image: Boston Dynamics

Robotics–Boston Dynamics’ robots are getting ready to leave the lab.  The Verge asks whether the world is ready.

 

Longevity Extension–While telomeres and telomerase may not turn out to be the holy grail of aging, they certainly have their role in the diseases of aging.  Dr. Maria Blasco, one of the presenters at the second annual Ending Age-Related Diseases conference held July 11 and 12 in New York, is seen below in an impromptu news conference, talking about some of her work.

(Video credit: Mark Sackler for Seeking Delphi™)

Coming soon to the Seeking Delphi™ podcast, Matt Ward on disruptors.

 

Seeking Delphi™ podcasts are available on Apple Podcasts,, PlayerFM, or YouTube (audio with slide show) and you can also follow us on Twitter and Facebook