Some talk about what might be called “humanity plus” – people who are still recognizably human, but much smarter, stronger and healthier.

In the next two or three decades, people may have the option to change themselves and their children in ways that, up to now, have existed largely in the minds of science fiction writers and creators of comic book superheroes.īoth advocates for and opponents of human enhancement spin a number of possible scenarios. “We’re fast approaching the moment when humans and machines merge,” Time magazine declared in its 2011 issue.īut thanks to recent scientific developments in areas such as biotechnology, information technology and nanotechnology, humanity may be on the cusp of an enhancement revolution. Even when these interventions have tried to improve on nature – say with anabolic steroids to stimulate muscle growth or drugs such as Ritalin to sharpen focus – the results have tended to be relatively modest and incremental. Up to this point in history, however, most biomedical interventions, whether successful or not, have attempted to restore something perceived to be deficient, such as vision, hearing or mobility.

People have been trying to enhance their physical and mental capabilities for thousands of years, sometimes successfully – and sometimes with inconclusive, comic and even tragic results. Human enhancement is at least as old as human civilization.

Chip genius 2013 utility