Transhumanism and Transcendence

Download Transhumanism and Transcendence PDF Online Free

Author :
Publisher : Georgetown University Press
ISBN 13 : 1589017943
Total Pages : 229 pages
Book Rating : 4.5/5 (89 download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!


Book Synopsis Transhumanism and Transcendence by : Ronald Cole-Turner

Download or read book Transhumanism and Transcendence written by Ronald Cole-Turner and published by Georgetown University Press. This book was released on 2011-09-29 with total page 229 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The timeless human desire to be more beautiful, intelligent, healthy, athletic, or young has given rise in our time to technologies of human enhancement. Athletes use drugs to increase their strength or stamina; cosmetic surgery is widely used to improve physical appearance; millions of men take drugs like Viagra to enhance sexual performance. And today researchers are exploring technologies such as cell regeneration and implantable devices that interact directly with the brain. Some condemn these developments as a new kind of cheating—not just in sports but in life itself—promising rewards without effort and depriving us most of all of what it means to be authentic human beings. “Transhumanists,” on the other hand, reject what they see as a rationalizing of human limits, as if being human means being content forever with underachieving bodies and brains. To be human, they insist, is to be restless with possibilities, always eager to transcend biological limits. As the debate grows in urgency, how should theology respond? Christian theologians recognize truth on both sides of the argument, pointing out how the yearnings of the transhumanists—if not their technological methods—find deep affinities in Christian belief. In this volume, Ronald Cole-Turner has joined seasoned scholars and younger, emerging voices together to bring fresh insight into the technologies that are already reshaping the future of Christian life and hope.

Transhumanism and Transcendence

Download Transhumanism and Transcendence PDF Online Free

Author :
Publisher : Georgetown University Press
ISBN 13 : 9781589017801
Total Pages : 232 pages
Book Rating : 4.0/5 (178 download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!


Book Synopsis Transhumanism and Transcendence by : Ronald Cole-Turner

Download or read book Transhumanism and Transcendence written by Ronald Cole-Turner and published by Georgetown University Press. This book was released on 2011-09-30 with total page 232 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The timeless human desire to be more beautiful, intelligent, healthy, athletic, or young has given rise in our time to technologies of human enhancement. Athletes use drugs to increase their strength or stamina; cosmetic surgery is widely used to improve physical appearance; millions of men take drugs like Viagra to enhance sexual performance. And today researchers are exploring technologies such as cell regeneration and implantable devices that interact directly with the brain. Some condemn these developments as a new kind of cheating -- not just in sports but in life itself -- promising rewards without effort and depriving us most of all of what it means to be authentic human beings. "Transhumanists," on the other hand, reject what they see as a rationalizing of human limits, as if being human means being content forever with underachieving bodies and brains. To be human, they insist, is to be restless with possibilities, always eager to transcend biological limits. As the debate grows in urgency, how should theology respond? Christian theologians recognize truth on both sides of the argument, pointing out how the yearnings of the transhumanists -- if not their technological methods -- find deep affinities in Christian belief. In this volume, Ronald Cole-Turner has joined seasoned scholars and younger, emerging voices together to bring fresh insight into the technologies that are already reshaping the future of Christian life and hope.

Transcendence

Download Transcendence PDF Online Free

Author :
Publisher : Disinformation Books
ISBN 13 : 9781938875090
Total Pages : 0 pages
Book Rating : 4.8/5 (75 download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!


Book Synopsis Transcendence by : R. U. Sirius

Download or read book Transcendence written by R. U. Sirius and published by Disinformation Books. This book was released on 2015 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Transhumanism is an international movement that advocates the use of science and technology to overcome the "natural" limitations experienced by humanity through such developments as: the Singularity--the creation of machine intelligences that exceed the capacities of our biological brains the ability to replicate individual minds and put them into solidstate bodies or virtual environments individual control over mental and emotional states for enhancing functionalities and/or ecstasies Some of this is happening now. Some of it is still in the minds of dreamers. In nearly ninety AZ entries, Transcendence provides a multilayered look at the accelerating advances in artificial intelligence, cognitive science, genomics, information technology, nanotechnology, neuroscience, space exploration, synthetic biology, robotics, and virtual worlds that are making transhumanism a reality. Entries range from Cloning and Cyborg Feminism to Designer Babies and MemoryEditing Drugs. In addition, the book notes historical predecessors and personalities, both in mythology and history--ranging from Timothy Leary to Michael Jackson to Ray Kurzweil. It also introduces the culture around Transhumanism, covering all the geeky obsessions of the Transhumanist movement.

Posthuman Bliss?

Download Posthuman Bliss? PDF Online Free

Author :
Publisher : Oxford University Press
ISBN 13 : 0190051515
Total Pages : 371 pages
Book Rating : 4.1/5 (9 download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!


Book Synopsis Posthuman Bliss? by : Susan B. Levin

Download or read book Posthuman Bliss? written by Susan B. Levin and published by Oxford University Press. This book was released on 2020-12-03 with total page 371 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A tightly argued and expansive examination of the pitfalls of transhumanism that reacquaints us with what it means to live well. Advocates of transhumanism, or "radical" enhancement, urge us to pursue the biotechnological heightening of select capacities -- above all, cognitive ability -- so far beyond any human limit that the beings with those capacities would exist on a higher ontological plane. For proponents of such views, humanity's self-transcendence through advancements in science and technology may even be morally required. Consequently, the human stakes of how we respond to transhumanism are immeasurably high. In Posthuman Bliss? The Failed Promise of Transhumanism, Susan B. Levin challenges transhumanists' overarching commitments regarding the mind and brain, ethics, liberal democracy, knowledge, and reality, showing their notion of humanity's self-transcendence into "posthumanity" to be little more than fantasy. Uniting philosophical with scientific arguments, Levin mounts a significant challenge to transhumanists' claim that science and technology support their vision of posthumanity. In a clear and engaging style, she dismantles transhumanists' breezy assurances that posthumans will emerge if we but allocate sufficient resources to that end. Far from offering theoretical and practical "proof of concept" for the vision that they urge upon us, Levin argues, transhumanists engage inadequately with cognitive psychology, biology, and neuroscience, often relying on questionable or outdated views within those fields. Having shown in depth why transhumanism should be rejected, Levin argues forcefully for a holistic perspective on living well that is rooted in Aristotle's virtue ethics but that is adapted to liberal democracy. This holism is thoroughly human, in the best of senses: It directs us to consider worthy ends for us as human beings and to do the irreplaceable work of understanding ourselves rather than relying on technology and science to be our salvation.

Transhumanism and the Image of God

Download Transhumanism and the Image of God PDF Online Free

Author :
Publisher : InterVarsity Press
ISBN 13 : 0830865780
Total Pages : 198 pages
Book Rating : 4.8/5 (38 download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!


Book Synopsis Transhumanism and the Image of God by : Jacob Shatzer

Download or read book Transhumanism and the Image of God written by Jacob Shatzer and published by InterVarsity Press. This book was released on 2019-04-09 with total page 198 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: We're constantly invited to think about the future of technology as a progressive improvement of tools: our gadgets will continue to evolve, but we humans will stay basically the same. In the future, perhaps even alien species and intelligent robots will coexist alongside humans, who will grapple with challenges and emerge as the heroes. But the truth is that radical technological change has the power to radically shape humans as well. We must be well informed and thoughtful about the steps we're already taking toward a transhuman or even posthuman future. Can we find firm footing on a slippery slope? Biblical ethicist Jacob Shatzer guides us into careful consideration of the future of Christian discipleship in a disruptive technological environment. In Transhumanism and the Image of God, Shatzer explains the development and influence of the transhumanist movement, which promotes a "next stage" in human evolution. Exploring topics such as artificial intelligence, robotics, medical technology, and communications tools, he examines how everyday technological changes have already altered and continue to change the way we think, relate, and understand reality. By unpacking the doctrine of the incarnation and its implications for human identity, he helps us better understand the proper place of technology in the life of the disciple and avoid false promises of a posthumanist vision. We cannot think about technology use today without considering who we will become tomorrow.

Soft Machines

Download Soft Machines PDF Online Free

Author :
Publisher : OUP Oxford
ISBN 13 : 0191567248
Total Pages : 240 pages
Book Rating : 4.1/5 (915 download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!


Book Synopsis Soft Machines by : Richard A. L. Jones

Download or read book Soft Machines written by Richard A. L. Jones and published by OUP Oxford. This book was released on 2004-08-26 with total page 240 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Enthusiasts look forward to a time when tiny machines reassemble matter and process information with unparalleled power and precision. But is their vision realistic? Where is the science heading? As nanotechnology (a new technology that many believe will transform society in the next one hundred years) rises higher in the news agenda and popular consciousness, there is a real need for a book which discusses clearly the science on which this technology will be based. Whilst it is most easy to simply imagine these tiny machines as scaled-down versions of the macroscopic machines we are all familiar with, the way things behave on small scales is quite different to the way they behave on large scales. Engineering on the nanoscale will use very different principles to those we are used to in our everyday lives, and the materials used in nanotehnology will be soft and mutable, rather than hard and unyielding. "Soft Machines" explains in a lively and very accessible manner why the nanoworld is so different to the macro-world which we are all familiar with. Why does nature engineer things in the way it does, and how can we learn to use these unfamiliar principles to create valuable new materials and artefacts which will have a profound effect on medicine, electronics, energy and the environment in the twenty-first century. With a firmer understanding of the likely relationship between nanotechnology and nature itself, we can gain a much clearer notion of what dangers this powerful technology may potentially pose, as well as come to realise that nanotechnology will have more in common with biology than with conventional engineering.

Transcend the Flesh

Download Transcend the Flesh PDF Online Free

Author :
Publisher : Tobiasz Mazan
ISBN 13 :
Total Pages : 31 pages
Book Rating : 4./5 ( download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!


Book Synopsis Transcend the Flesh by : Tobiasz Mazan

Download or read book Transcend the Flesh written by Tobiasz Mazan and published by Tobiasz Mazan. This book was released on 2015-04-17 with total page 31 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Do you want to live forever? End all suffering? Transcend bodily fluids and reach the stars? Sure. But you may pay for it with your soul.

Visions of Technological Transcendence

Download Visions of Technological Transcendence PDF Online Free

Author :
Publisher : Parlor Press LLC
ISBN 13 : 160235877X
Total Pages : 241 pages
Book Rating : 4.6/5 (23 download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!


Book Synopsis Visions of Technological Transcendence by : James A. Herrick

Download or read book Visions of Technological Transcendence written by James A. Herrick and published by Parlor Press LLC. This book was released on 2017-03-03 with total page 241 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book examines key narratives animating the techno-progressive rhetoric of the human enhancement movement, arguing that enhancement and transhumanist discourse performs a variety of distinctly mythic functions. Principal among these is to cast a vision of a technological future involving enhanced posthumans, immortality, human merger with machines and space colonization.

Transhumanism Transcendence

Download Transhumanism Transcendence PDF Online Free

Author :
Publisher : Bookbaby
ISBN 13 :
Total Pages : 0 pages
Book Rating : 4.3/5 (59 download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!


Book Synopsis Transhumanism Transcendence by : Julio Castro Jr

Download or read book Transhumanism Transcendence written by Julio Castro Jr and published by Bookbaby. This book was released on 2023-08-26 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book Surfaces Information that is Very Real, Relevant, and Recent. There are 17 Sustainable Development Goals that need to be achieved by all nations by 2030 that that impact Every One of our lives as Human Beings on this Earth. The Polarity shift is happening where you are either One-With-Nature or Apart from it. George Bush Sr. said in 1991 that "We need a New World Order where the Rule of Law (not the Law of the Jungle) Governs the Conduct of Nations in which a credible United Nations could use its peacekeeping role to fulfill fhe promise and vision of the U.N.'s founders." -This might sound nice to an optimist but connecting the world through digital citizenship is actually the opposite of connecting with Mother Nature aka The Jungle.

Transhumanism

Download Transhumanism PDF Online Free

Author :
Publisher : David Livingstone
ISBN 13 : 1515232573
Total Pages : 404 pages
Book Rating : 4.5/5 (152 download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!


Book Synopsis Transhumanism by : David Livingstone

Download or read book Transhumanism written by David Livingstone and published by David Livingstone. This book was released on 2015-09-02 with total page 404 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Transhumanism is a recent movement that extols man’s right to shape his own evolution, by maximizing the use of scientific technologies, to enhance human physical and intellectual potential. While the name is new, the idea has long been a popular theme of science fiction, featured in such films as 2001: A Space Odyssey, Blade Runner, the Terminator series, and more recently, The Matrix, Limitless, Her and Transcendence. However, as its adherents hint at in their own publications, transhumanism is an occult project, rooted in Rosicrucianism and Freemasonry, and derived from the Kabbalah, which asserts that humanity is evolving intellectually, towards a point in time when man will become God. Modeled on the medieval legend of the Golem and Frankenstein, they believe man will be able to create life itself, in the form of living machines, or artificial intelligence. Spearheaded by the Cybernetics Group, the project resulted in both the development of the modern computer and MK-Ultra, the CIA’s “mind-control” program. MK-Ultra promoted the “mind-expanding” potential of psychedelic drugs, to shape the counterculture of the 1960s, based on the notion that the shamans of ancient times used psychoactive substances, equated with the “apple” of the Tree of Knowledge. And, as revealed in the movie Lucy, through the use of “smart drugs,” and what transhumanists call “mind uploading,” man will be able to merge with the Internet, which is envisioned as the end-point of Kabbalistic evolution, the formation of a collective consciousness, or Global Brain. That awaited moment is what Ray Kurzweil, a director of engineering at Google, refers to as The Singularly. By accumulating the total of human knowledge, and providing access to every aspect of human activity, the Internet will supposedly achieve omniscience, becoming the “God” of occultism, or the Masonic All-Seeing Eye of the reverse side of the American dollar bill.

Black Bodies and Transhuman Realities

Download Black Bodies and Transhuman Realities PDF Online Free

Author :
Publisher : Rowman & Littlefield
ISBN 13 : 1498583814
Total Pages : 236 pages
Book Rating : 4.4/5 (985 download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!


Book Synopsis Black Bodies and Transhuman Realities by : Melvin G. Hill

Download or read book Black Bodies and Transhuman Realities written by Melvin G. Hill and published by Rowman & Littlefield. This book was released on 2019-08-02 with total page 236 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This collection explores the Black body in the context of transhuman realities from a variety of literary and artistic perspectives. Contributing to broader thought about Black transcendence of subjectivity in a posthuman framework, the chapters explore interpretations of the “old” and visions of the “new” human.

Christian Perspectives on Transhumanism and the Church

Download Christian Perspectives on Transhumanism and the Church PDF Online Free

Author :
Publisher : Springer
ISBN 13 : 3319903233
Total Pages : 271 pages
Book Rating : 4.3/5 (199 download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!


Book Synopsis Christian Perspectives on Transhumanism and the Church by : Steve Donaldson

Download or read book Christian Perspectives on Transhumanism and the Church written by Steve Donaldson and published by Springer. This book was released on 2018-08-02 with total page 271 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Christians have always been concerned with enhancement—now they are faced with significant questions about how technology can help or harm genuine spiritual transformation. What makes traditional and technological enhancement different from each other? Are there theological insights and spiritual practices that can help Christians face the challenge of living in a technological world without being dangerously conformed to its values? This book calls on Christians to understand and engage the deep issues facing the church in a technological, transhumanist future.

Human Purpose and Transhuman Potential

Download Human Purpose and Transhuman Potential PDF Online Free

Author :
Publisher : Red Wheel/Weiser
ISBN 13 : 1579830234
Total Pages : 422 pages
Book Rating : 4.5/5 (798 download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!


Book Synopsis Human Purpose and Transhuman Potential by : Ted Chu

Download or read book Human Purpose and Transhuman Potential written by Ted Chu and published by Red Wheel/Weiser. This book was released on 2014-03-01 with total page 422 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: For millennia, great thinkers have contemplated the meaning and purpose of human existence; but while most assumed that humanity was the end point of creation or the pinnacle of evolution, Ted Chu makes the provocative claim that the human race may in fact be a means rather than an end—that humankind will give rise to evolutionary successors. In this wide-ranging and authoritative work, Chu reexamines the question of human purpose in light of the extraordinary developments of science and technology. Arguing that a deep understanding of our place in the universe is required to navigate the magnitude of the choices that lie ahead, he surveys human wisdom from both East and West, traces the evolutionary trajectory that has led to this point, and explores the potentials emerging on the scientific frontier. The book addresses the legitimate fears and concerns of “playing God” but embraces the possibility of transcending biological forms and becoming or creating entirely new life-forms.

To Be a Machine

Download To Be a Machine PDF Online Free

Author :
Publisher : Anchor
ISBN 13 : 110191159X
Total Pages : 258 pages
Book Rating : 4.1/5 (19 download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!


Book Synopsis To Be a Machine by : Mark O'Connell

Download or read book To Be a Machine written by Mark O'Connell and published by Anchor. This book was released on 2018-01-16 with total page 258 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: “This gonzo-journalistic exploration of the Silicon Valley techno-utopians’ pursuit of escaping mortality is a breezy romp full of colorful characters.” —New York Times Book Review (editor's choice) Transhumanism is a movement pushing the limits of our biology—of our senses, intelligence, and lifespans—with technology. Its supporters have reached a critical mass and now include some of the biggest names in Silicon Valley and beyond, among them Peter Thiel, Elon Musk, and Ray Kurzweil. In this provocative and eye-opening account, journalist Mark O’Connell explores the staggering (and terrifying) possibilities that present themselves when you think of your body as an outmoded device. He visits the world’s foremost cryonics facility to witness how some have chosen to forestall death, discovers an underground collective of biohackers boosting their senses by implanting electronics under their skin, and meets with members of a team urgently investigating how to protect mankind from rogue artificial superintelligence. In investigating what it means to be a machine, O’Connell shines a light on our ancient desire to transcend the animal condition—and offers a surprising meditation on what it means to be human.

The Singularity Is Near

Download The Singularity Is Near PDF Online Free

Author :
Publisher : Penguin
ISBN 13 : 1101218886
Total Pages : 672 pages
Book Rating : 4.1/5 (12 download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!


Book Synopsis The Singularity Is Near by : Ray Kurzweil

Download or read book The Singularity Is Near written by Ray Kurzweil and published by Penguin. This book was released on 2005-09-22 with total page 672 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: “Startling in scope and bravado.” —Janet Maslin, The New York Times “Artfully envisions a breathtakingly better world.” —Los Angeles Times “Elaborate, smart and persuasive.” —The Boston Globe “A pleasure to read.” —The Wall Street Journal One of CBS News’s Best Fall Books of 2005 • Among St Louis Post-Dispatch’s Best Nonfiction Books of 2005 • One of Amazon.com’s Best Science Books of 2005 A radical and optimistic view of the future course of human development from the bestselling author of How to Create a Mind and The Singularity is Nearer who Bill Gates calls “the best person I know at predicting the future of artificial intelligence” For over three decades, Ray Kurzweil has been one of the most respected and provocative advocates of the role of technology in our future. In his classic The Age of Spiritual Machines, he argued that computers would soon rival the full range of human intelligence at its best. Now he examines the next step in this inexorable evolutionary process: the union of human and machine, in which the knowledge and skills embedded in our brains will be combined with the vastly greater capacity, speed, and knowledge-sharing ability of our creations.

Religion and Transhumanism

Download Religion and Transhumanism PDF Online Free

Author :
Publisher : Bloomsbury Publishing USA
ISBN 13 :
Total Pages : 632 pages
Book Rating : 4.2/5 (161 download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!


Book Synopsis Religion and Transhumanism by : Calvin Mercer

Download or read book Religion and Transhumanism written by Calvin Mercer and published by Bloomsbury Publishing USA. This book was released on 2014-11-17 with total page 632 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Should technology be used to improve human faculties such as cognition and longevity? This thought-provoking dialogue between "transhumanism" and religion examines enhancement technologies that could radically alter the human species. "Transhumanism" or "human enhancement" is an intellectual and cultural movement that advocates the use of emerging technologies to change human traits. Although they may sound like science fiction, the possibilities suggested by transhumanism are very real, and the questions they raise have no easy answers. If these enhancements—especially major ones like the indefinite extension of healthy human life—become widely available, they would arguably have a more radical impact on humankind than any other development in history. This book comprises essays that explore transhumanism and the issues that surround it, addressing numerous fascinating questions posed by scholars of religion from various traditions. How will "immortality" or extreme longevity change our religious beliefs and practices? How might pharmaceuticals enhance spiritual experiences? Will "post-human" technologies be available to all persons, or will a superior "post-human race" arise to dominate the human species? The discussions are as intriguing as the future they suggest.

Religion and Human Enhancement

Download Religion and Human Enhancement PDF Online Free

Author :
Publisher : Springer
ISBN 13 : 3319624881
Total Pages : 377 pages
Book Rating : 4.3/5 (196 download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!


Book Synopsis Religion and Human Enhancement by : Tracy J. Trothen

Download or read book Religion and Human Enhancement written by Tracy J. Trothen and published by Springer. This book was released on 2017-09-17 with total page 377 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This collection vigorously addresses the religious implications of extreme human enhancement technology. Topics covered include cutting edge themes, such as moral enhancement, common ground to both transhumanism and religion, the meaning of death, desire and transcendence, and virtue ethics. Radical enhancement programs, advocated by transhumanists, could arguably have a more profound impact than any other development in human history. Reflecting a range of opinion about the desirability of extreme enhancement, leading scholars in the field join with emerging scholars to foster enhanced conversation on these topics.