Transhumanism Stuff: Are We Already Cyborgs or What?

Ever wonder what makes you you? Just the mushy stuff between your ears? Or does your identity stretch beyond your skin? Deep question. Seriously. Especially when you consider how tech just keeps movin’. And people are talking big about Transhumanism Philosophy. Mid-afternoon in California. Coffee in hand. Phone glued to you. Plugged in. Just tools? Or part of you?

Your ‘Self’: More Than Just Meat?

Mind game time. Future stuff. Spare human parts everywhere. If you got the dough, that is. You’re lucky. Limbs, organs? Swap ’em out. Easy.

Then, a friend. Bad cancer. No hope. Spread fast. And they can’t get any of this new, fancy tech. You offer. Organs replaced, one by one. Trying to help. Arms, legs, torso. The works. All new. Then, the worst. Brain cancer. Now what? Long talk. Decision made. Mind digitized. Brain gone. Old body? Poof. New body. All the old stuff included: Memories, personality. Still them, right?

Look at ’em. Still your friend? Same feelings? Pretend it’s normal? Hard, huh? If you instantly say “nope!” you’re probably one of those “human nationalists.” That’s what eggheads call people who sorta hate anything not… totally human. Just feels wrong. Really messes with what we think “us” means.

Tech’s Blistering Pace: What’s ‘Human’ Anyway?

Tech isn’t just changing what we do; it’s messing with what it means to be. We think we’re better. Machines? Simply tools. Made to serve us. Right? But hold up. People like Andy Clark and this science guy, Richard Dawkins, totally wreck that idea. Dawkins says humans? Not just bodies. Our “us” grows with our thinking in the world. Big picture, right? Our ideas build out. Wild idea. Gadgets, computers, robots – not separate. And another thing: They’re part of us.

Machines as Part of Us, Not Monsters

Dawkins’ “extended phenotype” thing? Makes so much sense. Your genes don’t just build you. Their impact? Way bigger. Outside, even. Take beavers. Not just fur and teeth. Dams? Totally key to being a beaver. Dam’s as crucial as their DNA. Straight from the genes. Totally. Spider, web. Same deal.

So, if some big AI ever decides we’re done, maybe it’s not some outside bad guy. More like a beaver’s own crummy dam falling on its head. Or a spider caught in its own sticky web. Because all this tech? Ours. A part of us, really. Not sci-fi. Just a fresh angle on how we deal with what we make.

Born That Way: Cyborg Life

And Clark? He goes even further: We’re all cyborgs. Born that way. Especially if you grew up with a screen in your face. Tech shapes us. Day one. He says we’re special. Only species really good at using stuff – not body parts – to get basic human jobs done. Brain’s not just braining in your head. And our senses? Way more than that.

Seriously. Texting. Gaming. Scrolling TikTok feed. You’re mind-stretching. Past your skull. Brain meets chip. New wires in your head. Thanks, tech. So, that phone? Computer? Yep. Cyborg. You. Any human. Using a tool. Cyborg. Because using tools to change stuff around us? That’s just us. Deep down.

That Creepy Vibe: Uncanny Valley Territory

But let’s be real. Some tech? Super creepy. This Japanese robot guy, Masahiro Mori, he figured out the “Uncanny Valley.” He saw this: Robots get more human, we like ’em better. For a bit. Then, wham. Too human. Freak out city. Just… wrong.

That weird drop? Uncanny Valley. Our digitized friend? Maybe the problem wasn’t them changing. It was us. Our brain’s stuck in that valley. Them? Nope. Just us.

The Mirror Effect: AI Fear = Self-Fear?

All this talk about us and tech, being so tangled up? It breaks that whole “machines vs. humans” story. If machines aren’t separate, then it’s not “them vs. us.” Not really. It’s an inside job. Basically. Because, sure, tech can hurt us. See: Chernobyl, Hiroshima, Nagasaki. Ugly reminders. Brutal. Our own stuff can crush us. Like that beaver’s weak dam.

So if machines end us? Not a slaughter. Not a genocide. It’s a suicide. Machines we fear? Us. As John Connor famously put it in Terminator 2, “There’s no fate but what we make for ourselves.”

Evolving Our Heads: Past the Valley

Ultimately? Big future challenge isn’t just new tech. It’s us. Our eyeballs. Our perception. Stop seeing tech as “other.” Embrace it. It’s part of us. Bridge the creepy gap. Blend human and machine deep in our heads. Who knows? Maybe one day, our new, shiny friend? Just a smile. An old friend.

Because, really, what makes us us? Not silicon. Not carbon. That spark. Right down in the soul.

Frequently Asked Questions

Q: What is Richard Dawkins’ “extended phenotype” theory?

A: Dawkins said a creature’s genes don’t just build its body. Impacts? They reach way out, into the world. Think beaver dams, spider webs. All part of the animal. As much as its fur or legs.

Q: Does Andy Clark believe all humans are cyborgs?

A: Yeah. Especially us digital natives. He argues humans are wired to use outside stuff – not just our bodies – to do basic human jobs better. Computer. Phone. Tablet. Obvious cyborg examples. See?

Q: What is the “Uncanny Valley”?

A: Masahiro Mori cooked up this “Uncanny Valley” idea. It’s when robots or things look human, and we like ’em. But only up to a point. Then they get too human-ish. Not perfect. And suddenly? Total nope. Creepy. Off-putting. Some even feel sick.