Facing the Challenges of Transhumanism.

De Arizona State University geeft een vierjarige cursus transhumanisme, waarin alle aspecten, alle voors- en tegens, van het transhumanisme aan bod zullen komen.

Niet voor niets heeft de cursus als ondertitel: Religion, Science en Technology. Want, in de eigen woorden van de organisatie:

In the transhuman phase, humans will become their own makers, transforming their environment and themselves. Proponents of transhumanism believe that advances in robotics, nanotechnology, artificial intelligence and genomics will liberate humanity from pain and suffering. Presumably, in the transhuman age humanity will conquer the problems of aging, disease, poverty, and hunger, finally actualizing happiness in this life. Yet, many people, especially those committed to a religious outlook, intuitively recoil from the trans-human vision and find within that vision an affront to human dignity. It is precisely the belief that humans are created by God in the image of God that leads many people (including religious scientists) to resist the trans-human vision as a new hubris that will destroy humanity by “redefining” it, and further endanger life on our vulnerable planet through unforeseeable consequences. Those who advocate transhumanism promote a utopian vision rooted in a host of unstated assumptions about the meaning of being human. To face the challenges of transhumanism with appropriate depth, an interdisciplinary approach is urgent.

Voor de opbouw van het programma is gebruik gemaakt van een aantal gezaghebbende Transhumanisten, zoals Nick Bostrom, Max More, Ray Kurzweil, de World Transhumanist Association en het Extropy Institute. Tot mijn vebazing zag ik dat er ook een Mormon Transhumanist Association – An international nonprofit organization that promotes charitable and working faith in physical salvation, to support both Transhumanist efforts at large and their members’ personal religious affiliations, encouraging them to adapt Transhumanism to their unique situations. – bestaat die ook meewerkt.

De opbouw van de studie:

Year 1: Transhumanism and Human Nature

Year 2: Environmental Impact of Transhumanism

Year 3: Social and Legal Implications of Transhumanism

Year 4: Transhumanism as Secularized Eschatology

Vanuit Nederland is die cursus helaas niet te volgen, maar met de syllabus en de uitgebreide lijst bronnen kun je toch een eind komen.