Martin Rees: Earth in its Final Century?

Art found here at Phys.org.


I experienced a synchronicity of sorts this past week.

Then again, it's probably not that much of a synchronicity when you read the sort of stuff I do and have a penchant for synthesis.

I saw this article--maybe more of a blub--in Forbes: "It's Official: The Transhuman Era Has Begun." It describes what transhuman technologies will be available in the next decade, such as biohacking and technological augmentation. What took me aback somewhat is the timeline of ten years. That does not mean the arrival of Kurzweil's Singularity, per se, but it seems we will definitely see the line between human and machine get a whole lot blurrier.

Then I saw an old TED talk by Sir Martin Rees. I've written about him long ago. Rees is the author of books such as  Our Cosmic Habitat. In that book he asks if what we see as the laws of the cosmos are actually more like local ordinances. How common is life in space? How credible is the Big Bang Theory? I know I've had challengers of the theory in the now-closed comments section here on ESE. Speaking of comments section, I'm really somewhat embarrassed by my comments in that previous link. Hope I'm not that way anymore

Rees also wrote a book called, Our Final Hour. It forms the basis for his TED Talk: "Is Earth in Its Final Century?" Rees, like many others who follow transhumanism, assert that we have entered the first century where humans can not only alter the planet but truly alter ourselves. Change ultradian cycles, and maybe even change solar cycles while we're at it. Rees considers what might happen as a result of "technological misadventure." An example may be "gray goo" as an unintended consequence of nanotechnology. He also warns of a scenario when someone who has the kind of mentality to program computer viruses gets a hold of something like nanotech or biohacking.

Or if not a rapscallion looking to launch a devastating prank, there is also the chance terrorists might exploit these new developments. Like many others, Rees has been warning of biowarfare for years. He points to  Aum Shinrikyo, the cult who launched that sarin gas attack on a Tokyo subway. Apparently, the cult tried getting an ebola sample, but failed. Now that sample could have been biohacked together in their lab on Mt. Fuji.

Well, what's the worst that could happen? Human extinction, says Rees. To either avoid or flee such a catastrophe, Rees posits that humanity will move out into space, colonizing nearby planets and beyond.

No shortage of writing on this subject, both fiction and nonfiction. One aspect of Rees' argument for space colonization troubles me and that is, simply, if we move out into space, we still take us with us. A few of our species may survive extinction, but human nature remains the same. Sure, we'd stay scared for a while, maybe even for years as we vow to "never let it happen again." Maybe it would stick. Somehow, I doubt it. That's probably just the cynic in me, but check out Ray Bradbury's The Martian Chronicles sometime.

When I watch the news these days, it's a struggle for me not to see humanity as that very bioweapon Rees fears. Our moving outward into the universe would just be spreading that pathogen.

Here's the TED talk:




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