Transhumanism

Logo of Transhumanism, short: H+ or h+

Humani Victus Instrumenta: Ars Coquinaria, by an unknown Italien engraver (c. 1570)

The Shadow robot hand system

Transhumanism (from Latin: trans "beyond" and humanus "human"), in short H+ or h+, which is predominantly widespread in the Anglo-Saxon world, comprises various heterogeneous philosophical-ideological currents that have in common that they want to improve and expand the physical and/or mental abilities of humans by means of state-of-the-art technology, i.e. through technological human enhancement. It continues the humanist ideal of self-education with other, namely technical means. Ultimately, it is about the technological transformation of man into a posthuman being, as it were the development of a humanity 2.0 consisting of transhumans. Transhumanism is therefore often regarded as a special form of posthumanism. In principle, however, transhumanism and posthumanism differ in that the former wants to improve humans indefinitely, while the latter wants to overcome them altogether.

Basic ideas

The basic idea of transhumanism was formulated by the British biologist, philosopher and eugenicist Julian Huxley (1887-1975) in the eponymous chapter of his 1957 book New Bottles for New Wine:

„The human species can, if it wishes, transcend itself — not just sporadically, an individual here in one way, an individual there in another way, but in its entirety, as humanity. We need a name for this new belief. Perhaps transhumanism will serve: man remaining man, but transcending himself, by realizing new possibilities of and for his human nature.“

– Huxley 1957, p. 17 archive.org

In the manifesto of the "2045" Strategic Social Initiative, written by Russian transhumanists, the goals of transhumanism are outlined as follows:

„We believe that before 2045 an artificial body will be created that will not only surpass the existing body in terms of functionality, but will achieve perfection of form and be no less attractive than the human body. People will make independent decisions about the extension of their lives and the possibilities for personal development in a new body after the resources of the biological body have been exhausted.“

– Manifesto 2045

Of particular interest to transhumanists are scientific, technical and medical fields such as biotechnology, especially genetic engineering, nanotechnology (nanomachines, nanobots), computer and information technology, artificial intelligence up to and including a future superintelligence, brain-computer interfaces, robotics, prosthetics, cyborgs, regenerative medicine, cryonics, etc.

Historical background

The origins of the unconditional optimism for progress that unites all transhumanists are seen above all in Renaissance humanism and in the epoch of the Enlightenment and the associated ethical obligation that man or humanity should consciously take its further development into its own hands. Unlike in classical humanism, however, this goal is not to be achieved by means of education and upbringing or even by means of spiritual training, but by exploiting the technical possibilities that are already available or will be available very soon. The Darwinian theory of evolution and the utilitarianism of John Stuart Mill form the further idealistic background. The extent to which Friedrich Nietzsche's "superman" also plays a role, as emphasised in particular by Stefan Lorenz Sorgner, is a matter of debate.

In the early 1980s, California with its specific intellectual and technological potential, and in particular the University of California and Silicon Valley, became the centres of transhumanism.

Extropianism

Together with Tom Bell (pseudonym: T. O. Morrow), the futurologist Max More founded extropianism, which he himself considers to be the first philosophically thought-out direction of transhumanism, and the Extropy Institute, which was established according to its principles. Extropianism is based on the principles of extropy. This is a measure of the intelligence, information content, available energy, longevity, vitality, diversity, complexity and growth capacity of a system. The term is not precisely defined, but has a more metaphorical meaning, deliberately chosen as a contrast to entropy, which leads humans to death and ultimately the world to decay. It stands for an unlimited capacity for human development based on technology.

Max More characterises transhumanism as follows:

„Transhumanism is a class of philosophies that seek to guide us towards a posthuman condition. Transhumanism shares many elements of humanism, including a respect for reason and science, a commitment to progress, and a valuing of human (or transhuman) existence in this life rather than in some supernatural "afterlife". Transhumanism differs from humanism in recognizing and anticipating the radical alterations in the nature and possibilities of our lives resulting from various sciences and technologies such as neuroscience and neuropharmacology, life extension, nanotechnology, artificial ultraintelligence, and space habitation, combined with a rational philosophy and value system.“

– Max More: Transhumanism - Toward a Futurist Philosophy (2005)

Risks, Opportunities and Necessities from the Perspective of Spiritual Science

An essential goal of transhumanism is the practically unlimited prolongation of life up to the de facto immortality of the physical or at least the mental earthly personality. Until this goal is realisable, the body is to be preserved from decay in the face of death by means of cryonics, first propagated by Robert Ettinger, and later revived and healed. This would be a renewal of ancient Egyptian mummification taken to the extreme. The consequences of this mummification, the fall into materialism, were clearly described by Rudolf Steiner (Lit.:GA 105, p. 31f). This effect would only occur more strongly today.

However, apart from the technical feasibility, this raises a number of other serious problems. If this were not to remain the privilege of only a small elite, sooner or later new births would have to be prevented in order to avoid overpopulation of the earth. Humanity would thus be deprived of all refreshing childhood powers. Moreover, man would be cut off from the life between death and new birth and banished to the earthly sphere. Reincarnation would be prevented and the spiritual development of humanity would come to a standstill. Man would then have to completely fall prey to the ahrimanic powers.

All in all, transhumanism looks like an ahrimanically distorted counter-image to classical humanism and especially to anthroposophy. Nevertheless, Rudolf Steiner has pointed out that a "forging together of the human being with the machine being" will not only come, but must come in the sense of earth evolution. Just as man had to unite with Lucifer in the beginnings of culture, he will also have to unite with Ahriman in the future in order to be able to use and at the same time overcome his powers. The decisive factor, however, will be the ethical attitude from which this happens. This development will only be fruitful if the human being - apart from any confessional bond - connects directly through his I with the Christ.

Literature

• Bertrand Russell: The Scientific Outlook, George Allen & Unwin Ltd, London, First Edition 1919 arcive.org, Third Impression 1954 archive.org
• Julian Huxley: New Bottles for New Wine, Chatto & Windus, London 1957, archive.org
• Janina Loh: Trans- und Posthumanismus (Zur Einführung), 2. Auflage, Junius Hamburg 2019, ISBN 978-3885068082, eBook ASIN B07N1MTJ2C
• Ed Regis: Great Mambo Chicken And The Transhuman Condition: Science Slightly Over The Edge, Perseus Books 1990, ISBN 0-201-09258-1
• Marvin Minsky: The Society of Mind: Mentopolis, Klett-Cotta 1994, ISBN 978-3608931174
• Raymond Kurzweil: KI - Das Zeitalter der künstlichen Intelligenz, Carl Hanser Verlag 1993, ISBN 978-3446173750
• Hans Moravec: Mind Children: The Future of Robot and Human Intelligence, Harvard University Press 1998, ISBN 978-0674576162
• Hans Moravec: Computer übernehmen die Macht. Vom Siegeszug der künstlichen Intelligenz, Hoffmann und Campe, Hamburg 1999, ISBN 978-3455085754
• Christian Weisgerber: Cyborgs, Katastrophen und Visionen. Europas Transhumanisten schauen in die Zukunft. Telepolis, 10. Juli 2001 online
• Francis Fukuyama: Our Posthuman Future. 1 Auflage. Picador, New York 2003, ISBN 0-312-42171-0.
• Francis Fukuyama: The world's most dangerous ideas: transhumanism. In: Fukuyama på Aarhus Universitet. 2004. Retrieved on 28 August 2021.
• Ronald Bailey: Transhumanism: The Most Dangerous Idea? In: reason.com. 25. August 2004. Retrieved on 28 August 2021.
• John Brockman: Die neuen Humanisten. Wissenschaft an der Grenze. Ullstein Hc, Oktober 2004, ISBN 3-550-07597-9
• Robert A. Freitas Jr., Ralph C. Merkle: Kinematic Self-Replicating Machines, Landes Bioscience, Georgetown, TX, 2004, ISBN 978-1570596902 online pdf
• Oliver Krüger: Virtualität und Unsterblichkeit. Die Visionen des Posthumanismus, Rombach Druck- und Verlagshaus, Freiburg im Breisgau 2004, ISBN 978-3793094050
• Oliver Krüger: Die Vervollkommnung des Menschen. Tod und Unsterblichkeit im Posthumanismus und Transhumanismus, in: Eurozine, 2007, online.
• John Harris: Enhancing Evolution: The Ethical Case for Making Better People, University Press Group Ltd 2007, ISBN 978-0691128443; eBook ASIN B004WDQ42O
• Christopher Coenen, Stefan Gammel, Reinhard Heil, Andreas Woyke : Die Debatte über „Human Enhancement“; historische, philosophische und ethische Aspekte der technologischen Verbesserung des Menschen, transcript Verlag 2010, ISBN 978-3-8376-1290-5
• Raymond Kurzweil: The Singularity Is Near, ‎ Penguin Us 2005, ISBN 978-0670033843, eBook ASIN B07H2M361D
• Stefan Lorenz Sorgner: Menschenwürde nach Nietzsche: Die Geschichte eines Begriffs, Wissenschaftliche Buchgesellschaft 2010, ISBN 978-3534209316
• Stefan Lorenz Sorgner: Transhumanismus - "die gefährlichste Idee der Welt"!?, Herder Verlag 2016, ISBN 978-3451349423
• Stefan Lorenz Sorgner: Übermensch: Plädoyer für einen Nietzscheanischen Transhumanismus, Schwabe Verlag 2019, ISBN 978-3796539152
• Nick Bostrom: A History of Transhumanist Thought, in: Journal of Evolution & Technology, Heft 1.14, 2005, pp. 1-25 pdf
• Nick Bostrom: Superintelligenz: Szenarien einer kommenden Revolution, Suhrkamp Verlag 2016, ISBN 978-3518586846, eBook ASIN B00OTQKXJE
• Nick Bostrom: Die Zukunft der Menschheit: Aufsätze, Suhrkamp Verlag 2018, ISBN 978-3518298459, eBook ASIN B0773J16BQ
• Klaus Mainzer: Künstliche Intelligenz – Wann übernehmen die Maschinen? Springer Verlag 2016, ISBN 978-3662484524, eBook ASIN B01CYJHR1Y
• Julian Nida-Rümelin, Nathalie Weidenfeld: Digitaler Humanismus: Eine Ethik für das Zeitalter der Künstlichen Intelligenz, Piper 2018, ISBN 978-3492058377, eBook ASIN B07GZPD34T
• Toby Walsh: It's alive: Wie künstliche Intelligenz unser Leben verändern wird, Edition Körber 2018, ISBN 978-3896842664, eBook ASIN B07GWHS12N
• Thomas Ramge, Dinara Galieva (Illustrator): Mensch und Maschine: Wie künstliche Intelligenz und Roboter unser Leben verändern, Reclam Verlag 2018, ISBN 978-3150194997, eBook ASIN B077TT4283
• Dierk Spreen, Bernd Flessner, Herbert M. Hurka, Johannes Rüster: Kritik des Transhumanismus: Über eine Ideologie der Optimierungsgesellschaft, transcript Verlag 2018, ISBN 978-3837642872
• Mieke Mosmuller: Singularität - Dialoge über künstliche Intelligenz und Spiritualität, Occident Verlag 2019, ISBN 978-3946699101
• Oliver Krüger: Virtualität und Unsterblichkeit. Gott, Evolution und die Singularität im Post- und Transhumanismus., 2. überarb. u. ergänzte Auflage, Freiburg: Rombach 2019, ISBN 978-3-7930-9939-0
• Nicanor Perlas, Sebastian Lorenz (Übers.): Der letzte Kampf der Menschheit? Die Antwort der Geisteswissenschaft auf die Künstliche Intelligenz, Urachhaus Verlag, November 2020, ISBN 978-3825152352
• Hans Bonneval: Revolution im Denken: Rudolf Steiner. Warum Computer nicht denken können, BoD, Norderstedt 2017
• Paul Emberson: Maschinen und Menschengeist, The DewCross Centre for Moral Technology, Edinburgh 2013
• Paul Emberson: Von Gondishapur bis Silicon Valley Band I, Etheric Dimensions Press, Schweiz und Schottland 2012 - kritische Betrachtung: A well intended very flawed Book
• Paul Emberson: From Gondishapur to Silicon Valley, Volume II, Etheric Dimensions Press, Switzerland and Scottland 2014 (deutsche Übersetzung in Vorbereitung)
• Ariane Eichenberg (Hrsg.), Christiane Haid (Hrsg.): Das Ende des Menschen? Wege durch und aus dem Transhumanismus, Verlag am Goetheanum 2020, ISBN 978-3723516423
• Rudolf Steiner, Andreas Neider (Hrsg.): Der elektronische Doppelgänger und die Entwicklung der Computertechnik, Futurum Verlag 2013, ISBN 978-3856363642; Kindle Edition 2015, ASIN B0195VK6WG
• Rudolf Steiner: Anthroposophische Leitsätze, GA 26 (1998), ISBN 3-7274-0260-1 English: rsarchive.org German: pdf pdf(2) html mobi epub archive.org
• Rudolf Steiner: Die Apokalypse des Johannes, GA 104 (1985), ISBN 3-7274-1040-X English: rsarchive.org German: pdf pdf(2) html mobi epub archive.org
• Rudolf Steiner: Individuelle Geistwesen und ihr Wirken in der Seele des Menschen, GA 178 (1992), ISBN 3-7274-1780-3 English: rsarchive.org German: pdf pdf(2) html mobi epub archive.org
• Rudolf Steiner: Geistige Zusammenhänge in der Gestaltung des menschlichen Organismus, GA 218 (1992), ISBN 3-7274-2180-0 English: rsarchive.org German: pdf pdf(2) html mobi epub archive.org

References to the work of Rudolf Steiner follow Rudolf Steiner's Collected Works (CW or GA), Rudolf Steiner Verlag, Dornach/Switzerland, unless otherwise stated. Email: verlag@steinerverlag.com URL: www.steinerverlag.com. Index to the Complete Works of Rudolf Steiner - Aelzina Books A complete list by Volume Number and a full list of known English translations you may also find at Rudolf Steiner's Collected Works Rudolf Steiner Archive - The largest online collection of Rudolf Steiner's books, lectures and articles in English. Rudolf Steiner Audio - Recorded and Read by Dale Brunsvold steinerbooks.org - Anthroposophic Press Inc. (USA) Rudolf Steiner Handbook - Christian Karl's proven standard work for orientation in Rudolf Steiner's Collected Works for free download as PDF.