Terrifying Tech?
What if Technology gave us direct access to information, directly through our bodies? What if the world of information sat there on our pupil, ready for us to access with the twitch of an eye or the swipe of our finger?That’s the premise of new webseries H+, a story directed by the memorable X-Men (2000) director Brian Singer. The show starts off by introducing H+, a piece of tech that takes the recently developed concept of “Google Goggles” (glasses that access information while you walk) to its exaggerated outcome; a chip-like device that places the Google Goggle directly in the eye of the human.
What’s interesting about this webseries is that we are so close to its premise—that we could directly implement technological developments in the human body that would in fact have long-term consequences. While many see this technology as having negative consequences, there are quite a few thinkers who believe that this technology is just one step in the direction of human evolution; that technology is the medium that will allow humanity to transcend its current evolved state.
To most contemporary minds, this idea sounds like fiction, as though it’s a fun premise for science fiction, but certainly not something that could happen in real life. But with the many technological developments from the last five years, we’re coming closer and closer to the realization that we can actually do this.
This belief has come to be known as transhumanism. While it appears to be a minor philosophy—or unknown—among average people, we do find a rise in transhumanists in the communities of technologists, futurists and, of course, sci-fi authors. The implications on society could be staggering.
Read more at - http://www.popmatters.com/pm/feature/163072-googles-glass-castle-the-rise-and-fear-of-a-transhuman-future/
