Someday, when almost everyone is connected to almost everyone else via the Internet, I would argue that humans will have evolved into a single collective organism for all practical purposes.
It would be much like the way individual cells of your body are united as one human.
Sure, humans aren't physically connected to each other, but neither are the atoms in your body if you shrink down to their level and take a look. You'd see more empty space in your body than matter.
So proximity doesn't seem to be relevant to the definition of a living entity. It has more to do with how the parts communicate and act in a generally shared purpose for survival.
Thus, when humans are linked via a central nervous system called the Internet, we can call humanity a newly evolved creature.
Humanity will eventually develop the scientific wherewithal to create new worlds, create new life, and manipulate existing life. And humanity will be immortal for all practical purposes, as long as it diversifies its parts across multiple planets, which seems likely.
If science progresses at a normal pace, it seems inevitable that we would someday terraform a planet and seed it with life designed to evolve.
Prepping new planets for our eventual colonization might be part of our long term plan for survival.
We'll always need more real estate if we keep reproducing. And it is the only way this new entity called humanity can survive.
Once we future humans get rolling with all the terraforming and seeding planets with life, we'll probably repeat the process thousands of times over millions of years.
And that brings us to the interesting part which has got me thinking for some time now.
Logically, it is far more likely that we are the product of previous human tinkering than it is likely we are the original humans who started it all. There can be only one first planet of humans, but there will be (or has been) thousands of subsequent versions that are essentially man-made.
So even if you assume a traditional God exists, it is far more likely that your more proximate creator is people. And even if you believe in evolution, it is far more likely we are a human designed version than the very first version.
And the odds that somewhere there is at least one planet inhabited with some version of advanced humans is very high indeed, for there is no rational reason to believe we are the first of what will be thousands to come.
It's more likely we are somewhere in the middle of the process.
It would be much like the way individual cells of your body are united as one human.
Sure, humans aren't physically connected to each other, but neither are the atoms in your body if you shrink down to their level and take a look. You'd see more empty space in your body than matter.
So proximity doesn't seem to be relevant to the definition of a living entity. It has more to do with how the parts communicate and act in a generally shared purpose for survival.
Thus, when humans are linked via a central nervous system called the Internet, we can call humanity a newly evolved creature.
Humanity will eventually develop the scientific wherewithal to create new worlds, create new life, and manipulate existing life. And humanity will be immortal for all practical purposes, as long as it diversifies its parts across multiple planets, which seems likely.
If science progresses at a normal pace, it seems inevitable that we would someday terraform a planet and seed it with life designed to evolve.
Prepping new planets for our eventual colonization might be part of our long term plan for survival.
We'll always need more real estate if we keep reproducing. And it is the only way this new entity called humanity can survive.
Once we future humans get rolling with all the terraforming and seeding planets with life, we'll probably repeat the process thousands of times over millions of years.
And that brings us to the interesting part which has got me thinking for some time now.
Logically, it is far more likely that we are the product of previous human tinkering than it is likely we are the original humans who started it all. There can be only one first planet of humans, but there will be (or has been) thousands of subsequent versions that are essentially man-made.
So even if you assume a traditional God exists, it is far more likely that your more proximate creator is people. And even if you believe in evolution, it is far more likely we are a human designed version than the very first version.
And the odds that somewhere there is at least one planet inhabited with some version of advanced humans is very high indeed, for there is no rational reason to believe we are the first of what will be thousands to come.
It's more likely we are somewhere in the middle of the process.
Dec 1, 2010, 7:24:00 AM
yeah it is mind boggling when you think of this eventuality and while reading ur post my mind went back in time when major advancements started happening one by one. Some truly very inspiring and when you think how internet rules these days...who knows u might be quite right...that we are somewhere in the middle of the process...although only time will tell if we are hitting in the right direction.
Wanted to share this link...cause i'm thinking about space and technology right now...space...aliens...highly intelligent forms...more machines than humans actually.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R4SjUbQDP7g
Dec 3, 2010, 1:52:00 AM
Thanks Shivani for your comment. It has got me further thinking and a bit scared too. My next post is another peep into what's to come within say 50 years. Looking forward to your comment there too.