"Reinventing Humanity"

Neil Tyson mentioned in a recent talk that the main obstacle between academia and the public is a lack of good soundbites: short, quotable phrases that are easy to remember and easy to retell. For example: "Supernova, the biggest explosions in the cosmos!"

The shortest bits are catch-phrases that has great meme potential. People in marketing and propaganda know the power of these catch-phrases: "Yes we can", "Can you hear me now?". I propose "Reinventing humanity" for transhumanism. You can put that on a pin, on a sticker, on a poster. It's unique. When you google it, you'll find this article by Kurzweil. Perfect 10-second soundbite.

Now we need a slightly longer explanation that will help people understand the concept. A sentence or two, no longer than that, leading into a 5 minute conversation. Instead of a description, I would ask a question: "If you had the power to redesign and remake human beings, what would you change? How would you make us better?" This question will empower the imagination of the listener, and it provides a great segue into examples of medical and technical advances. (I hope you have a few of these ready! If not, keep following my blog :) Show them why reinventing humanity is not hypothetical, and why the answer is important to us now.

If you still have their attention, you can bring up the more abstract, yet more important aspects of transhumanism. Why "reinventing humanity" instead of "reinventing human"? Our experiences, our lives, are not limited to the physical body; changes ripple outward and reshape our society and culture. How will technology change the way you live? What would the world be like if we can stop aging, if we can modify our genes, if we can record everything we see and hear, if we can enhance our minds and bodies for a price, if we can transfer our minds into other bodies and other forms, if we can alter our moods at the press of a button? These what-ifs show why transhumanism requires more than science and technology, and points out the great demand it has for humanities research too: sociology, psychology, philosophy, ethics, economics. Hours of discussion can follow.

So next time you speak to someone about transhumanism, just remember:

"It's about reinventing humanity."




Tyson's talk. The soundbite bit is at 1hr 20min.