Cybernetic Evolution

Cybernetic Evolution Forsaking Natural Selection in Favor of Technological Evolution By Ray Cotter

Contents Introduction In the Beginning There Were Earrings The Imapct of Cybernetics The Impact of the Internet Optional Cybernetics Works Cited

Back to Gilligan Introduction
Since the dawn of the human race, we have been constantly evolving, both technologically and biologically. Yet it seems that the human race can only evolve so much at a time; The more we evolve technologically, the less natural evolution influences us. Decades ago immunization was discovered, and this drove away one of the leading causes of natural selection: disease. As humanity stands on the verge of the age of cyborgs, it contemplates what it means to forsake natural evolution in favor of a self-imposed evolution brought about through technology.

"To be cyborg, to be posthuman, is to break out of the loop of adaptation and begin to write the history of our personal physiologies ourselves."³ In the Beginning there were Earrings
In the beginning, cybernetics was limited to body decorations, such as ear/nose rings and tattoos, which served to enhance the recipient’s appearance or mark him or her as a member of a certain group. These cybernetics are still the most accepted form of implants, and few even recognize them as cybernetic implants anymore. Then some cultures began to tinker with the form of their bodies, using metal rings to extend their necks or stretching their ear lobes into extended loops. The first prosthesis was a simple stick, most likely used to aid someone walk despite a wounded limb. In some ways, the invention of civilization itself was yet another cybernetic extension, as people could now see their nation as a part of themselves. With the advent of civilization, human technology began growing at an ever-accelerating pace.

Eventually medical technology developed immunization, and the enhancements it offered began to hinder natural selection. Where an entire third of a population would once have died from a plague, they could now be immunized, preventing the plague from getting started in the first place. Once this would have occurred through natural selection, with only those who were genetically immune to the disease surviving the plague, and passing their immunity down to their children. After the advent of immunization, the people who were technologically advanced enough to have immunizations would survive while those without perished. The discovery of immunization marked the single largest shift from natural selection over to technological evolution. Those who survived courtesy of their immunizations saw the benefit of technology, and embraced it even more wholeheartedly than before. The Impact of Cybernetics
A cyborg has been defined as a "person whose physical tolerances or capabilities are extended beyond normal human limitations by machine or other external agency that modifies the body’s functioning; an integrated man-machine system."¹ Although society was already well into cybernetics, it would be decades before humanity began to realize even a fraction of the potential cybernetics presented. The first artificial heart was implanted in 1968⁴, forever changing the face of medicine and confirming suspicions that human and machine could be grafted into one. Since then people have begun research on other artificial organs, including lungs, livers, pancreases, and more⁴. This research benefits all of medicine as well as cybernetics, because it demands an understanding of how these organs work and just exactly what they do, most of which is currently unknown: "The organs that need replacement perform complex chemical functions, some of which we are only just beginning to understand. In some cases, it is unclear why these organs fail in the first place."⁴ People have moved far beyond the aforementioned stick in prosthetics, to the point where some artificial limbs now have a rudimentary sense of touch. Artificial eyes are being improved, in 1995 scientists had developed a chip which could be implanted in someone’s visual cortex, then linked to an external camera; This could allow a blind person to see, although at that time they only had 64 dots for their entire field of vision. Hearing aids have become progressively smaller than before, and some are now implantable in the ear drum.

All of these devices have one of two purposes: either to allow someone to survive who would die without them, or to make that person’s life more enjoyable. Before the development of artificial organs and organ transplants, someone with a weak heart would eventually die because of it. A blind or deaf person would have to be very lucky in order to survive without help in the wilderness. And anyone who has ever watched a nature documentary knows how long it takes before natural selection claims anything which has been crippled. The Impact of the Internet
In addition, cybernetics advances evolution in a way we have never evolved before, moving us beyond physical evolution. By this I am referring to the Internet and the many communities it has given birth to. People on the ‘net are encouraged, almost forced to develop multi-tasking capabilities to fit in with the others online and make the best use of their time. Those who cannot develop these skills typically feel ill at ease and soon leave the virtual highways for the world they are more familiar with. More important from an evolutionary standpoint is the fact that couples meet and fall in love on the internet, then eventually marry and have children. Things which would normally be taken into consideration, such as age, appearance, and ways of speech, are largely non-existent on the Internet, for there people can take on whatever appearance they choose to, speak however they want to, and be any age they desire. So couples who once would never have shared a second glance are now starting families despite factors which would otherwise have influenced evolution. This may eventually yield not only the cyber-culture which is evident today, but also a sub-race of humanity which evolves apart from the rest.

Computers are the first piece of cyberware to be seen as not only acceptable, but also necessary by most people. They extend the human body by allowing us to communicate faster and more efficiently, serving as alternate memories, and handling many of the tasks we find boring, repetitive, and/or difficult (such as math, organizing records, and so on). Computers are also much more flexible than most cyberware, as people can move from one computer to the next with relative ease (trying that with artificial hearts or prosthetics can be trying at best). One benefit computers have reaped in being one of the most popular and profitable form of cybernetics is a large amount of research and development is devoted to them. This is both the best and the worst thing about computers: they are advancing at an incredible rate, far beyond the rest of cybernetics.
Optional Cybernetics
In addition to cybernetics which the recipient needs to stay alive or lead a normal life, there are also other kinds of cybernetics which are not necessary for survival. At this point in time most of them enhance the recipient’s enjoyment of life; The most common leisure cybernetics we have today include body piercing, tattoos, and sex changes. Many people who have pierced parts of their bodies and/or gotten tattoos see these as not cybernetics, but body art, which they use to express themselves. Whether or not a sex change is considered medical or leisure cyborging depends on who is asked. While the general population considers it unnecessary, many transsexuals feel that they were trapped in a body of the wrong sex and say that it is therefore necessary in order for them to live a normal life. Body art has a large effect on society, helping to shape and define one culture from another. Since it helps do define society, it also helps to determine the direction of that society’s evolution. Transsexuals also impact evolution, for obvious reasons.

While leisure cybernetics are fairly limited today (mostly by technology), the near future will see an influx of leisure cybernetics. A chip has already been developed and implanted in a paralyzed man which allows him to control a cursor on a screen by thought; How far away can full cybernetic control of computers be? The same technology which would allow doctors to splice a broken spine could be used to create a synthetic spine which would be able to send and receive information faster then the original. Should society continue to follow science fiction, in a matter of years soldiers could have armor grafted into their skin, weapons and targeting systems implanted in them, as well as various vision enhancements and communication systems. Divers could have parts of their lungs replaced with reserve tanks, and eventually have cybernetic gills. Airport officials could have metal detectors in their hands, and people boarding a plane would have to be x-rayed to detect any contraband or weapons rather than run through a metal detector. And paramedics could always have defibrillators and other life-saving gear literally at hand. Through a simple implant and use of the GPS, lost people could become a thing of the past. These leisure cybernetics could push us towards a dark and gritty society, herald the birth of a utopia, or simply balance each other out and maintain the status quo.

From its inception cybernetics has shaped humanity, and will continue to do so as long as people exist. Cybernetics hinder natural selection, preventing people from evolving the immunities, strengths, and weaknesses they would on their own. As the world evolves around us, we are forced to rely more and more heavily on technology (especially cybernetics) for our survival. We are evolving, both socially and physically, away from natural selection and towards technological evolution. Our survival more or less secured, humanity begins to expand its cybernetics from what is necessary to what is not and turns towards technology for entertainment as well as survival. For better or worse, our world is a world of cyborgs, and turning back would wreak havoc on civilization as we are reintroduced to natural selection and discover just how far behind we are without technology.

Works Cited

1: Is Your World the World of Cyborgs?. Jimmy Maas and Jen Graves. Date Unknown. Stanford University. 11 Nov. 1998. http://www.stanford.edu/~xinwei/pub/img/media/Virtuality/bodyworks/index.html.

2. Wiechman, Lori. "Brain Implant Allows Paralyzed Man to Control Computer". Savannah Morning News. 21 Oct. 1998.

3. Cyborgs and Subjects. Michael Chorost and Andrew Glikman.. U of Texas. 18 Dec. 1996 22:24:22 GMT http://www.cwrl.utexas.edu/~rhetd/subjectivity/index.html

4: The McGowen Center for Artificial Organ Development. Bartley P. Griffith, MD. 1998. University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine. 11 Nov. 1998. http://www.upmc.edu/Programs/mcgowan/.