My random thoughts

[Vakanai]

Then much hinges on whether there is an end to science, math, or possible technology, which no one can say is the case right now.

Even if your suspicion is right, it might still make sense to build a Dyson Swarm so sunlight could be concentrated into narrow, directed rays for propelling probes into deep space. It would also double as a megaweapon that would be invaluable for defense against any aliens that might attack us.
https://kardashev.fandom.com/wiki/Nicoll-Dyson_beam

I have no suspicions one way or another - I just hate the idea of certainty about the future and enjoy playing devil's advocate to some extent.

[funkervogt]

I'm watching Crimes of the Future, and though I don't think the future will be anything like this, some elements of the film will become reality once we are posthuman:

1) Ability to shut off pain. Cybernetics will let posthumans do that by thinking about it.

2) Growth of new kinds of organs in our bodies.

3) Immunity to infections, probably thanks to nanobots in our bloodstreams and organs.

4) Wet, organic technology that can directly interface with human brains and bodies. Not all future technology will be like this, of course.

5) Posthumans with super healing abilities (accelerated closure of cuts, no development of scar tissue) would be less bothered by major injuries. This, coupled with the other attributes listed above, would lead a small number of them to indulge in public self-mutilation as a means of artistic expression.

[firestar464]

Hmmm, is it really "self-mutilation" if there is no real injury or even pain?

[funkervogt]

Technology will someday make physical exercise an obsolete method of building muscle and conditioning one's body. Nanomachines in our bodies will probably keep us fit by rebuilding muscle and organ tissue. There might be a daily routine you have to go through, like to "exercise" your right arm, you'd first extend it then slowly bend it, feeling the burn as millions of nanomachines cut and re-formed the muscles there. You'd then repeat the same for your other limbs, neck, and other body regions. In 20 minutes, you'd get the equivalent of a grueling, five-hour exercise session.

Your biology would be fused with technology at a microscopic level, meaning you'd have organs capable of manufacturing nanobots from food and air you ingested.

Seeing people jogging to stay in shape will become obsolete.

[weatheriscool]

Harris takes away the age issue, brings back the hispanics and probably gets the black vote back to 2012 levels. I don't understand how the polls don't at least show a tied race or lean harris over the next few weeks. The question will be is there enough time to pull the party together under her.

The difference between 2024 and 2016 in my opinion is Trump ran on a pro-job, anti-outsourcing platform that promised to rebuild our economy and to do what the clintons had done to our workers through bad trade deals. He failed and shit the bed. Hilary also wasn't vice president unlike Harris and Trump wasn't proven to be such a fraud.

I'd be fucking shocked not to see Harris lead in some of the polls in Mich, Wis and Pa by September. If she doesn't then I'd guess the voters are taking the shit out of her for not being primaried, the open border bullshit and the fact that we're living in a time where a large part of our society are tired of woke...Think what you want but it is what it is. I get it, you believe that all groups and life styes should be accepted but a lot of people don't feel this way.

[wjfox]

5) Posthumans with super healing abilities (accelerated closure of cuts, no development of scar tissue) would be less bothered by major injuries.

About 15 years ago, I read Marrow by Robert Reed. There's one dramatic scene, in which he describes a group of post-human characters on a journey across a planet's surface. For reasons I can't quite remember, they get into difficulties, either being chased, or trying to escape something.

They are in a region with volcanic activity, and one or two of them attempt to walk through lava. The intense heat begins melting their legs, as they struggle to wade through the molten rock.

He describes how their burns get healed almost immediately, but even for these post-humans, the damage is too great. The healing process begins to slowly "cannibalise" other parts of their body, in order to reconstruct their legs, and so their bodies start to shrink. I won't spoil the plot, but it's a great science fiction novel with some very futuristic ideas.

[firestar464]

An even more powerful posthuman might be able to walk through without their legs melting? IDK?

[funkervogt]

5) Posthumans with super healing abilities (accelerated closure of cuts, no development of scar tissue) would be less bothered by major injuries.

About 15 years ago, I read Marrow by Robert Reed. There's one dramatic scene, in which he describes a group of post-human characters on a journey across a planet's surface. For reasons I can't quite remember, they get into difficulties, either being chased, or trying to escape something.

They are in a region with volcanic activity, and one or two of them attempt to walk through lava. The intense heat begins melting their legs, as they struggle to wade through the molten rock.

He describes how their burns get healed almost immediately, but even for these post-humans, the damage is too great. The healing process begins to slowly "cannibalise" other parts of their body, in order to reconstruct their legs, and so their bodies start to shrink. I won't spoil the plot, but it's a great science fiction novel with some very futuristic ideas.

An even more advanced posthuman would be able to avoid that problem by regulating its healing in real time and just by thinking about it.

[Vakanai]

An even more powerful posthuman might be able to walk through without their legs melting? IDK?

Possible, but unlikely - there's precious few materials that won't melt in lava, and unless a posthuman knows they're specifically going to need to wade through lava they're unlikely to be composed of these materials as other materials would be more suitable or efficient for their expected environments.

An even more advanced posthuman would be able to avoid that problem by regulating its healing in real time and just by thinking about it.

Even so, the lava would still melt their legs slowly, they would still need to sacrifice some material elsewhere to go into healing their legs, otherwise they'd lose their legs and be succumbed by the lava entirely.


Better posthumans wouldn't be dependent on wading through lava to begin with - for one thing, with an adequate foot design, optimal efficiency, and weight allowing, much like the so-called Jesus lizard on water they could possibly run on top of the lava for a brief time, limiting their exposure to the melting heat and thus allowing them to cross a larger expanse before it became a real problem.
This of course is a more unlikely possibility, but still a possibility.

But the better posthuman would have a better trick - they'd simply fly over the lava. Perhaps their "brains" would be housed in a "skull" that can detach from the main body and operate independently as a drone. Perhaps their body would contain a much better and refined version of those arm jet things that made headlines some years back. Perhaps they could simply beam their minds out of their bodies, into an orbital satellite, and then back down into other bodies elsewhere on the planet. Or perhaps they could (what are we calling the telepathic like abilities of minds that can send signals to machines?) call for a self flying vehicle to pick them up. And these are just the obvious options we still-humans can imagine - once posthumans are a reality there's likely to be options for them to get around, under, or over the lava I'm unlikely to imagine now.

[firestar464]

Imagine floating Cthulu with omnidirectional tentacles made of nanites.

[wjfox]

Imagine floating Cthulu with omnidirectional tentacles made of nanites.

[funkervogt]

What if there's no way to go faster than light, and alien Von Neumann probes arrived here thousands of years ago after traveling in space for thousands of years still? Due to a variety of factors, they would only contain synthetic as opposed to biological life. Once inside our Solar System, they landed on Earth and took DNA samples of life forms they encountered here. Maybe they found it useful to create genetically engineered "workers" to do some tasks on Earth, thus giving rise to the classic Gray aliens, which are actually based on human DNA.

That would mean the Grays are actually not aliens since they are indigenous to Earth (though their population spends most of its time in space within our Solar system). Maybe their species was derived from the Homo eructus, making them older than Homo sapiens. The Grays could claim to have more of a right to live on Earth than humans.

[firestar464]

OMG Aliens lore

[funkervogt]

Humans can't see ultraviolet light, but other animals can, including American rough-legged hawks. They can live up to 19 years in the wild, and without going blind since otherwise they wouldn't be able to catch prey and would die, which means they also have evolved a means to repair UV damage to their eye rods and cones. This proves there must be a way for us to genetically engineer our own eyes to see UV light without risk to our vision. I believe posthumans will have this attribute, and the world will look more detailed to them as a result.

[funkervogt]

I wonder if it will make sense for posthumans to have larger eyes that are farther apart from each other. They would have a wider field of peripheral vision as a result, but the overlap between both eyes would still give them a field of detailed binocular view in front of them.

Also, posthumans might have large, swiveling ears like deer or rabbits to give them improved hearing. There could literally be a 10x improvement over regular humans in detecting and localizing sounds.

Larger noses and larger nasal cavities would let us pack in more scent receptors, improving our sense of smell. This is why bears and dogs have better senses of smell than we do: simple size.

Just by thinking about it, posthumans will be able to change their skin and hair colors. Skin changes might happen in seconds, as with chameleons.

A posthuman would contain much more DNA than they'd express at any one time. Depending on the needs of the situation, different segments of their DNA would be activated. Imagine a posthuman stranded on a hostile planet transforming their body hair into porcupine quills that it could stab enemies with.

[funkervogt]

Future weapon idea: Gremlin drones the sizes of insects and small animals that crawl into the mechanical spaces of planes that are parked at airports. After the drones sense the planes have taken off, they cut the fuel line or inject a substance into it that clogs it.

[funkervogt]

I like watching user reviews of things on YouTube, but I don't like the low production standards, long-winded talking, paid ads, bad jokes, etc. It won't be long before AI solves this problem by watching the videos for me in advance, understanding the content, and then editing them to make them to-the-point. Think of this as being the same thing that local news broadcasts do: they will edit a 30-minute interview down to two minutes of the most pertinent content.

[Vakanai]

I like watching user reviews of things on YouTube, but I don't like the low production standards, long-winded talking, paid ads, bad jokes, etc. It won't be long before AI solves this problem by watching the videos for me in advance, understanding the content, and then editing them to make them to-the-point. Think of this as being the same thing that local news broadcasts do: they will edit a 30-minute interview down to two minutes of the most pertinent content.

That can only happen in a post capitalist society, until then they won't allow and will fight against such a use for AI. After all, they want/need you to watch those talky ads.

[funkervogt]

Future humans will be better-looking than we are today due to better technologies. GLP-1 agonists like Ozempic are already working towards this end by reducing obesity. In the 2030s, prices for it will drop sharply as its patent expires, and billions more people will be able to afford it. Moreover, I wouldn't rule out even more effective drugs being invented farther in the future.

Robots and AGI will also radically reduce the costs of every type of surgery, including stomach reductions and plastic surgery.

IVF embryo selection, and later, genetic engineering, will also improve the looks of the average human as the therapies get better, cheaper and more socially acceptable.

Robot servants will also provide expert advice on how to dress and could professionally apply makeup to humans daily.

The future of makeup lies in AI-enhanced systems capable of transforming beauty routines. Picture starting your day by using your mobile device to scan your face, allowing an AI app to analyze your features and suggest makeup styles. These suggestions aren’t just random; they’re tailored to your skin tone, facial structure, and even your schedule for the day. Whether it’s a business meeting or a casual dinner, your AI assistant knows just the look that will work for you.

https://timeguide.wordpress.com/2024/05 ... y-routine/

Lastly, the androids that we build will be modeled after ideal humans. As we encounter them in everyday life, they will boost the perception that the beauty level for the average "person" has risen across the world.

[funkervogt]

I've written before that robots could someday let us eradicate invasive species and restore ecosystems to earlier states. Basically, there would be so many robots spread out across the face of the Earth that they could find and destroy every invasive animal or plant. Well, this would be especially helpful in more fragile ecosystems. For example, the removal of alien plant species that suck up large amounts of water from arid places like the American West would be very beneficial.

This prediction is getting closer to reality.

https://www.yahoo.com/news/researchers- ... 09508.html