Hawking Feared Genetic Supervillians - But I Think He Had It Wrong

[Mr. B1ack]

Stephen Hawking predicted a race of superhumans will take over
the world :

https://www.foxnews.com/science/stephen-hawking-predicted-a-race-of-superhumans-will-take-over-the-world

The late Stephen Hawking believed advances in genetic science
would lead to a future generation of superhumans that could
ultimately destroy the rest of humanity.

In newly published writings, Dr. Hawking suggested an elite class
of physically and intellectually powerful humans could arise from
rich people choosing to edit their DNA and manipulating their
children's genetic makeup.

"I am sure that during this century, people will discover how to
modify both intelligence and instincts such as aggression", he
wrote.

"Laws will probably be passed against genetic engineering with
humans. But some people won't be able to resist the temptation
to improve human characteristics, such as memory, resistance
to disease and length of life".

. . . . . .

A little too much 'Trek' Steve ??? :-)

I do think he's correct in that there's going to be a drift
towards the "super-human" - the technology is there
already and the knowledge-base is about ripe enough
to take preliminary steps.

But I do not see this as an inherently *bad* thing. Indeed
it would be ridiculous to HAVE this tech and not USE it
to our advantage.

To quote the Trek villain ... "Improve the MAN and you
gain a thousand-fold". If the collective IQ rose even ten
or twenty points above what it is now we'd be ready
for that 'final frontier' real damned quick. IQ-100 is just
great for farming turnips, but it's not so good for finding
those sci/tech jobs ... you know, the ones hard to replace
with AI systems.

And what's up with the lousy <100-year lifespans ? You
have to spend 25 of those in school just so you can be
the head turnip-farmer these days. 250 years is MUCH
better ... maybe 2500 ... or 250,000 or ...................

Faster, stronger, smarter, "better", that's the future we
should be demanding.

The TRICK to this however is "democratization". Try to
suppress the technology and only the rich and wicked
will be able to exploit it ... and impose THEIR idea of
"better" on the world. It's rather like how 'drug wars'
wind up empowering the worst of the worst.

So ... develop various fixes and mods, then make sure
the masses can GET them, cheap. Hell, commercialize
most of it ... buy it at Wal-Mart ...... "SuperBod 9000 !
Look and feel FABULOUS. Be the envy of all ! Only
$19.95 at your favorite retailer - Buy NOW !" :-)

This will prevent a tiny elite from cornering the
improvements all for themselves and blunt the
efforts of fanatics to try and re-make the species
in some way that serves only their own agendas
and visions.

We HAVE the technology - and SOMEONE is going
to be using it (The Chinese first and foremost, they are
not squeamish about producing SuperKomrades).
Either your future overlords take advantage or we
let EVERYONE take advantage. There's really no
practical middle ground here, no way to keep the
genie halfway in the bottle.

[Byker]

Post by Mr. B1ack
https://www.foxnews.com/science/stephen-hawking-predicted-a-race-of-superhumans-will-take-over-the-world
The late Stephen Hawking believed advances in genetic science would lead
to a future generation of superhumans that could ultimately destroy the
rest of humanity.

And I highly doubt said superhumans will be black or brown.

Sieg heil!:
https://www.deseretnews.com/article/900017276/op-ed-the-slippery-slope-of-abortion-down-syndrome-and-eugenics.html

[Mr. B1ack]

Post by Byker

Post by Mr. B1ack
https://www.foxnews.com/science/stephen-hawking-predicted-a-race-of-superhumans-will-take-over-the-world
The late Stephen Hawking believed advances in genetic science would lead
to a future generation of superhumans that could ultimately destroy the
rest of humanity.

And I highly doubt said superhumans will be black or brown.
https://www.deseretnews.com/article/900017276/op-ed-the-slippery-slope-of-abortion-down-syndrome-and-eugenics.html

Probably "yellow" ... the Chinese are NOT particularly
squeamish about human genetic enhancement. They've
been keen on the SuperChinaman for a long time - and
will throw any "mistakes" into the incinerator without a
second thought. Ten percent - across a population -
that's all it would take. Ten percent smarter, ten percent
stronger, ten percent more enduring, ten percent longer
life. That population WOULD become the global overlords.
Not instantly, but over a couple of generations.

As for the other 'colors' ... I don't share your rather negative
views. They'd smarten-up as easily as anybody else. The
trick at the moment is where the most MONEY is ... and
that's in China. They'll make it, they'll do it, they'll keep it
all for themselves. This was Hawking's worry.

Yea, there's money in EuroAmerica too ... but we're too
squeamish about any "mistakes".

In any case, the only "out" is to democratize genetic
enhancements. The Chinese may get their 10%, but
if the rest of the world gets at least 5% then it kinda
neutralizes the Chinese advantage.

And as for "enhanced" people being inherently evil
and violent ... made for a few good 'Trek' episodes,
but never confuse fiction with fact. Everyone with
an IQ of about 115 and above is "enhanced" relative
to the rest of the population right now. You get some
sinners, but you get a lot of saints too.