(no subject)

[sophiaserpentia]

Currently I am reading Red Mars by Kim Stanley Robinson.

Among other things, this book has me contemplating the ethics of longevity treatment. At this point, the prospect of a gene-based therapy to stave off the effects of aging appears to be more of a matter of when as opposed to if. The implications of this are far-ranging and deserve attention.

[Poll #254699]

Comments

[sophiaserpentia.livejournal.com]

My major concern for me personally would be if I actually trusted the procedure.

My poll assumed that the procedure "worked," but if/when I hear such a thing announced I will have the same concern.


On the bigger picture, I would very much be concerned about people continuing to breed at a prodidious rate & then not having the decency to die.

Unfortunately I don't have much faith that we (as a species) will talk this kind of thing out before just plunging headfirst.

You know, this helps me to see why people tend to get conservative as they grow older. I have become much more cynical about the prospect that any kind of contemplation will precede big, important changes. Not that caution is always the best path, but many of the problems we're in now, we created by not thinking things out in any meaningful way.

[alobar.livejournal.com]

I know it is silly from a rational extrapolation, but I do keep wondering about whether the idea of singularity is just a nice little bedtime story to prevent nightmares, or if if will actually manifest.