Pegasus Research Consortium

Pegasus Research Consortium => Of Quantum Leaps and Paradigm Shifts => Transhumanism => Topic started by: Ellirium113 on September 19, 2013, 10:03:03 am

Title: Scientists developing organs to give you super powers
Post by: Ellirium113 on September 19, 2013, 10:03:03 am
A Mad Scientist Designing Organs That Could Give You Superpowers


Quote
“Repairing lost hearing is an incredibly noble goal,” says McAlpine, “but what we made was a coil it receives electromagnetic signals and formed a direct connection with your brain.” A phone-brain interface sounds uncanny, but according to McAlpine it’s just optimizing the existing process. Tiny hairs in our ears interpret audio signals and transform them into electrical signals that can be decoded by the brain. McAlpine’s innovation cuts out the acoustical middle man and pumps the electronic signal right into your medula and brings us one step closer to a world where we can learn kung fu by plugging into a computer.

“We evolved in a world where we needed to hear lions,” he says. “But today it makes sense for one of our senses to talk directly to our brain, electrically.” It would also give us the ability to hear outside of our normal 20-20,000hz spectrum, giving us the ability to hear what bats or dolphins hear.

Why the ear? “The ear was a great proof of concept for combining biological and electrical,” says McAlpine. “It’s one of the simpler organs with no vasculature, it’s pure cartilage.” McAlpine sees this successful experiment as the first of many upgradeable body parts. “What I’m most excited about is using these 3-D printers, interwoven with advances in material science, and adding biology to them—not just taking the ear to the next level.”

Despite his desire to create more superheros than Stan Lee, McAlpine isn’t inspired by sci-fi, citing origami and music as bigger influences. “I have to be honest, I was never ever one of those people that watched Star Trek or Star Wars,” he says. “I was a musician, I went to the same high school as John Mayer and we’d play at the same venue. He was much better.” John Mayer might have sung about your body being a wonderland, but McAlpine is making it a reality.

A decade ago, McAlpine was developing electronics that could function on flexible substrates, but no one saw a commercial application. Today, rumors of smart watches featuring advanced circuits won’t stop. Now, he’s betting the next big wave of consumer electronics will bring us even closer to our smartphones and tablets. “It will just be considered normal that you have electronics embedded in your body,” he says. “You won’t think its weird that a door will just open up as you walk towards it. We will become cyborgs and it will be seen as just a normal thing.”


(http://www.wired.com/design/wp-content/uploads/2013/09/mcalpine-1.jpg)
Michael McAlpine’s 3-D printed bionic ear enables superhuman hearing, but you’re on your own for a cape. Photo: Frank Wojciechowski


http://www.wired.com/design/2013/09/this-mad-scientist-wants-to-give-you-superpowers/ (http://www.wired.com/design/2013/09/this-mad-scientist-wants-to-give-you-superpowers/)

Deus-Ex was a great game that put you in the roll of a detective that must choose to embrace or reject cybernetic augmentations. This game truly is a revelation in transhumanism.

The Dream...
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jAdwcnuHPhc[/youtube]

The Reality...
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kq5KWLqUewc[/youtube]



Title: Re: Scientists developing organs to give you super powers
Post by: PLAYSWITHMACHINES on September 19, 2013, 11:15:30 am
Cool.

While i hate the concept of the H+ peeps, a bit of Borg wouldn't go amiss sometimes, LOL
The whole text should be 'Deus Ex Machina'---'God from a Machine'

Bumped for later :)