Date: Wednesday, February 5, 2014. 9:00 PM.
Location: Nitery 209
The Stanford Transhumanist Association brings to campus science fiction writer, futurist, and researcher Ramez Naam to talk about the fundamental paradigm shifts that neurotechnology and consciousness engineering will cause in the near future.Imagine a mechanism that could re-configure your brain architecture to such an extent that any region of the state-space of possible experiences becomes accessible. Imagine that this system also allows your neurons and the neurons of another person to synchronize and communicate via nanotechnological transmitters and receivers integrated into the fabric of your neural networks. This would, conceivable, not only enable direct brain-to-brain communication--telepathy--but also phenomenal binding. Just as your left and right hemisphere are now united via the corpus callosum to constitute a unitary self, two brains united with nanotechnology could be capable of integrating into one unitary subject of experience.Spooky? Crazy? Unethical? Or maybe a door to a richer and more fulfilling mode of life? Come and discuss this with us and the author of this thrilling novel. Books will be available at the meeting.
Location: Nitery 209
The Stanford Transhumanist Association brings to campus science fiction writer, futurist, and researcher Ramez Naam to talk about the fundamental paradigm shifts that neurotechnology and consciousness engineering will cause in the near future.Imagine a mechanism that could re-configure your brain architecture to such an extent that any region of the state-space of possible experiences becomes accessible. Imagine that this system also allows your neurons and the neurons of another person to synchronize and communicate via nanotechnological transmitters and receivers integrated into the fabric of your neural networks. This would, conceivable, not only enable direct brain-to-brain communication--telepathy--but also phenomenal binding. Just as your left and right hemisphere are now united via the corpus callosum to constitute a unitary self, two brains united with nanotechnology could be capable of integrating into one unitary subject of experience.Spooky? Crazy? Unethical? Or maybe a door to a richer and more fulfilling mode of life? Come and discuss this with us and the author of this thrilling novel. Books will be available at the meeting.