David Rigsby Rigsby is a second-year
political science student who does not believe that resistance is
futile. Until he gets a communication implant installed, you’ll
have to reach him at [email protected].
It’s the year 2001 and let’s say you’re at a
lecture, meeting, or even the movies. You are engrossed in the
environment when all of a sudden your concentration is broken as
you hear the first dozen notes from Michael Jackson’s
Thriller. Someone in the room (yourself included) has forgotten to
turn off their cell phone. This situation is an annoyance that has
happened to almost everyone.
Now imagine that it is the year 2051 and you’re at a
lecture, meeting or the movies. The high-pitched, and yet familiar
ditty that you hear might not be the result of a person forgetting
to switch off their cell phone. Instead, the person might have
forgotten to switch off their implant.
This future scenario is not my latest screenplay idea, but
rather a scientific possibility. According to Newsweek, some
researchers state that in 50 years cyborgs will be possible. In the
traditional sense, cyborgs are humans with electrical and
mechanical devices grafted into their biological systems. This
definition is rapidly changing as the boundaries and limits of
technology grow. The line in the sand dividing man and machine is
less apparent than it once was.
There is a popular saying that someday people will have bar
codes engraved onto their foreheads. Someday might not be that far
away if current trends in the cybernetic field continue.
 Illustration by GRACE HUANG/Daily Bruin Kevin Warwick, a
professor in the department of cybernetics at the University of
Reading, England, made a major stride in cyborg technology in 1998.
Warwick became the test subject of his own experiment when he had a
silicon chip surgically implanted in his left arm. The experiment
was designed to test whether or not the chip could communicate with
an outside computer. What made the experiment so dangerous was that
the glass tube that held the chip might have broken, which would
have almost surely killed Warwick. Newsweek reports, “over
the next nine days, the computer would recognize him as he arrived
at the main entrance, and its voice box would greet him. It opened
his lab door for him. It turned on the lights.”
The test was a success and remains one of the great leaps in
cybernetic technology. For his next experiment, Warwick plans on
testing an implant’s ability to send signals between a
computer and his nervous system. He comments that, “The
opportunity for me to become a cyborg is extremely exciting. I
can’t wait to get on with it.”
Warwick’s experiments are another step in the natural
technological progression of cybernetics. Machines are installed
into our bodies all of the time. Pacemakers and insulin pumps are
two of the most common and effective machines in humans. The
difference between the implants currently in use and the ones that
Warwick develops, is that Warwick’s implants transmit
information to another source ““ such as a computer, or a door
lock, or another person.
Not only are humans becoming more and more robotic, but robots
are becoming more and more human. Examples of
“emotional” robots can be found at any toy store. A few
years ago, the Tamagotchi craze hit the world. Japanese engineers
had developed a small virtual pet that you could carry around in
your pocket. It would beep when it needed to be fed or played with.
The virtual pet broke out of its shell in many incarnations. I
still have nightmares about my sister’s Furby.
But why stop at pets? Virtual dolls are now taking their first
stand in the toy industry. My Real Baby by Hasbro, uses sensors to
detect light and motion, and can respond to environmental
conditions accordingly. Codeveloper iRobot tells Newsweek that she
“knows” when she’s being hugged, rocked, or even
burped, and that she requires “nurture.” If Barbie
wants to stay competitive, it looks like she’ll have to get
some implants of her own (and not just the silicone kind).
Concerns regarding the fine line between man and machine have
been overshadowed in the last decade by another equally important
issue: genetic capabilities. Genetic splicing, gene therapy and
cloning have raised many questions concerning the direction of
science. Movies like “Gattaca” and “Jurassic
Park” have frightened the public (with just cause) about the
destructive effects of genetic engineering. A certain level of
public awareness exists with genetics issues, which does not exist
when it comes to cyborg and robotic technology.
George Orwell’s book “1984” serves as a
universal example of society gone awry. Orwell’s future is a
society of little privacy, where “Big Brother” watches
your every move. The implantation of chips that transmit
information to computers would literally make my skin crawl. Even
if the government does not keep a database following our movement,
health and thoughts, there are other entities that would gladly
like to get their hands on such information.
Imagine watching television during a commercial break and
viewing commercials that are sent to your home specifically based
on your health readout. For example, you feel a little hungry and,
ZAP, a fast food commercial is sent over the satellite. Instead of
advertisers telling us how we should feel, how we feel will tell
advertisers what to show us. All right, so this might be an extreme
scenario, but with TiVo and other commercial editing devices on the
market, advertisers have to do something to fight back.
There are more unsettling consequences regarding the misuse of
cybernetics than a lack of privacy. A lack of individuality is
equally possible. If there are chips in our bodies that regulate
hormones, blood flow, and cell development, are we still human?
What if those chips connect us to others, allowing for constant
communication with others, without ever having to dial a number?
Are we still human then? Imagine a world of limitless knowledge, of
complete openness, where the Internet can be accessed by closing
our eyes, where all is one and one is all. Are we individuals? Or
are we something from a Star Trek series?
The philosophical questions are endless, but one thing is
certain: engineers and scientists need to stop answering those
questions for the rest of us. The cloning of Dolly the lamb opened
the door for the world to begin discussion of genetic engineering
do’s and don’ts. The same needs to happen in the field
of cybernetics while there are still individuals in the world to
discuss the topic.