How Cyborg Tech Could Link the Minds of the World 219
An anonymous reader writes "Science writer Michael Chorost has written a book that suggests that mankind may one day be able to link individual minds to share thoughts, feelings and perceptions by genetically modifying individuals brains and implanting computers based on neural networks in the body. Here he talks about the implications for human relationships, our sense of self and phenomenon like telempathy and dream brainstorming that this so-called World Wide Mind would make possible."
Teilhard de Chardin has him beat by about 90 years (Score:5, Interesting)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Noosphere [wikipedia.org]
For Teilhard, the noosphere emerges through and is constituted by the interaction of human minds. The noosphere has grown in step with the organization of the human mass in relation to itself as it populates the earth. As mankind organizes itself in more complex social networks, the higher the noosphere will grow in awareness. This concept is an extension of Teilhard's Law of Complexity/Consciousness, the law describing the nature of evolution in the universe. Teilhard argued the noosphere is growing towards an even greater integration and unification, culminating in the Omega Point, which he saw as the goal of history. The goal of history, then, is an apex of thought/consciousness.
Shared happiness (Score:4, Interesting)
Re:On the one hand - a telepath's perspective (Score:2, Interesting)
I had a thought, but I am not sure it is mine
Loss of self is exactly the problem. Most people probably won't believe me when I say this, but I am a telepath - a reader, not a sender. I read other people's thoughts, usually without meaning to do so. Unlike in the movies, those thoughts don't "sound" any different in my head than my own thoughts. Sometimes they "feel" different, sometimes not. But unless a thought is something completely out of normal range for me ("I'm going to be late picking up the kids," etc.), I often don't have positive confirmation that it is someone else's thought until they verbalize it or act it out.
While the idea of being a telepath may sound cool - and to be honest it has at times in my life proven quite a useful talent - in practice it's also a little disturbing. I'm never really sure if my thoughts are my own, or someone else's leaking into my brain. And even when I am sure they are someone else's, sometimes it's crap you don't really want to hear. Like trying to listen to your own music in your car, but hearing someone else's music in the car next to you.
I have coping mechanisms, though. I can't hear everyone's thoughts, automatically. It's like I have to share "resonance" with someone for me to pick it up, be on frequency, etc. If I'm around someone a lot, I tend to tune in to them. With strangers, it's hit or miss. But the more people I'm around in close proximity, the greater the chances of coincidentally being in tune with someone. Big crowds like in busy malls or airports give me bad headaches (imagine listening to 15-20 radios, at low volume, but all tuned to different stations). So, to avoid the noise, I avoid crowds as much as possible.
To me, the thought of being permanently plugged into a World Wide Mind is comparable to living my entire life in a crowded airport. The idea makes me nauseous. Hearing the crap inside people's heads once in a while is inconvenient, but hearing it from everyone all the time? And where would my thoughts and emotions end, and others' begin?
Remember also, that very few people know I can hear thoughts (only my wife and a couple of very close friends). My wife is used to it, and we're very open and honest with each other, but it sometimes makes my friends a little uncomfortable knowing that I *could* be listening in. How about if you *knew* that *everyone* is listening in? Would you still think the same thoughts, or would you filter your own thoughts the way (some) people self-censor what they post on their Facebook page. And if you would filter your thoughts, would the hypothetical World Wide Mind be expanding our horizons - or limiting them?