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comment by seatraveler
seatraveler  ·  4255 days ago  ·  link  ·    ·  parent  ·  post: Spark of Genius - New Technology Can Supercharge Your Brain

Its unsettling factor slightly outweighs its "holy shite I need that" factor. Notwithstanding the potential adverse effects it could pose, which aren't fully understand and probably won't be very easy to pinpoint, this somehow feels very inhuman. I'm not sure, but this seems to fall within the realm of transhumanism. Don't get me wrong, if this can treat chronic depression better than the current cocktail of chemicals we have available, then that's a gosh darn godsend.

But it feels like a cheat code for learning. Will we lose the qualities that struggle and difficulty brings out in people? Persistence, faith, understanding, empathy, determination? Won't this fundamentally change who we are as a species? Will we be satisfied when working towards a goal that used to feel triumphant will merely feel routine?

The potential is great, yet I can't help feeling this will dull some of the qualities that make us human.





humanodon  ·  4255 days ago  ·  link  ·  

Yeah, but if you only live once, what does it matter if you "cheat"?