Lifeboat Foundation

How will learning and development cope with the growing trend of humans augmenting their basic capabilities with chemical, electronic, physical, and genetic enhancements?

We’ve been entertained by a never ending stream of Marvel and DC Comics characters with super powers ranging from x-ray vision to mind control. Many of us have also spent time fantasising about the additional capabilities we’d like to help see us through the day. But what happens when those boundaries blur between science fantasy and everyday reality?

The practice of human enhancement or augmentation is a phenomena well underway across society – although the concept may be new to many of us. Over the next 25 years, the integration of information and communications technologies (ICTs), cognitive science, new materials, and bio-medicine could fundamentally improve the human condition and greatly enhance human intellectual, physical, and psychological capacities. As a result, the notion of the “transhuman” could emerge. For example, we are well underway with the process of augmenting human beings’ cognitive and intellectual abilities through technological implants, such as memory storage. These enhancements mean humans could achieve heightened senses and biological capabilities that are largely the prerogative of other species (e.g. speed, resistance, adaptation to extreme conditions, etc.).

The speed of development is truly mind blowing. Advances in cognitive enhancement drugs and “nootropic” supplements, electronic brain stimulation techniques, genetic modification, age extension treatments, 3D printed limbs and organs, and body worn exoskeletons, have given rise to the notion of enhancing the human brain and body well beyond the limits of natural evolutionary processes. Indeed, many leaders in the field of AI are fierce advocates of Transhumanism as the next stage of human evolution—arguing that if humans want to keep up with AI, we ourselves will have to become machines—embedding technology in our brains and bodies to give us similar levels of processing power.

Continue reading “The Rise of Superhumans and the Challenges for Learning and Development” »

Don’t worry, Betelguese is still there.

In 2019, many large tech firms announced plans to offer financial products and services. WSJ’s Liz Hoffman explains why Google, Apple, and others are offering products that might someday replace your wallet.

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The neurons in our cortex, the outermost “crust” of our brain, seem to have uniquely evolved to sustain complex computations in their input cables.

A lack of tools to precisely control gene expression has limited our ability to evaluate relationships between expression levels and phenotypes. Here, we describe an approach to titrate expression of human genes using CRISPR interference and series of single-guide RNAs (sgRNAs) with systematically modulated activities. We used large-scale measurements across multiple cell models to characterize activities of sgRNAs containing mismatches to their target sites and derived rules governing mismatched sgRNA activity using deep learning. These rules enabled us to synthesize a compact sgRNA library to titrate expression of ~2,400 genes essential for robust cell growth and to construct an in silico sgRNA library spanning the human genome. Staging cells along a continuum of gene expression levels combined with single-cell RNA-seq readout revealed sharp transitions in cellular behaviors at gene-specific expression thresholds. Our work provides a general tool to control gene expression, with applications ranging from tuning biochemical pathways to identifying suppressors for diseases of dysregulated gene expression.

In reality, Shudu, who has 196,000 followers on Instagram, is more painting than person. She’s a 3D digital animation made by an Englishman named Cameron-James Wilson, who bills his creation as “the world’s first digital supermodel.”

Influencers, beware: hot bots are coming for your jobs. Shudu is representative of a growing crop of beautiful and highly realistic avatars on social media, created for the sole purpose of gaining followers and making money. And it’s working — these otherworldly beauties are landing lucrative partnerships with the biggest names in fashion, such as Balmain, Calvin Klein and Dior. Social-media-savvy celebrities are embracing them as well; Kim Kardashian, Bella Hadid and Zendaya have all appeared in photos and videos with their digital counterparts. Even top modeling agencies, including IMG and Lipps, have signed on to manage the most popular bots.

“Over the past few years, this has really taken off,” Wilson, who runs the virtual-influencer company the Diigitals, tells The Post. Wilson, 30, now controls the careers of seven robot models who, like human influencers, post sponsored content on social media for money. “My company has grown massively. This is a really lucrative industry.”

Microsoft has released a security patch for a dangerous vulnerability affecting hundreds of millions of computers running Windows 10.

The vulnerability is found in a decades-old Windows cryptographic component, known as CryptoAPI. The component has a range of functions, one of which allows developers to digitally sign their software, proving that the software has not been tampered with. But the bug may allow attackers to spoof legitimate software, potentially making it easier to run malicious software — like ransomware — on a vulnerable computer.

“The user would have no way of knowing the file was malicious, because the digital signature would appear to be from a trusted provider,” Microsoft said.

Amazon temporarily suspended third-party sellers’ access to FedEx ground delivery services last month.

In “A World Without Work,” the economist Daniel Susskind argues that, unlike during past technological shifts, machines really are becoming smart enough to take over our jobs.