Evolution, enhancement and immortality

Resumo

This article was initially presented by myself in 2010 during the congress “Beyond the body: Perspectives on enhancement” at the ISEI, University of Manchester. I discuss here what enhancement is and how “human nature” has changed throughout human history and I argue that it will continue changing in such a way that by the year 2400 people could expect to live to around 1000 years, and within 40.000 years humans will be able to live around 10.000 years, which in practical terms could be called “immortality”. I also argue that all and any human enhancement, even the changing of our human nature transforming us into immortals, will only be a true enhancement if it came with the moral enhancement of humankind as a whole and each of us as individuals.