List of Biotechnology Companies to Watch Compiled by Logan Thrasher Collins
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An Evolutionary Heuristic for Human Enhancement
18 TheWisdomofNature: An Evolutionary Heuristic for Human Enhancement Nick Bostrom and Anders Sandberg∗ Abstract Human beings are a marvel of evolved complexity. Such systems can be difficult to enhance. When we manipulate complex evolved systems, which are poorly understood, our interventions often fail or backfire. It can appear as if there is a ‘‘wisdom of nature’’ which we ignore at our peril. Sometimes the belief in nature’s wisdom—and corresponding doubts about the prudence of tampering with nature, especially human nature—manifest as diffusely moral objections against enhancement. Such objections may be expressed as intuitions about the superiority of the natural or the troublesomeness of hubris, or as an evaluative bias in favor of the status quo. This chapter explores the extent to which such prudence-derived anti-enhancement sentiments are justified. We develop a heuristic, inspired by the field of evolutionary medicine, for identifying promising human enhancement interventions. The heuristic incorporates the grains of truth contained in ‘‘nature knows best’’ attitudes while providing criteria for the special cases where we have reason to believe that it is feasible for us to improve on nature. 1.Introduction 1.1. The wisdom of nature, and the special problem of enhancement We marvel at the complexity of the human organism, how its various parts have evolved to solve intricate problems: the eye to collect and pre-process ∗ Oxford Future of Humanity Institute, Faculty of Philosophy and James Martin 21st Century School, Oxford University. Forthcoming in Enhancing Humans, ed. Julian Savulescu and Nick Bostrom (Oxford: Oxford University Press) 376 visual information, the immune system to fight infection and cancer, the lungs to oxygenate the blood. -
Who Wants to Live Forever? Reader’S Digest
HEALTH Who Wantsto Live Forever? As a species, we humans appear to be the undisputed masters of our planet. Moreover, since Yuri Gagarin’s inaugural space flight in 1961, we can even leave the confines of Earth to travel in space. Yet, we have one Achilles’ heel—we’re mortal BY CHRIS MENON 1234567890 1234567890 36 BRAIN LIGHT/ALAMY STOCK PHOTO WHO WANTS TO LIVE FOREVER? READEr’s DIGEST T 122 YEARS, THE MAXIMUM HUMAN LIFESPAN lags well behind some species of giant tortoise (188 years), Greenland shark (400 years) and the record set by the lowly Icelandic clam (507 years). Even those relatively few humans who do manage to make it past 100—some 14,570 people in the UK in 2015—are invariably bedeviled byA poor health. Recently, efforts to extend the healthy of Amazon, has similarly invested human lifespan have achieved much in Unity Biotechnology, which aims publicity following the backing of “to design therapeutics that prevent, visionary, super-rich Silicon Valley halt, or reverse diseases of ageing”. tech entrepreneurs. In 2013, Google’s Unity intends to develop a new founders created a subsidiary class of therapies called “senolytic company called Calico (short for medicines”, designed to selectively the California Life Company), eliminate senescent cells. Senescent Billionaire researchers, which promptly hired a team of top cells accumulate with age and, Some believe that death, Arthur Levinson, Jeff technologies that scientists and now has more than unlike normal cells, they secrete like any disease, can be Bezos and Elon Musk the SENS Research £1bn in the bank to fund its work. -
The Transhumanist Reader Is an Important, Provocative Compendium Critically Exploring the History, Philosophy, and Ethics of Transhumanism
TH “We are in the process of upgrading the human species, so we might as well do it E Classical and Contemporary with deliberation and foresight. A good first step is this book, which collects the smartest thinking available concerning the inevitable conflicts, challenges and opportunities arising as we re-invent ourselves. It’s a core text for anyone making TRA Essays on the Science, the future.” —Kevin Kelly, Senior Maverick for Wired Technology, and Philosophy “Transhumanism has moved from a fringe concern to a mainstream academic movement with real intellectual credibility. This is a great taster of some of the best N of the Human Future emerging work. In the last 10 years, transhumanism has spread not as a religion but as a creative rational endeavor.” SHU —Julian Savulescu, Uehiro Chair in Practical Ethics, University of Oxford “The Transhumanist Reader is an important, provocative compendium critically exploring the history, philosophy, and ethics of transhumanism. The contributors anticipate crucial biopolitical, ecological and planetary implications of a radically technologically enhanced population.” M —Edward Keller, Director, Center for Transformative Media, Parsons The New School for Design A “This important book contains essays by many of the top thinkers in the field of transhumanism. It’s a must-read for anyone interested in the future of humankind.” N —Sonia Arrison, Best-selling author of 100 Plus: How The Coming Age of Longevity Will Change Everything IS The rapid pace of emerging technologies is playing an increasingly important role in T overcoming fundamental human limitations. The Transhumanist Reader presents the first authoritative and comprehensive survey of the origins and current state of transhumanist Re thinking regarding technology’s impact on the future of humanity. -
From Here to Immortality: Anti-Aging Medicine
FromFrom HereHere toto Immortality:Immortaalitty: AAnti-AgingAnnntti-AAgging MMedicineedicine Anti-aging medicine is a $5 billion industry. Despite its critics, researchers are discovering that inter ventions designed to turn back time may prove to be more science than fiction. By Trudie Mitschang 14 BioSupply Trends Quarterly • October 2013 he symptoms are disturbing. Weight gain, muscle Shifting Attitudes Fuel a Booming Industry aches, fatigue and joint stiffness. Some experience The notion that aging requires treatment is based on a belief Thear ing loss and diminished eyesight. In time, both that becoming old is both undesirable and unattractive. In the memory and libido will lapse, while sagging skin and inconti - last several decades, aging has become synonymous with nence may also become problematic. It is a malady that begins dete rioration, while youth is increasingly revered and in one’s late 40 s, and currently 100 percent of baby boomers admired. Anti-aging medicine is a relatively new but thriving suffer from it. No one is immune and left untreated ; it always field driven by a baby- boomer generation fighting to preserve leads to death. A frightening new disease, virus or plague? No , its “forever young” façade. According to the market research it’s simply a fact of life , and it’s called aging. firm Global Industry Analysts, the boomer-fueled consumer The mythical fountain of youth has long been the subject of base will push the U.S. market for anti-aging products from folklore, and although it is both natural and inevitable, human about $80 billion now to more than $114 billion by 2015. -
Global Catastrophic Risks Survey
GLOBAL CATASTROPHIC RISKS SURVEY (2008) Technical Report 2008/1 Published by Future of Humanity Institute, Oxford University Anders Sandberg and Nick Bostrom At the Global Catastrophic Risk Conference in Oxford (17‐20 July, 2008) an informal survey was circulated among participants, asking them to make their best guess at the chance that there will be disasters of different types before 2100. This report summarizes the main results. The median extinction risk estimates were: Risk At least 1 million At least 1 billion Human extinction dead dead Number killed by 25% 10% 5% molecular nanotech weapons. Total killed by 10% 5% 5% superintelligent AI. Total killed in all 98% 30% 4% wars (including civil wars). Number killed in 30% 10% 2% the single biggest engineered pandemic. Total killed in all 30% 10% 1% nuclear wars. Number killed in 5% 1% 0.5% the single biggest nanotech accident. Number killed in 60% 5% 0.05% the single biggest natural pandemic. Total killed in all 15% 1% 0.03% acts of nuclear terrorism. Overall risk of n/a n/a 19% extinction prior to 2100 These results should be taken with a grain of salt. Non‐responses have been omitted, although some might represent a statement of zero probability rather than no opinion. 1 There are likely to be many cognitive biases that affect the result, such as unpacking bias and the availability heuristic‒‐well as old‐fashioned optimism and pessimism. In appendix A the results are plotted with individual response distributions visible. Other Risks The list of risks was not intended to be inclusive of all the biggest risks. -
Read Our New Annual Report
The seeds of a concept. The roots of an idea. The potential of a world free of age-related disease. Photo: Sherry Loeser Photography SENS Research Foundation Board of Directors Barbara Logan, Chair Bill Liao, Secretary Kevin Perrott, Treasurer Michael Boocher Jonathan Cain Kevin Dewalt Michael Kope Jim O’Neill Frank Schüler Sherry Loeser Photography 2 Contents CEO Letter (Jim O’Neill) 4 Finances 5 Donors 6 - 7 Fundraising & Conferences 8 - 9 Around the World with Aubrey de Grey 10 Outreach 11 Founding CEO Tribute & Underdog Pharmaceuticals 12 - 13 Investments 14 Welcome New Team Members 15 Education 16 - 17 Publications & Research Advisory Board 18 Research Summaries 19 - 22 Ways to Donate 23 The SRF Team Front row: Anne Corwin (Engineer/Editor), Amutha Boominathan (MitoSENS Group Lead), Alexandra Stolzing (VP of Research), Aubrey de Grey (Chief Science Officer), Jim O’Neill (CEO), Bhavna Dixit (Research Associate). Center row: Caitlin Lewis (Research Associate), Lisa Fabiny-Kiser (VP of Operations), Gary Abramson (Graphics), Maria Entraigues-Abramson (Global Outreach Coordinator), Jessica Lubke (Administrative Assistant). Back row: Tesfahun Dessale Admasu (Research Fellow), Amit Sharma (ImmunoSENS Group Lead), Michael Rae (Science Writer), Kelly Protzman (Executive Assistant). Not Pictured: Greg Chin (Director, SRF Education), Ben Zealley (Website/Research Assistant/ Deputy Editor) Photo: Sherry Loeser Photography, 2019 3 From the CEO At our 2013 conference at Queens College, Cambridge, I closed my talk by saying, “We should not rest until we make aging an absurdity.” We are now in a very different place. After a lot of patient explanation, publication of scientific results, conferences, and time, our community persuaded enough scientists of the feasibility of the damage repair approach to move SENS and SENS Research Foundation from the fringes of scientific respectability to the vanguard of a mainstream community of scientists developing medical therapies to tackle human aging. -
Longevity and Generosity. the Death of Death. July 2018. N° 112
Longevity and generosity. The death of death. July 2018. N° 112. Some people say, “Oh, you shouldn’t do enhancement” but the thing is we do enhancement all the time — to some extent, all aging reversal is enhancement. Vaccines are enhancement… I think I’m just now getting up to speed after 63 years of education. Aging reversal is something that will buy me and many of my colleagues a lot more time to make many more contributions, so you might consider that a meta-level contribution, if we can pull that off. World-renowned Harvard University biology researcher George Church (source). Theme of the month. How to contribute financially to research for a much longer healthy life Introduction If you have considerable financial means you can afford medical care more easily than less well-off citizens. But whether you are rich or not, with a good "genetic capital" or not, whatever your precautions and your anti-aging clinic visits, in the current state of knowledge your chances are low of living more than 100 years if you are a woman and beyond 95 years if you are of the weaker sex for longevity. And whatever happens, you will not live past 122 years for a woman et 116 years for a man. To go further will require complex and costly research. If informed citizens pay money to support this research, it will be positive in a direct way by funding the research. It will also be positive in that it will show the growing interest in these issues. What could you do about it? Moderate financial support If your financial means are limited or if you do not wish to make large donations, your action can still have an impact. -
What Is the Upper Limit of Value?
WHAT IS THE UPPER LIMIT OF VALUE? Anders Sandberg∗ David Manheim∗ Future of Humanity Institute 1DaySooner University of Oxford Delaware, United States, Suite 1, Littlegate House [email protected] 16/17 St. Ebbe’s Street, Oxford OX1 1PT [email protected] January 27, 2021 ABSTRACT How much value can our decisions create? We argue that unless our current understanding of physics is wrong in fairly fundamental ways, there exists an upper limit of value relevant to our decisions. First, due to the speed of light and the definition and conception of economic growth, the limit to economic growth is a restrictive one. Additionally, a related far larger but still finite limit exists for value in a much broader sense due to the physics of information and the ability of physical beings to place value on outcomes. We discuss how this argument can handle lexicographic preferences, probabilities, and the implications for infinite ethics and ethical uncertainty. Keywords Value · Physics of Information · Ethics Acknowledgements: We are grateful to the Global Priorities Institute for highlighting these issues and hosting the conference where this paper was conceived, and to Will MacAskill for the presentation that prompted the paper. Thanks to Hilary Greaves, Toby Ord, and Anthony DiGiovanni, as well as to Adam Brown, Evan Ryan Gunter, and Scott Aaronson, for feedback on the philosophy and the physics, respectively. David Manheim also thanks the late George Koleszarik for initially pointing out Wei Dai’s related work in 2015, and an early discussion of related issues with Scott Garrabrant and others on asymptotic logical uncertainty, both of which informed much of his thinking in conceiving the paper. -
Ÿþc R Y O N I C S M a G a Z I N E , Q 1 2 0
2007 RECAP 1st Quarter 2008 • Volume 29:1 2007 ANnual Review page 5 Member Profile: Wes Du Charme page 3 7th Alcor Conference Recap page 13 Cryonics and Religion: Friends or Foes? page 19 INSIDE CRYONICS 2 From the Editor 1ST QUARTER 2008 • VOLUME 29:1 19 Cryonics and Religion: Friends or Foes? The cryonics community recognizes the importance and challenge of being 1st Quarter 2008 • Volume 29:1 understood by the general 2007 RECAP public. Religion plays a sub- Cover shows opening reception stantial role in our diverse at the 7th Alcor conference. 2007 ANnual society and may seem to Review Photo by Brian Harris. page 5 some to be at odds with many facets of scientific COVER STORY: PAGE 5 advancement. Meet one theologian who feels the 2007 Annual Review: Today, over ultimate success of cryonics 850page people 3 in the world rely on the is contingent upon the sup- Member Profile: Wes Du CharmeAlcor Life Extension Foundation for Recap port of more than just great Conferencecryopreservation page 13 services. Enrich your 7th Alcor scientific minds. understanding of present-day clinical advancements with the potential to CryonicsFriends and Religion: or Foes?page 19 significantly benefit Alcor’s growing 22 Book Review: Ending membership base in years to come. Aging Likened to a good detective novel, Ending Aging allures the reader into a real- life tale of the mysteries of aging. The author, Dr. 3 Member Profile: Wes Du Charme Aubrey de Grey, has been Wes Du Charme – psychologist, author and barber shop quartet the center of controversy singer – celebrates his thirteenth year as an Alcor member in since proposing a systematic June 2008. -
Intergalactic Spreading of Intelligent Life and Sharpening the Fermi Paradox
Eternity in six hours: intergalactic spreading of intelligent life and sharpening the Fermi paradox Stuart Armstronga,∗, Anders Sandberga aFuture of Humanity Institute, Philosophy Department, Oxford University, Suite 8, Littlegate House 16/17 St. Ebbe's Street, Oxford, OX1 1PT UK Abstract The Fermi paradox is the discrepancy between the strong likelihood of alien intelligent life emerging (under a wide variety of assumptions), and the ab- sence of any visible evidence for such emergence. In this paper, we extend the Fermi paradox to not only life in this galaxy, but to other galaxies as well. We do this by demonstrating that traveling between galaxies { indeed even launching a colonisation project for the entire reachable universe { is a rela- tively simple task for a star-spanning civilization, requiring modest amounts of energy and resources. We start by demonstrating that humanity itself could likely accomplish such a colonisation project in the foreseeable future, should we want to, and then demonstrate that there are millions of galaxies that could have reached us by now, using similar methods. This results in a considerable sharpening of the Fermi paradox. Keywords: Fermi paradox, interstellar travel, intergalactic travel, Dyson shell, SETI, exploratory engineering 1. Introduction 1.1. The classical Fermi paradox The Fermi paradox, or more properly the Fermi question, consists of the apparent discrepancy between assigning a non-negligible probability for intelligent life emerging, the size and age of the universe, the relative rapidity ∗Corresponding author Email addresses: [email protected] (Stuart Armstrong), [email protected] (Anders Sandberg) Preprint submitted to Acta Astronautica March 12, 2013 with which intelligent life could expand across space or otherwise make itself visible, and the lack of observations of any alien intelligence. -
Blurring Our Edges
NATURE|Vol 450|15 November 2007 BOOKS & ARTS not involve passing on truths from producer rigorous understanding of whose technical between colour perceivers and colour-blind to consumer, but takes the form of fallible expertise really should weigh in on techno- participants, probably because the latter had judgements made in situations in which all logical decision-making. This is what Collins been immersed since birth in the language of the desired information is not available. This and Evans call the “problem of extension”, or colour and acquired the ability to pass as per- applies to scientific collaborations and gov- “who is entitled to contribute to the technical ceivers. In another, judges could not pick out ernmental projects. “The speed of politics,” component of a technological decision”. If an Collins in a group of bona fide gravitational- they write in a characteristically succinct and extension is too technocratic, it will foster dis- wave researchers. clever remark, “exceeds the speed of scientific trust; if it is too broad, there is a risk of invoking These results have startling implications. consensus formation.” This leads them to ‘technological populism’, which means deci- For instance, Evans has shown that minorities defend their seemingly pedestrian conclusion sions could be overly influenced by politics or can acquire enough interactional expertise of that governments should rely on experts as lifestyle choice. mainstream culture to foil attempts to pick “the best way to distil human experience of an The authors address the problem of exten- them out by questioning alone. This suggests uncertain world” — even when those experts sion by offering a “periodic table of expertise” that if minorities live by different values, it is have no final answers. -
SENS Research Foundation Annual Report 2015
S E N S R e s e a r c h F o u n d a t i o n has a unique mission: to ensure the development of cures which repair the underlying cellular and molecular damage of aging. This document, our 2 0 1 5 R e p o r t, demonstrates our commitment to delivering on the promise of that mission, and to meeting the challenges facing the rapidly emerging rejuvenation biotechnology field. Our research program delivers key proof-of-concept results. Our education program prepares the first generation of rejuvenation biotechnology professionals. Our outreach program widens and connects our communi. Our Rejuvenation Biotechnology conferences unite stakeholders from academic, industrial, political, regulatory and financial institutions. Together, we are transforming the way the world researches and treats age-related disease. i n t r o d u c t i o n 2 l e t t e r f r o m t h e C E O 3 c o m m u n i t y 4 o u t r e a c h 6 e d u c a t i o n 8 r e s e a r c h 1 0 f i n a n c e s 1 4 r e s e a r c h : p r o j e c t b y p r o j e c t 1 5 s u p p o r t i n g t h e f o u n d a t i o n 2 3 FOUNDATION BOARD OF LEADERSHIP DIRECTORS Mike Kope Barbara Logan Jonathan Cain Chief Executive Officer Board Chair Kevin Dewalt Kevin Perrott Dr.