Russian multimillionaire Dmitry Itskov has pumped millions of dollars into his "2045 Initiative," vowing to cure death within the next three decades. Ray Kurzwell, Google's director of engineering, predicts that humans will simply merge with computers, uploading our consciousness and memories and becoming immortal super beings in the process.
MoreThe conference I attended in June is the product of Itskov's 2045 Initiative, which has set itself the goal of transferring "an individual's personality to a more advanced non-biological carrier." The side effect of that ability to transfer personalities would be that one never has to die with a body; they would become, potentially, immortal.
MoreBut given the success (both scientific and in the popular imagination) of Curiosity on Mars, we have to wonder: Is human space exploration really necessary? Can’t we just send robots for exploration and let them do the dangerous work?
On Aug. 20, NASA’s administrator formally welcomed the newest candidates of the astronaut corps and released a space exploration roadmap that includes robotic and human missions to destinations that include near-Earth asteroids, the moon, and Mars.
MoreI recently had the unusual experience of seeing three renowned scientists discuss whether it's possible to remove a human brain from a body, put it in a tank, and give it a robotic body. This wasn't some bizarre late-night bar discussion: The conversation was a serious talk conducted on stage at a conference at New York's Lincoln Center. The University of Southern California's Theodore Berger, Duke University's Mikhail Lebedev, and Alexander Kaplan of Moscow University, all believe it's possible for the brain to survive body-death inside a cybernetic shell.
MoreDr. Theodore Berger, David Packard Professor of Engineering, Professor of Biomedical Engineering and Neurobiology, and Director of the Center for Neural Engineering at the University of Southern California, gave the most groundbreaking presentation of the Congress – one that also received a standing ovation.
MoreFuturists, visionaries, scientists, technologists, philosophers, and others who take this view to heart convened on June 15-16, 2013 in New York City at Global Futures 2045 International Congress: Towards a New Strategy for Human Evolution.
MoreThis June (2013) learned participants in the Global Future 2045 congress gathered in New York to map a new trajectory for large-scale transformation of civilization. Overcoming biological limitations to make room for high ethics, culture, spirituality, technology and science calls for two revolutions—one spiritual; the other, sci-tech. In tandem, both spheres (science and spirit) methodologically pursue states of higher consciousness.
MoreThis June, participants in the Global Future 2045 congress included scientists, philosophers, public figures, business leaders, representatives of different religions, and philanthropists. Their charge was to solve many of society's problems by mapping a new trajectory for civilization whereupon nationally focused ideologies bow to cosmic citizenry. They purpose to overcome biological limitations and, then, fashion a new civilization with high ethics, high culture, high spirituality, high technology and science.
MoreClimate change? Water wars? Overpopulation? Rapidly depleting resources and a lack of initiative to find renewable/sustainable resources? I'm far more than familiar with all of these critical issues thanks to my pursuit of an Environmental Studies major. New to me, however, was discovering that quite a few people actually have a lot of viable ideas of how to address these complex and far-reaching issues. That realization occurred when I attended the Global Future 2045 International Congress (GF2045) on June 15 and 16 at NYC's Lincoln Center.
MoreLast week I attended The Global Future 2045 International Congress (www.gf2045.com) in New York. It was billed as a “congress [that] will discuss key topics such as the transformation of humanity, intelligent evolution, and the emergence of an immortal meta-intelligence at the planetary scale” and—this is what convinced me to go—“much more.” Really? What else could I possibly ask for?GEN’s John Sterling discusses his trip to the Global Future 2045 International Congress.
MoreFounded by Russian entrepreneur Dmitry Itskov in February 2011 with the participation of leading Russian specialists in the field of neural interfaces, robotics, artificial organs and systems.
The main goals of the 2045 Initiative: the creation and realization of a new strategy for the development of humanity which meets global civilization challenges; the creation of optimale conditions promoting the spiritual enlightenment of humanity; and the realization of a new futuristic reality based on 5 principles: high spirituality, high culture, high ethics, high science and high technologies.
The main science mega-project of the 2045 Initiative aims to create technologies enabling the transfer of a individual’s personality to a more advanced non-biological carrier, and extending life, including to the point of immortality. We devote particular attention to enabling the fullest possible dialogue between the world’s major spiritual traditions, science and society.
A large-scale transformation of humanity, comparable to some of the major spiritual and sci-tech revolutions in history, will require a new strategy. We believe this to be necessary to overcome existing crises, which threaten our planetary habitat and the continued existence of humanity as a species. With the 2045 Initiative, we hope to realize a new strategy for humanity's development, and in so doing, create a more productive, fulfilling, and satisfying future.
The "2045" team is working towards creating an international research center where leading scientists will be engaged in research and development in the fields of anthropomorphic robotics, living systems modeling and brain and consciousness modeling with the goal of transferring one’s individual consciousness to an artificial carrier and achieving cybernetic immortality.
An annual congress "The Global Future 2045" is organized by the Initiative to give platform for discussing mankind's evolutionary strategy based on technologies of cybernetic immortality as well as the possible impact of such technologies on global society, politics and economies of the future.
Future prospects of "2045" Initiative for society
2015-2020
The emergence and widespread use of affordable android "avatars" controlled by a "brain-computer" interface. Coupled with related technologies “avatars’ will give people a number of new features: ability to work in dangerous environments, perform rescue operations, travel in extreme situations etc.
Avatar components will be used in medicine for the rehabilitation of fully or partially disabled patients giving them prosthetic limbs or recover lost senses.
2020-2025
Creation of an autonomous life-support system for the human brain linked to a robot, ‘avatar’, will save people whose body is completely worn out or irreversibly damaged. Any patient with an intact brain will be able to return to a fully functioning bodily life. Such technologies will greatly enlarge the possibility of hybrid bio-electronic devices, thus creating a new IT revolution and will make all kinds of superimpositions of electronic and biological systems possible.
2030-2035
Creation of a computer model of the brain and human consciousness with the subsequent development of means to transfer individual consciousness onto an artificial carrier. This development will profoundly change the world, it will not only give everyone the possibility of cybernetic immortality but will also create a friendly artificial intelligence, expand human capabilities and provide opportunities for ordinary people to restore or modify their own brain multiple times. The final result at this stage can be a real revolution in the understanding of human nature that will completely change the human and technical prospects for humanity.
2045
This is the time when substance-independent minds will receive new bodies with capacities far exceeding those of ordinary humans. A new era for humanity will arrive! Changes will occur in all spheres of human activity – energy generation, transportation, politics, medicine, psychology, sciences, and so on.
Today it is hard to imagine a future when bodies consisting of nanorobots will become affordable and capable of taking any form. It is also hard to imagine body holograms featuring controlled matter. One thing is clear however: humanity, for the first time in its history, will make a fully managed evolutionary transition and eventually become a new species. Moreover, prerequisites for a large-scale expansion into outer space will be created as well.
Key elements of the project in the future
• International social movement
• social network immortal.me
• charitable foundation "Global Future 2045" (Foundation 2045)
• scientific research centre "Immortality"
• business incubator
• University of "Immortality"
• annual award for contribution to the realization of the project of "Immortality”.
For additional information, partnerships and sponsorship, contact:
info@2045.com
Media requesting information and interviews, contact PR@2045.com
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