Nick Bostrom on existential risks and posthumanity
In this video from Activate 09 Nick Bostrom gives a short overview of world history, coming threats to the planet and the likelihood of posthumanity arising.
Nick is a philosopher we’ve perhaps neglected a tad here so far. Firstly, he’s Swedish, so you may struggle to parse his accent. Just watch the slides then, you’ll get a feel for what he’s saying.
Secondly, he’s the director of the Oxford Institute for the History of Humanity. As opposed to pure technologists like Ray Kurzweil he does more than just quote Moore’s Law, and his writings range around a variety of subjects.
Bostrom’s article, co-written with Anders Sandberg, The Wisdom of Nature: An Evolutionary Heuristic for Human Enhancement is particularly thought-provoking. Have a wander around his site to see the breadth of his subject matter.
You could also buy the book he’s contributed to, Human Enhancement, and send us in a review. It looks fascinating, but I don’t think I’ll have time to read it in the near future.
