For all interested,

(from the http://imminst.org site)

Apr 25 - Brain-Computer Interfacing
Shawn Mikula, creator of Mind-Brain.com, joins ImmInst to discuss his current work, the future of brain-computer interfacing and immortalism.


There should not be any problems with participating in the chat session, and I'm expecting that it will be a good learning experience for everyone involved. Hope to see you there!

(NOTE: The following is directly from the imminst.org site)


Chat Topic: Astrophysics with Dr. Michael Hartl
Caltech physicist Michael Hartl joins ImmInst to discuss astrophysics,
gravitational waves, and chaos theory, as well as assorted topics in
transhumanism.

Chat Time: Sunday May 2, 2004 @ 8 PM Eastern [Time Zone Help]
Chat Room: http://www.imminst.org/chat (irc.lucifer.com port: 6667 #immortal)


Michael David Hartl
Personal: http://michaelhartl.org/
Professional: http://michaelhartl.com/

Crazy futurist stuff
Warning: may cause future shock

I'm interested in a variety of (possibly not-so-)crazy futurist stuff. Most of it falls under the category of "transhumanism", a philosophy that emphasizes the value of human beings (as in classical humanism) together with the transformative power of technology (which may eventually allow humans to transcend their current biological and cognitive limitations). The World Transhumanist Association FAQ is an articulate and mind-bending introduction to transhumanism and related ideas, and it greatly repays careful study and contemplation.

The Two Big Things in this area (in my view) are nanotechnology and artificial intelligence. In both cases, there is an essential theme:

Many proposed advanced technologies (including nanotechnology and artificial intelligence) are consistent with physical law as we know it. Their successful realization is a problem of practice, not principle—and therefore probably a matter of when, not if.

MORE: http://michaelhartl.org/crazy

Could malignancies induced by resident gastrointestinal flora, including H. pylori, ever have had benefit to humans? Gastrointestinal cancers (like most cancers) increase exponentially in frequency in the elderly, after the reproductive period is generally over. In times of abundant food resources, old age is valued by humans. During scarcity, longevity limits the nutrients available to reproductively active populations. "Programmed death" (analogous to apoptosis?) of the elderly by mechanisms not injurious to younger individuals may benefit the species by maximizing nutrient availability to reproductively active populations. Overpopulation is as much a danger to humans as it is to trees. Cancer as a means for culling the herd is less dangerous to the species than is the spread of highly virulent infectious agents from undernourished (susceptible) elderly populations to those who have not completed their reproductive years. These concepts may help explain the worldwide ubiquity of neoplasia in elderly populations.

J. Clin. Invest.
©The American Society for Clinical Investigation, Inc.
0021-9738/97/08/759/04 $2.00
Volume 100, Number 4, August 1997, 759-762

Ecology of Helicobacter pylori in the Human Stomach

Martin J. Blaser

WARNING

If you check Shawns original post, it was in 2004 !!!

There may well be diificulty in participating in the chat session in 2007.

Yerr, I was just trying to stimulate some more chat here about the Imminst issues.

Its the thought that counts.