Human 2.0

If you have been paying attention – you might have noticed some small news stories about polymerized stroma free hemoglobin (a.k.a. Artificial Blood). I only mention this because my mind often takes these “turns” when I hear about potentially changing the human condition… turns that guide me towards the “what if” and the “what then”.

Companies have and are currently developing Artificial Blood that can hold greater quantities of Oxygen (among other things) and could eventually be more efficient then what nature has given us. Experiments have already been done where mice (with transfusions of Artificial Blood) have survived in Oxygen deprived environments for hours instead of minutes.

The benefits are limitless – in the fields of Medicine alone, countless lives could be saved and/or prolonged. Harmful blood pathogens and diseases could be eliminated, while organs could be kept alive for later transplantation. In sports, we could be seeing an end to performance enhancing drugs as this “new blood” would allow athletes to endure far beyond their current levels. So with all these very cool (and it is very cool) benefits, why would anyone be concerned?

As for the technology – I’m not upset or concerned. I have no religious qualms about replacing the biological for the artificial, but I do take issue in how this (and other advancements) will impact us as a society.

As with most technological advancements – there will be those that benefit and those that are left behind. Not everyone gets an ipod, not everyone can have movies on-demand and not everyone will have access to biological advancements of the human condition. We already struggle with the economical “have’s” and “have not’s”, but now we are facing a sociological divide between the augmented and “the not”. Questions of whether to hire the Doctor from Harvard Medical School or the person that has had the entire National Library of Medicine downloaded into their brain could some day be a real topic.

It’s just blood for now, but let’s be prepared for the days of nanotechnology and genetic upgrades, when we will have to make the decision of whether we should spontaneously evolve or remain behind and become anthropomorphic antiquities.

As my grandfather told me – “Never confuse change for progress”

Breath in the Ides of March

As I sit here sniffling – I have become quite aware of the air that I’m sharing with my fellow commuters. As I take a breath in – I’m inhaling the air those around me are gasping out. Oh the Joy.

On this (the Ides of March) I’m compelled to think about Julius Caesar and his final gasping breath. You might have heard that Caesar’s dying breath has had plenty of time to be distributed uniformly throughout our atmosphere… knowing of course that a typical breath is one liter of air, and (6x1023 molecules per mole)/(22.4 liters per mole) ~ (1/4)x1023 molecules = 2.5x1022 molecules per liter, and our atmosphere contains (2x1020 moles)*(6x1023 molecules per mole) = 12x1043 molecules or 1.2x1044 molecules… but you already knew that.

Bottom line – every breath we take contains (if his breath has been distributed equally throughout the atmosphere) about 5 molecules of air that Caesar gasped out as he gasped "Et tu Brutus?"…

Note: After reviewing what I just wrote - I’m apparently not to be left alone with hypochondriacs, fearful elderly or impressionable children – peace.

Simple is as Simple does

I try to remember that the average IQ in America is only 98 (when the test was created the average was based on 100… but that’s a topic for a different blog). The State of California (where I reside) has an average of 101 – 14th on the list (Connecticut was first with 113 and Mississippi was last with 85). Which is surprising to me, especially because the American Psychiatric Association defines Borderline Intellectual Functioning (the level slightly above Mild Mental Retardation) as an IQ of 71 to 84.

(Note: As I think of it… the five lowest IQ states in 2000' were Mississippi, Utah, Idaho, Wyoming and South Carolina. The five highest IQ states were Connecticut, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York and Rhode Island. As I recall… Mississippi, Utah, Idaho, Wyoming and South Carolina voted Bush in 2000' and Connecticut, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York and Rhode Island voted Gore… I’m sure there’s no connection… it’s just odd.)

Now don’t get all riled-up if you are from a “low IQ” State. That’s just an average and if you are reading this blog, I’ll assume you are one of the few that are keeping your state from smearing it’s feces all over itself… so we thank you.

Now IQ on its own doesn’t define a persons overall intelligence, but it does give you a road map as to how the person may interpret and process information – this in turn, gives us the overt sense of intelligence when we meet somebody. This pathetically low national average explains so many things – it is becoming the glue that holds my reality in place.

I can now understand why the best Original Song this year (according to the Academy) is “It’s Hard Out Here for a Pimp”. If you think back to when our average was 100, it was "You Light Up My Life", "Chim Chim Cher-ee", "The Way We Were", "Raindrops Keep Fallin' on My Head" and "Born Free"… 2 points down, we can see how “It’s Hard Out Here for a Pimp” could become a classic – (keep a straight face).

In all honesty – I don’t hold a lot of value in what an IQ means… there’s a fine line between genius and insanity… I skirt it everyday (I even take the time to crossover occasionally – the company is much more enjoyable).