What do people most often complain about now? For the lack of time, for a huge amount of information that is very difficult to keep in mind, for the limited capabilities of the body, which do not allow to do everything in such a rapidly developing digital world. And also people do not want to grow old, lose sight, hearing, memory, mobility with age.
There were enthusiasts who believe that the available technologies are quite capable of solving any problem. You just need to direct this very decision in the right direction. This is how biohacking emerged.
This is a kind of experiments at home, usually on oneself. Their goal is to reveal their own potential by influencing a particular organ, perhaps even at the cellular level.
What biohacking is capable of has been demonstrated by University of Reading professor Kevin Warwick. At his university, he created a computer that interacts with the biosystems of a living organism. As part of the experiment, Warwick implanted a chip in himself that sent a signal tracked by a computer. The smart machine responded to the signal when the professor appeared. For example, she opened doors for him and turned on other computers in the room.
Warwick later implanted two chips in himself and his wife, which, he said, allowed him to sense his wife's actions. Having started the experiment in the late nineties, the professor in 2011, using robots through sensors, transmitted information to brain cells grown in a special culture. Experiments are being conducted on rat brain cells. Later, the professor is going to use human brain cells.
Biohacking is developing in several directions. The first is the ability to synthesize human and artificial intelligence, allowing a person to multiply his own brain activity, to be able to control some processes at a distance, and in the future - to invent something like a telepathic connection. What Professor Warwick is working on.
The second direction is directly related to the word hacking, that is, "hacking". Hack your own body at the cellular level, providing control over all body systems, make it work as and as much as you need. There is a whole international non-profit organization called Humanity +, which promotes the idea of improving humanity with the help of new technologies to the masses. Its members believe that in the future a person will be able to control not only his physical abilities, but also his emotions and mental state, at his own request "switching" himself to love and joy. And this is just the beginning. The ultimate goal of the members of Humanity + is the creation of a posthuman, one who, with the help of advanced technologies, will replace today's humanity. This new creature will have a significantly longer lifespan,there will be amazing abilities. In the future, according to these biohackers, a person after death will be able to exist as information within the Network.
The third direction in the development of biohacking is the implantation of implants into the human body to enhance a certain function of the body. Actually, it has already received a certain development. Sewing a person with a pacemaker, doctors make his unhealthy heart do its job, ensuring the vital activity of the body.
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34-year-old young man Rich Lee, when he learned that he would soon go completely blind, decided that he would still see. And if his eyes are not given to fulfill their function, let his ears do it. Rich implanted magnets into them that transmit sound. While he is just learning to use implants, he gets used to perceive sound with the help of them. But when an ultrasonic rangefinder is added to the magnets, the implants will help Rich see. This method helps bats to navigate in the world around them, which, as you know, lack organs of vision.
The fourth direction is the modification of cells at the genetic level. There is a project called JuicyPrint that hacked bacteria, after which they became sensitive to light. With the help of these bacteria, cellulose was produced. The project involves changing the genetic code of bacteria so that they do their job depending on the presence of light. In the future, it is planned to lay bacteria on the material for a 3D printer in layers, and the final product will take the form the manufacturer wants. Subsequently, when strong biologically compatible substances are created, this technology can be used to restore certain organs of living beings, to create analogs of blood vessels. The biological basis of new organs will help them freely take place in the human body.
The fifth direction is associated with the available "improvised" means, which allow even now to force the body to work one hundred percent. So, biohacker Asprey created a low-toxic coffee, which was called bulletproof. This drink stimulates brain activity, helps Asprey fight overweight and take care of his own health. This biohacker is also called an extreme. To improve his body and enhance brain activity, he connects electric current to his muscles and brain.
The popularity of today's nootropics is also associated with the desire to expand the capabilities of your memory and make your cognition limitless. With the help of these tools, experimenters hope to fulfill the dream of many: to use the brain by 100 percent, and not 10, as in the average person, as scientists say.
The well-known doping is also biohacking aimed at expanding the physical abilities of a person.
Many people have heard about fasting as a section of biohacking. This is a curative fasting, which alternates with meals according to a certain pattern. It allows you to cleanse the body of toxins, thereby launching the function of self-healing and partial rejuvenation. It is also used to get rid of excess weight.
Biohackers have their own experts in various areas of biohacking: Kelly Starrett - on mobility, Jim Quick - from memory, Daniel Amen - from brain. There are about 40 of them in total. Experts regularly meet at conferences to discuss their developments and achievements.
The experts themselves claim that their goal is to allow a person to be minimally dependent on the world around him, to control his emotions, to adequately respond to any life circumstances, and most importantly, to “squeeze out” the maximum of possibilities from his body, without causing him any harm. This is a look at a healthy lifestyle from the point of view of biohacking.
Maria Pavlova