This is not the first forecast of this kind
After a few decades, people will no longer be interested in sex both as a means of procreation and as a way to get pleasure. A key role in this will be played by the development, on the one hand, of genetic engineering, and on the other, virtual reality. With this assumption, according to a number of media reports, Stanford University professor Hank Greeley made.
According to the scientist, in the future, people seeking to have a child will donate samples of the future father's seminal fluid and mother's skin. Egg cells will be created from skin cells, which scientists will subsequently artificially fertilize. Of the embryos formed in this way, specialists will choose the one that has the greatest chances to develop into an intelligent and physically healthy child, inheriting those traits of their parents that they choose themselves. Also, the children of the future will be genetically engineered to be rid of all genetic diseases, the scientist suggests.
While children will appear "from a test tube" sex for pleasure, according to the scientist's forecast, in two to four decades will completely "move" into virtual reality, which will become more and more perfect every year. Real sex, meanwhile, over time will increasingly be perceived by people as something repulsive and unacceptable, and "natural" conception will even become considered an irresponsible act that does not allow protecting future children from "unwanted" genetic variants.
It should be noted that earlier Hank Greeley had already made a similar forecast. A somewhat similar theory about the coming "end of sex" was also expressed by futurist Ian Pearson, who previously stated that within ten years robots designed to satisfy the sexual needs of men and women can become so effective that people will no longer perceive each other as suitable sexual partners.
An indirect confirmation of the fact that virtual sex may one day become a "threat" to ordinary sex is the Japanese virtual sex festival Adult VR Fest, which took place in Tokyo last summer and ended ahead of schedule due to an excessive influx of visitors. There were so many people who wanted to try sex in a virtual helmet that the organizers of the festival were afraid of possible riots.
Dmitry Istrov