The concept of human augmentation refers to the physical enhancement of the human body through the use of technology—for example, by implanting a chip in the brain to make it function more quickly and access a wide range of information instantly from the Internet.
Human augmentation has long been a topic of interest in science fiction, but in recent years it has begun to become an increasingly tangible reality. For example, there are now advanced prosthetics that allow people with mobility impairments to regain the ability to walk, and there are also brain implants that can improve memory and cognitive performance.
However, human augmentation also raises some ethical and social concerns.
What are the ethical limits of human enhancement?
How will this affect society as a whole?
Will there be a growing gap between those who can afford augmentative technology and those who cannot?
These are some of the questions that need to be considered as we move forward in this field.
A recent study conducted by Kaspersky, a company specializing in cybersecurity, revealed that the general public supports human augmentation techniques aimed at “enhancing human intelligence.”
One in five people (22%) would choose to enhance their intelligence or intellectual capacity with the help of technologyif they had the opportunity; additionally, 52% of people believe it is “completely” or “quite” acceptable to usehuman augmentationtechniques to improve children’s learning abilities in school. This is one of the findings of the survey on perceptions surrounding this disruptive trend.
Interestingly, interest in boosting brain power is highest among people aged 18 to 34 (27%); it drops to 22% among those aged 35 to 54 and falls to 17% for people over 55. In terms of gender,women (23%) are slightly more likely to want to improve their brain potentialand intelligence than men (22%).
The study, conducted among 14,500 adults in 16 countries, revealed that more thanhalf of the respondents (63%) would consider augmenting their bodies with technology to enhance them, either permanently or temporarily. Some respondents even expressed a desire to connect smartphones to their bodies, and nearly half of those surveyed (49%) believe it is “completely” or “mostly” acceptable to usehuman augmentationto make people smarter overall.
About the report
The fieldwork was conducted by Opinium Research between July 9 and 27, 2020. Opinium surveyed 14,500 adults in 16 countries: Austria, Belgium, the Czech Republic, Denmark, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Italy, Morocco, the Netherlands, Portugal, Romania, Spain, Switzerland, and the United Kingdom.
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Source: Kaspersky's official blog
