Archive 2020

I love Battlestar Galactica. The story and characters inspire me. The reimagined TV series and movies bring them to life. And I recently decided to watch the show again – even better the second time! But I ran into a problem when I was getting started. None of the viewing ... Read the article →

I thought I was sitting down to watch another Transhumanist-themed documentary. I was wrong. No. I don’t have anything against documentaries about Transhumanists or Transhumanism. To the contrary, I’m a huge fan. You might even find me featured in a couple Transhumanist documentaries this year! But 2030, the feature film ... Read the article →

Today, COVID-19 is ravaging our world. Some of us are suffering physically. All of us are suffering socially and economically. I don’t know for sure what will happen tomorrow. But I know what must happen. You do too, I trust, intuitively if not consciously. So let’s acknowledge and do it. ... Read the article →

Kernel, the neurotech startup funded and led by Bryan Johnson, has been working quietly for four years. Finally, yesterday, they announced more information. They plan, at least initially, to focus on brain monitoring. And their first offering is Neuroscience-as-a-Service (NaaS). The aim of neurotech in general is to enable interaction ... Read the article →

What a spring! Pandemic, shutdowns, layoffs, protests, riots – not to mention earthquakes and rumors of, what, murder hornets? I wouldn’t blame you if you’re tempted to think it’s the end of the world. But I’ve got a proposal for you. Instead of the end, maybe it’s the beginning. I’ve ... Read the article →

I’m a practicing member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, the largest Mormon denomination. I love and support the Church, its members, and its leaders. But that doesn’t mean that I always agree with all of them, all of the time. Nor, of course, does it mean ... Read the article →

Today’s the day after Pioneer Day. The fireworks are now silent. The embers are dark. And I’m thinking about what comes after. Imagine, with me, the last wagon, long after the first pioneers. What is it that we see? Is the ox team that pulls it the smallest and leanest ... Read the article →

A multiple-choice question about God bubbled to the top of my Facebook feed. It asked, “Why doesn’t God stop bad things from happening?” And it offered four options as answers: a) God can’t stop bad things. b) God won’t stop bad things. c) God causes bad things. d) God doesn’t ... Read the article →

What if the best prophecies are fulfilled? What if the worst are avoided? What if, by the grace of God, we make heaven on Earth? What will that look like? Such questions come from one of my favorite professional anthropologists, Jon Bialecki. He has been studying and writing about Mormon ... Read the article →

Last month, members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints met for our semi-annual General Conference. I’m a practicing member of the Church, which is by far the largest Mormon denomination. And I watched the conference online while sharing some of my thoughts via Twitter. This post summarizes ... Read the article →

What can robots do? What can’t they do? Are there hard limits on the potential of machine intelligence? Or will it continue to replicate and eventually surpass the capacities of human intelligence? Randy Paul brought to my attention “What Robots Can’t Do,” an interview with Frank Pasquale by Lawrence Joseph. ... Read the article →