Synthetic Biology, risks and rewards.

[firstfloor]

Never mind about praying to God, the human race are becoming gods, diesel fuel from yeast and other stuff, synthetic biology.
BBC Horizon, Playing God - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VkNEIXlt8rg
High risks though.

[Cerebrum123]

Never mind about praying to God, the human race are becoming gods, diesel fuel from yeast and other stuff, synthetic biology.
BBC Horizon, Playing God - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VkNEIXlt8rg
High risks though.

My only thing to say here is that you obviously have a very low view of what it truly means to be God(by no means are humans ever going to be omnipotent, omniscient, omnipresent, and eternal).

[firstfloor]

My only thing to say here is that you obviously have a very low view of what it truly means to be God(by no means are humans ever going to be omnipotent, omniscient, omnipresent, and eternal).

And Omniabsent as well - God that is, not humans. Although if we try hard enough we might well end up Omniabsent.

[Soyeong]

Never mind about praying to God, the human race are becoming gods, diesel fuel from yeast and other stuff, synthetic biology.
BBC Horizon, Playing God - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VkNEIXlt8rg
High risks though

That was interesting, thanks for sharing. While it does give hope for the future, it does seem like it has a lot of potential to be very harmful as well. I think the nail bomb analogy was appropriate and it was dismissed too quickly. He implied that you could make parts like a nail, but that it would be easier just to make a nail bomb. The problem is that it has the potential to be more like a rapidly-spreading self-replicating nail bomb and, especially with how much the technology has grown and become accessible in the last few years, it will probably become easier to make things that are dangerous. I know there are a lot of precautions to prevent something from being released, but that isn't foolproof, and there are people who are actually interested in releasing stuff who may not take those precautions.

What is even more unsettling is the potential abuse of changing the brain chemistry. It might not be that far down the road to have something like providing a pleasure response associated with following someone's orders and a pain response associated with guilt for not following them, which has the potential to cause people to do horrible things.

[Jedidiah]

Never mind about praying to God, the human race are becoming gods, diesel fuel from yeast and other stuff, synthetic biology.
BBC Horizon, Playing God - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VkNEIXlt8rg
High risks though.

Making one thing from another is no big deal. Men have been doing that for a long time.

[DuraGizer]

Never mind about praying to God, the human race are becoming gods

Indeed. Small, impotent gods, suicidal vassals of almighty Chaos Itself.

[firstfloor]

Indeed. Small, impotent gods, suicidal vassals of almighty Chaos Itself.

That seems a bit pessimistic to me. It’s just a phase we’re going through. We just need to up the average education a bit, dump the religious nonsense and we’ll be fine. Let's get a bit of Eddie Izzard in our life.

[Soyeong]

And Omniabsent as well - God that is, not humans. Although if we try hard enough we might well end up Omniabsent.

I am reminded of a story I heard a while back that goes something like this:

Scientist: I am like you, God. I can make life out of clay.

God: Oh? Let's see.

*The Scientist reaches down to grab a lump of clay.*

God: No, you need to use your own clay.
______


Unless you can create life without using something created by God, then you are just deluding yourself with the oldest lie in the book (both figuratively and literally): that we can be like God. We can debate about what attributes God has or what a colossal train wreck dumping religious education would be all you want, but surely you can admit that the analogy is not appropriate. Then perhaps we can get back to the point of this thread and discuss the new technology?

[DuraGizer]

That seems a bit pessimistic to me.

Well, maybe thats because I am a pessimist. And a misanthrope. And an antinatalist. Heck, consider me a borderline nihilist, too; I'm almost there.

[firstfloor]

I am reminded of a story I heard a while back that goes something like this:

Scientist: I am like you, God. I can make life out of clay.

God: Oh? Let's see.

*The Scientist reaches down to grab a lump of clay.*

God: No, you need to use your own clay.
______


Unless you can create life without using something created by God, then you are just deluding yourself with the oldest lie in the book (both figuratively and literally): that we can be like God. We can debate about what attributes God has or what a colossal train wreck dumping religious education would be all you want, but surely you can admit that the analogy is not appropriate. Then perhaps we can get back to the point of this thread and discuss the new technology?

As you might expect, I take the view that we made and continue to remake God, not the other way about, and we are gradually attaining such powers and knowledge that were once unimaginable. The danger lies in thinking that someone else is driving.

[Soyeong]

As you might expect, I take the view that we made and continue to remake God, not the other way about, and we are gradually attaining such powers and knowledge that were once unimaginable. The danger lies in thinking that someone else is driving.

Do you think that one day we'll have the power to create a universe? And the fact that someone else is driving takes backseat to the danger of not being accountable to a higher being about how we use our knowledge and power.

[firstfloor]

Do you think that one day we'll have the power to create a universe? And the fact that someone else is driving takes backseat to the danger of not being accountable to a higher being about how we use our knowledge and power.

No, to the first question. However the universe is made, and for all we know there are others in production somewhere, the conditions that existed at the creation are not known and the governing physics is not known. There is some hope that very early history is imprinted on the cosmic background radiation but I think it most unlikely that we will ever know enough about it to be certain about what happened.

In steps God. If you presuppose a being with the technology to make universes you still have to explain the existence of the being, and you know how this goes into endless regression. The universe only makes sense if God is not in it (IMHO).

On your final point, I would say that we are accountable to later generations. We should try to leave this world in a better condition than that in which we found it. Stand tall and embrace the new technology.

[Cerebrum123]

No, to the first question. However the universe is made, and for all we know there are others in production somewhere, the conditions that existed at the creation are not known and the governing physics is not known. There is some hope that very early history is imprinted on the cosmic background radiation but I think it most unlikely that we will ever know enough about it to be certain about what happened.

In steps God. If you presuppose a being with the technology to make universes you still have to explain the existence of the being, and you know how this goes into endless regression. The universe only makes sense if God is not in it (IMHO).

On your final point, I would say that we are accountable to later generations. We should try to leave this world in a better condition than that in which we found it. Stand tall and embrace the new technology.

You really don't understand the Christian concept of God, do you? Well here is a little you need to understand. God (in most Christians view) is eternal, and had no beginning. This means that there is no infinite regression like you mentioned. Basically you can either have an eternal universe(many believe this, but it's not the majority Christian understanding), or you can have an eternal God. If our universe had been existing for an eternity, we would long ago have reached "heat death" so an eternal universe doesn't make much sense.

[Jedidiah]

If our universe had been existing for an eternity, we would long ago have reached "heat death" so an eternal universe doesn't make much sense.

But now we get around that problem by creating an eternal metauniverse. Forget that there is no evidence for same.