Steve Mann knows about the impact of emerging technologies: Considered the inventor of the wearable computer, he's been intimately linked to technology for more than two decades.
Performance artist Stelarc has a similarly educated perspective, having performed with a third robotic arm and provided his likeness and personality for an intelligent prosthetic head.
As keynote speakers, the two cyborg thinkers will join hundreds of forward thinkers at TransVision 2004, the World Transhumanist Association's annual conference, held this year in Toronto.
"The issue of self-directed human evolution is becoming more pertinent with each passing year and with each technological breakthrough," says conference Chair George Dvorsky. "Naturally, people are genuinely curious about human enhancement technologies and the potential for a 'transhuman future.' TV04 will bring together some of the world's leading futurists, philosophers and technologists to discuss these possibilities."
TransVision 2004 will address how artificial intelligence, biotechnology, nanotechnology and other emerging technologies are altering humanity's sense of self as well as expanding and diversifying our means of expression and self-actualization.
Transhumanism is a nascent approach to bioethics, futurism, art and culture whose adherents affirm the use of technology to overcome the limitations of the human body. Transhumanism, as both a philosophical and cultural phenomenon, has experienced exponential growth worldwide in recent years. The World Transhumanist Association is a nonprofit global umbrella group dedicated to the promotion of transhumanism.
TransVision 2004 will provide an opportunity for concerned and interested people to critically discuss and analyze the radical potential for life in the posthuman world. Experts from around the world will offer perspectives on the posthuman condition in consideration of recent advances in such fields as artificial intelligence, genetics, nanotechnology and life extension. Mann and Stelarc will be joined by such luminaries as Ronald Bailey, science correspondent for Reason magazine, and Aubrey de Grey, a geneticist and biogerontologist at the University of Cambridge who has dedicated his career to ending aging.
To be held at the University of Toronto from August 6 to August 8, 2004, the conference will bring together an array of thinkers, artists, scientists and ethicists and feature academic discussions, debates and presentations along with captivating and avant-garde performance art and exhibitions. A seminar on August 5 will also address faith and transhumanism, examining such things as whether faith in technology is a sublimated religious urge.
Registration is open to all members of the public and is required for most aspects of the conference. Presentations by Mann and Stelarc will be open to the public for a fee of CDN$12.50.
Website
http://www.transhumanism.org/tv/2004/
Contact information
Simon Smith
Email (preferred): simon@betterhumans.com
Business phone: 416-690-0679
Mobile phone: 416-738-6058
Notes for editors
1) Images of conference organizers and participants are available upon request.
2) Editorials by conference organizers and WTA directors are available upon request.
3) Interviews with conference organizers and participants are available upon request.
4) Press passes are available to accredited journalists.
5) There will be an Introduction to Transhumanism seminar for journalists on August 6 from 1:00 PM to 3:00 PM.