NEW ORGANIZATIONAL AFFILIATES
CHANGE IN ORGANIZATIONAL AFFILIATION POLICY
TRANSHUMANITY EZINE GOES ONLINE
NEW ARTICLES IN JET
BOOKS FOR REVIEW
BOSTROM ON GENETIC ENHANCEMENTS
TRANSHUMANISM IN THE NEWS
WTA ELECTIONS TIMELINE

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NEW AFFILIATES

The Ascender Alliance, an organization for disabled transhumanists,
has voted to affiliate with the WTA. The AA was founded by British
>Hist Alan Pottinger, who has a number of founding documents online
at their list site http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Ascender_Alliance/,
and their website http://www.geocities.com/primeascender/.

The Argentine Transhumanist Association formed in March with members
in Cordoba and Buenos Aires. If interested please contact Rishi Verma
despuesdemieldiluvio@yahoo.com (Buenos Aires), Nicolas Nappe
nnappe@uflo.edu.ar (Buenos Aires), or Dr. Rolando Cosacov
cosacov@tutopia.com (Cordoba).

WTA-espanol - The Argentine chapter is also heading up and managing
the WTA Spanish-language list, wta-espanol, for Spanish-speaking
transhumanists. http://groups.yahoo.com/group/wta-espanol/

FASTRA - On the other side of the Atlantic, transhumanists in Spain
have formed FASTRA, short for the Foro y Asociación Transhumanista
or "Fast, ad Astra". Check out their list at
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/fastra and their website will soon be
up at http://www.fastra.net

WTA-brasil - Our Brazilian comrades have also started and are
managing a list for Portuguese-speaking transhumanists.
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/wta-brasil/

Also please welcome the Norwegian Transhumanist Association. Contact
Mats Skillingstad <skilling@stud.ntnu.no> or Shahram Ariafar
<shahrama@studpors.hit.no> for more information.

Here in the States, thanks also go to Ben Hijink who has started
TransCentral <http://groups.yahoo.com/group/TransCentral/> a list for
transhumanists in the Midwest.

___________________________________________
CHANGE IN ORGANIZATIONAL AFFILIATION POLICY

One substantive change that emerged from the month-long online
Convention that the WTA held in March was a vote to change the status
of "organizational members." Our original constitution allowed
organizations to be basic affiliates or full members, paying the same
dues as individuals and getting one vote a piece. Treating
organizations and individuals as equivalents was unwieldy however, so
we now have just two organizational affiliate statuses: affiliate and
chapter. Affiliates apply to the Secretary and Board, and if
accepted, receive one non-voting membership in wtahall, and are
listed in our materials as an affiliate. Chapters apply, appoint a
liaison, and submit a charter, and in return also receive one non-
voting membership in wtahall.

_______________________________
TRANSHUMANITY EZINE GOES ONLINE

WTA's new ezine has gone on-line at http://www.transhumanism.com. The
ezine is targeted at the general reader, and the first article up are:

- An interview with Christopher Dewdney, Canada's leading
transhumanist writer

- An interview with Robert Ettinger, the founder of the cryonics
movement

- "Of Men and Machines" by W. Warren Wagar, author of A Short History
of the Future

You can join the discussion of Transhumanity and its content at:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Transhumanity/

___________________
NEW ARTICLES IN JET

The WTA's Journal of Evolution and Technology
<http://www.transhumanist.com> has also published three new articles
(with many more in the pipeline):

- Mark Walker on "Prolegomena to Any Future Philosophy"
(PDF Version)

- Nick Bostrom on "Existential Risks Analyzing Human Extinction
Scenarios and Related Hazards"

- Glenn F. Cartwright and Adam B.A. Finkelstein on "Second Decade
Symbionics and Beyond"

______________________________
BOSTROM ON GENETIC ENHANCEMENT

A first draft of a new paper by WTA Chair Nick Bostrom, "A
Transhumanist Perspective on Genetic Enhancements," is available for
review. It's an attempt to begin developing an ethical framework for
public policy regarding genetic enhancements and, particularly, human
germ-line genetic engineering. The target audience is professional
ethicists.

http://www.nickbostrom.com/ethics/enhancements.html
http://www.nickbostrom.com/ethics/enhancements.pdf

There is a ongoing discussion of this article taking place in wta-
talk <http://groups.yahoo.com/group/wta-talk/>

________________
BOOKS FOR REVIEW

If you are willing and able to write a 300-1000 word review for JET or
Transhumanity, I have fourbooks available:

Times of the Technoculture, by Kevin Robins and Frank Webster - a
leftist critique of technohype, and argument that the information
economy will be just as unequal and exploitative

Redesigning Humans: Our Inevitable Genetic Future by big thinker
Gregory Stock - Stock's book is the transhumanist grenade thrown into
the debate this year, and is being paired with Fukuyama's diatribe.

Designer Food: Mutant Harvest or Breadbasket of the World? by
philosopher/bioethicist Gregory Pence - Greg is a transhumanist but
doesn't know it yet. A defense of biotech and militant attack on deep
ecology and "eco-fascists".

The Man Who Found the Missing Link: Eugene Dubois and His Lifelong
Quest to Prove Darwin Right by Pat Shipman - An engaging story about
an important intellectual fighter for evolutionary theory.

First come first served. Contact secretary@transhumanism.org

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TRANSHUMANISM IN THE NEWS

The battle to protect US medical research from bio-Luddite bans on
using embryos continues. Check out the information and action alerts
available at the Alliance for Aging Research
<http://www.agingresearch.org/> to see how you can plug in:
<http://capwiz.com/agingresearch/issues/>. Also check out the
fascinating way that Jeremy Rifkin tricked leftists into signing an
anti-medical research petition, causing a huge anti-Luddite backlash
from the Left: http://www.prospect.org/print/V13/8/mooney-c.html

Meanwhile many other countries are forging ahead, such as Australia
<http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?
tmpl=story&u=/nm/20020405/hl_nm/stemcall_australia_1> and China
<http://www.reproductivecloning.net/cgi-bin/ikonboard/ikonboard.cgi?
s=3c87e1823924ffff;act=ST;f=1;t=50>

Gregory Stock and Francis Fukuyama debated the advent of posthumanity
recently in the Reason magazine website. Check it out at:
http://reason.com/debate/eh-debate1.shtml

Max More and Ray Kurzweil dialogue on the nature of the coming
Singularity at: http://www.kurzweilai.net/meme/frame.html?
main=/articles/art0408.html

Max More was interviewed by WTA Secretary J. Hughes for Changesurfer
Radio. Listen to the interview at:
http://www.radio4all.net/proginfo.php?id=4504

Another major milestone in gene therapy: boy cured of severe combined
immunodeficiency ("bubble boy") disease.
http://www.newscientist.com/news/news.jsp?id=ns99992124

Dr Severino Antinori has raised an international furor with his
(unsubstantiated) claim that he has already implanted a cloned embryo.
http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?
tmpl=story&u=/nm/20020408/wl_nm/science_cloning_pregnancy_dc_5

Stanford film students have produced a short film featuring a
counterpoint between Natasha Vita-More discussingher ideal
body "Primo" and William B. Hurlbut of the President's Bioethics
Committee). For more information and availability contact Natasha at:
natasha@natasha.cc.

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WTA ELECTIONS

Potential candidates for the Board of Directors should submit short
statements to the Secretary <secretary@transhumanism.org> to be posted
to wtahall by April 29th describing themselves, relevant experiences
and their goals as a member of the Board of the WTA. Only dues-paid
members are eligible.

On April 29th the Board will also report on the slate of Honorary
Vice-Chairs who have been approached and accepted nomination.

The poll of Board candidates and a slate of Hon VCs will be posted to
wtahall on Monday May 6th at midnite EST. The poll will be closed at
midnite Sunday May 12th EST, and results sent automatically by email
to the membership.

The top five vote-getters in the Board poll will assume the two-year
seats, while the next five will assume the one-year seats. The term
of the new Board begins Monday May 20.


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ABOUT THE WTA

The World Transhumanist Association is a nonprofit membership
organization which works to promote discussion of the possibilities
for radical improvement of human capacities using genetic, cybernetic
and nano technologies. The WTA was founded in 1998 by Nick Bostrom
Ph.D. and David Pearce. Its first task was organizing an
international group of transhumanists to write The Transhumanist
Declaration and the WTA FAQ.

In 2002 the WTA incorporated as a nonprofit organization and elected
a Board of Directors. The WTA is now growing faster than ever, and we
invite you to join us in this important work. You may also enroll in
one of our discussion lists and join one of our local WTA chapters,
which can be found in countries and languages all over the world.
The WTA speakers bureau can provide someone to answer questions on
the transhumanist perspective to the media or to your group. Also,
take a look at our Journal of Evolution and Technology and our new
ezine Transhumanity.

Join us in working for a brighter future!

http://www.transhumanism.org/join.htm