Building Better Humans? Refocusing the Debate on Transhumanism

Excerpt

Building Better Humans? Refocusing the Debate on Transhumanism is the third volume of the Peter Lang series Beyond Humanism: Trans- and Posthumanism, whose focus are movements that attempt to transcend humanism. This particular volume represents the culmination of a grant funded by the Metanexus Institute and the John Templeton Foundation, both of which fund research on questions related to science and religion. The volume focuses on “transhumanism,” which is a growing movement that aims to enhance humans through science and technology, and as such, raises “big” questions about what it means to be human, the ultimate purposes of human life, and the limits or boundaries of science and technology. Given the deeper ontological questions implicit in the transhumanist project, proponents and critics of the movement have emerged from multiple disciplines such as religion, philosophy, social science, history, biology, engineering, and law. Recognizing the potential and need for transdisciplinary research in transhumanism, and the lack of edited, multidisciplinary volumes on transhumanism, this volume was the first to bring together scholars from a variety of fields who critically engage the topic. …