Body upgrades nearing reality, but only for the rich, 'Sapiens' author says
'Sapiens' author says access to physical and mental enhancements to widen rich-poor gap
The scenario has played out in science fiction, but the prospect is raised more seriously by Yuval Noah Harari, an Israeli historian, in his book, .
In it he sees trouble, with enhancements accessible only to the rich leading to a society more unequal than any before.
The revolution Harari has in mind is borne of engineering and exploits mechanical, electronic, chemical and genetic progress. In place of treatments that correct biological deficits will be procedures that improve natural performance, making recipients biologically better than the rest.
"In the 20th century, the main task of medicine was to bring everybody to a certain level of health and capability. It was by definition an egalitarian aim," Harari said.
"In the 21st century medicine is moving onwards and trying to surpass the norm, to help people live longer, to have stronger memories, to have better control of their emotions. But upgrading like that is not an egalitarian project, it's an elitist project."
He argues that as science progresses the upgrades will widen the gap between rich and poor. Research on implantable devices called brain-computer interfaces (BCIs) are in trials to help disabled people move their defunct limbs or robotic prosthetics.
More advanced devices could link people's brains directly to the internet, giving them vast and faithful memory storage, and seamless access to information. Work is ongoing into BCIs that connect many brains at once.
Western history has made many researchers flinch at studies into the genetic basis of intelligence, but the Beijing Genomics Institute, the world's largest, has taken on the job. If it bears fruit, it might drive attempts to boost human intelligence by genetically modifying embryos.
Harari says the rich will always have first access to the latest.
"When the aim is to upgrade, by definition, you want to be better than others. So no matter how much the cost goes down, there will always be the next treatment which is only available to the rich. The differences might become so big that if you miss the train it will be too late," he said.