What Is It Like to Be a Cyborg?

[@tartertoot7843]

Very good content. Question, i remeber hearing about a case where a person had an implant very similar to the device that allows the person to hear color. From what i remember though is that it was installed on a person that was fully blind, and the way it transmitted information was through vibrations perpetrated through his skull. Is this the same person or a different one?

[@dailyphilosophy]

Thank you for your kind comment! About the implants, there is a lot of research going on right now on assistive devices for the blind. This includes both devices that transform images into sound and implants that directly stimulate the visual areas of the brain, allowing the patient to actually see something like flashes of light that correspond to things in the environment. I am not sure which particular case you mean, but you can find much research online, for example: www.tue.nl/en/news-and-events/news-overview/04-05-2022-allowing-blind-people-to-see-again-with-a-wireless-implant www.technologyreview.com/2020/02/06/844908/a-new-implant-for-blind-people-jacks-directly-into-the-brain/ www.npr.org/2021/10/23/1048699230/scientists-used-a-tiny-brain-implant-to-help-a-blind-teacher-see-letters-again www.seeingwithsound.com/ The last one really looks like something out of Star Trek TNG :) Let's hope that humans will use these technologies for healing rather than (once again) to create weapons of war and new means of control and domination of others.

[@KanielD]

We’re all cyborgs now

[@AlmostEthical]

That's my first thought - it feels like *this*. We stare at screens for hours, pressing buttons and calling and responding to algorithms. We carry around a small device at all times, without which we would be screwed. If the electricity went off, most of us would be screwed. Yes, the tech is not implanted ... physically ... but that will only be a matter of time. We are early stage borgs. If Neanderthals met us moderns, we'd give them uncanny valley vibes.