Artificial brains will dramatically improve lives in 25 years

By Dick Pelletier

      

    Neurons made from exotic nanomaterials could one day enable humans to survive even the most horrendous accident, and as a bonus, provide remarkable new capabilities.

    Nanoengineer John Burch, co-designer of the nanofactory video, Productive Nanosystems, predicts that by mid-2030s, we could be replacing brain cells with damage-resistant nanomaterials that process thoughts much faster than today's biological brains.
   
    "The new brain would include our same consciousness, memories and personality that existed before the conversion," Burch says, "but it would run much faster and would increase our memory a thousand-fold." We could even control the speed of our thoughts, shifting from 100 milliseconds, the response time of todays brains, to 50 nanoseconds, millions of times faster.

    Creating thoughts at high speeds would, in our mind at least, slow things down. Our perception would speed up, but activities would appear to happen slower. Events that seem like minutes in our mind would actually be happening in seconds. This would eliminate panicking in emergencies.

    Burch describes how we would switch to this new brain. A daily pill would supply nanomaterials and instructions for nanobots to form new neurons and position them next to existing biological brain cells to be replaced. These daily changes would be unnoticeable to us, but within six months, we would be enjoying our new brain.

    Our artificial brain will allow wireless interface with computers and other digital technologies. We could access the Internet, control electronics, and make phone calls, with just our thoughts. We could also understand complicated subjects; even speak a new language, without need for study.

    However the most important benefit of our new brain is its ability to survive disaster. Should we encounter a fatal accident, our body may be a total loss, but the moment the accident happened, information describing our consciousness and memories would be transmitted to a processing facility where an automated system would clone a new body with all our memories intact.

    The accident victim would 'wake up' in their new body and resume life, not even realizing they had died. Biological brains die within minutes after the heart stops, but our new brain will simply turn itself off and wait for a new body.

    Would we feel depressed from dying? Maybe, but this might be offset with the joy of an upgraded body. Standard 2030s body clones could include enhancements that provide immunity to bullet and knife wounds, ability to alter body shape, and skin and hair that changes color on demand.

    Conservatives ask will these technologies make us less human. Forward-thinkers point out that we already enjoy glasses, false teeth, titanium hip replacements, cochlear implants, and prosthetic limbs. Artificial brains and body clones are just the next stage in making life more efficient.

    By mid-2030s, more people will begin to recognize the enormous benefits of this radical technology and many will opt for a complete body transformation, knowing that their memories, personality, and consciousness will remain unchanged after the transfer.

    Could this bold vision happen in 25 years? Experts believe that it can. Nanotech and information technologies required to create tomorrow's artificial brains are already in early development stages today. Go "magical future."

This article appeared in various print publications and on-line blogs. Comments always welcome.