Are the cyborg's days already numbered?

Post » Mon Jun 16, 2014 8:11 pm

Most everybody is familiar with the sci-fi portrayal of the cyborg. Part man, part machine denizens of the future who blur the lines between life and artificial life. But just as we are beginning to see real cyborg-esque technology (such as the prosthesis hand controlled by thought a short while back) we are seeing even faster progress in biotech, with organs being grown in labs already in use and genetic modification being applied for many purposes.

So with biotech being inevitably cheaper and preferable (as much progress as we have made, we are still some time away from being able to match a real arm's functionality, let alone surpass it), are the cyborg's days numbered even before they have begun? Will we never see the likes of Blade runner, Ghost in the Shell, and Deus Ex?
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Floor Punch
 
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Post » Mon Jun 16, 2014 7:48 pm

Of course not. Muscles are, on the scale of things, vastly inferior to what can be produced artificially, even with today's technology: http://spectrum.ieee.org/tech-talk/robotics/robotics-hardware/fishing-line-makes-superhuman-artificial-muscles. Cybernetics has a definite place in the future, alongside biotechnology.
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Bloomer
 
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Post » Mon Jun 16, 2014 7:11 am

Are you asking if we'll have speculative fiction on a subject after it comes to pass? No, because it won't be either speculative or fiction.

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neen
 
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Post » Mon Jun 16, 2014 7:24 pm


Okay, so we will be able to produce stronger muscles than we may ever produce through biotech or genetics. But will we want/need these muscles in the automated, entertainment-focused society we envision? Or will it be more of a small niche market?
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john page
 
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Post » Mon Jun 16, 2014 12:56 pm

Military purposes

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Enny Labinjo
 
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Post » Mon Jun 16, 2014 6:53 am

That was my first thought. Then maybe stuntmen and cyborgs enthusiasts.
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SexyPimpAss
 
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Post » Mon Jun 16, 2014 10:37 am

im pretty sure growing new nerves of a specific individual is more expensive than making a plastic mold of a leg and arm. and part of the expense of prosthetic is not related to the cost of manufacturing them but rather the state of the health care industry and its tendency to outrageously over charge their patients.

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Rachie Stout
 
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Post » Mon Jun 16, 2014 1:44 pm

Someone with untiring super strength would be wanted in just about any industry job ever. A non-upgraded human could not ever compete. People who can afford such augmentation will dominate the job market. So, there will be a demand beyond a few hobbyists.

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Alexander Horton
 
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Post » Mon Jun 16, 2014 5:27 pm

Mining and Colonist on other planets

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Sheeva
 
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Post » Mon Jun 16, 2014 8:46 am

Can we grow new nerves yet? And fair point about prostetic costs. But I am thinking more so along the lines of the much more complex prosthetics just beginning to enter the market.
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claire ley
 
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Post » Mon Jun 16, 2014 10:23 am

M'aiq does not think it is idea to have any robots or part robots to be in the world... They will overthrow us all.

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Kelsey Anna Farley
 
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Post » Mon Jun 16, 2014 9:18 pm



Industry labor doesnt demand much strength, let alone super human strength. We have machines that do the job better and have more versatility than augmented human bodies ever would. Besides, anyone with enough cash to be getting a cyborg body isn't going to be working blue-collar jobs in the manufacturing industry.
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Shelby Huffman
 
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