Humanity 2.0 - Introduction (What is Humanity 2.0?)

10:12, Tue 27 Sep 2011

Humanity 2.0: What it Means to be Human Past, Present and Future by Professor Steve Fuller Social thinkers in all fields are faced with one unavoidable question: what does it mean to be 'human' in the 21st century? As definitions between what is 'animal' and what is 'human' break down, and as emerging technologies such as artificial intelligence and nano- and bio- technologies develop, accepted notions of humanity are rapidly evolving. Humanity 2.0 is an ambitious and groundbreaking book, offering a sweeping overview of key historical, philosophical and theological moments that have shaped our understandings of humanity. Tackling head on the twin taboos that have always hovered over the scientific study of humanity - race and religion - Steve Fuller argues thar far from disappearing, they are being reinvented. Fuller argues that these new developments will force us to decide which features of our current way of life - not least our bodies - are truly needed to remain human, and concludes with a consideration of these changes for ethical and social values more broadly. STEVE FULLER is Professor of Sociology at the University of Warwick, UK. He is author of eighteen books including Dissent over Descent: Intelligent Design’s Challenge to Darwinism, Kuhn vs Popper: The Struggle for the Soul of Science, The Intellectual and Science vs Religion? Intelligent Design and the Problem of Evolution. His work has been translated into twenty languages.

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