I realize I am being species-centric, but even in the bit mk quoted about "taking the human out of the loop" -- the human is NOT out of the loop -- the humans sent the robotic explorers mentioned in the article. Everything in the article implies an enhanced biologically based being. "Post" means after or later or subsequent to, as in leaving the biologically-based in the dust. A better word would include the bio. The title of the piece while provocative seems misleading to me. At the moment, biological intelligence, our planet, and our species seem to be a recent blip in the evolution of the universe, yes, but intelligence that is not based in biology? I think the article is not about that. What am I missing?I think it very likely – in fact inevitable – that biological intelligence is only a transitory phenomenon, a fleeting phase in the evolution of the universe," Davies writes. "If we ever encounter extraterrestrial intelligence, I believe it is overwhelmingly likely to be post-biological in nature.
I'd be very hesitant to use the term post-biological if he means not containing a tether to a bio-based organism.
The title of the post is meant to be provocative. It certainly doesn't specifically discuss the idea in great depths. However, the discussions that are beginning in the early 21st century represent a realization that biological humans will never go to space. When I say go to space - I mean outside of our solar system. That is why I posted it. Our desire to explore space will be one of the many pressures that cause us to gradually replace our biological systems with non-biological systems. This process will begin with us becoming cyborgs and end with us leaving our biological systems behind all together. mk said it best:I highly doubt that cyborgs will win over completely non-biological AI. There's nothing biological that is advantageous for space exploration.
IMO it all comes down to how artificial intelligence arises. If we can create non-human intelligence that supercedes our own, then I think we have little choice but to be left in the dust. Non-biological intelligence won't be tethered to us for long, and will probably start doing things for its own reasons. However, that is an interesting situation in of itself: we have evolutionarily ingrained bahaviors that mix with our intelligence. Non-biological intelligence will not. Therefore, its motivations might seem very alien to us.
Becoming post-biological does not mean we will leave this planet. But it will enable us to inhabit multiple planets (and multiple star systems). Unless... transcension.