Auditorium, department of 2-7 courses

Lecture 8
"Inhabitants of the Astral Plane: Artificial Beings"

Greetings to all. To begin with, a small announcement, and then we will move directly to the topic of our today's meeting.

I want to note that, despite the fact that for the period of the current trimester I refused to accept reports on a free topic, limiting myself to only creative works, your owls constantly continue to attack me with a bunch of requests for topics and even ready-made works. :) In this regard - okay. I give up. You can send. Yes, on any topic related to Dreams, Astral, etc. However... (!) Keep something in mind. Why did I initially decline admission? Yes, because identical and monotonous works began to come - and all of them had topics like "how to enter the astral plane", "exercises for exiting", "methods", etc. In case of refusal, questions arose "why?? after all, this is on the topic of the lesson!!". Literature on such practices in the world and the Internet is a dime a dozen - and every such comrade strives to tear out a piece from one of these books and make a report out of it.
So - no "practical instructions". Leave them to me.
And one more thing - before choosing a topic for a report, I recommend looking through the archives of reports (including for the last trimester) so that you don’t accidentally repeat yourself and write about the same thing - in such a case, the work will simply not be accepted, and your work will be in vain.
This applies to all courses!
Before the New Year, I won’t be able to deal with the reports - I have catastrophically little time now. However, later (numbers 4-5) - I will check everything.
Now, let's move on to our lesson...

Today we have a relatively small lesson, since we have little left to consider, and in a certain sense the final one. On it we complete the review of the population of the Astral Plane.

At the last two lectures on the Inhabitants of the Astral Plane, as you remember, we studied two sections - People and Not People. The "People" section contains human beings who, by one means or another, find themselves in the Astral for different times, as well as their ... uh ... remnants. The "Not People" section includes non-human beings, but nevertheless, rational to varying degrees. Today we will consider the last of them, "Artificial Creatures", which differs from the two previous ones in that it combines creatures created not by natural evolution, but by human activity.

So, the section of Artificial Creatures.

The most numerous of all sections, it combines creatures wholly and completely created by man himself. We will divide them into three main groups, since it makes no sense to classify them in any more detail - individual creatures differ too much among themselves. The first and second groups distinguish between two different categories of elementals created by people, and the third combines rather small artificially created human beings, who are not elementals, but, nevertheless, also created by people.

1) Unconsciously created elementals.

People, as a rule, do not realize how strong their emotions, desires and thoughts really are. Muggles are used to thinking that all these things are so "immaterial" and "unreal" that they do not deserve special attention in handling them. Meanwhile, according to occultism, the matter of "thin" planes, in which a person is present in the form of his bodies - "imprints", is constantly subjected to strong influence from him. Any emotion associated with a thought gives rise to the excitement of astral matter, which does not pass without a trace - since the space is "permeated" by the same "original elemental matter", a separate being appears - an elemental. The term of its existence is not too long, and depends on the strength of the thoughts and feelings that gave rise to it. Such a creature acquires individuality and its own consciousness, and acts independently of its human creator, living an independent life.
Since this happens unintentionally, this elemental is included in the category of "unconsciously created." Usually the thoughts of most people are so wandering and indefinite that the lifespan of the elemental beings they create is limited to minutes or hours. However, a frequently repeated thought or desire can give such an elemental life in a few days.
Usually, a person's thoughts for the most part revolve around himself. The elementals produced by them thus accompany him constantly, and by their very existence at his side tend to arouse in him analogous thoughts and emotions. Thus, they only become stronger.
Thus, having a persistent desire (or "obsessive" idea), a person creates for himself a kind of "astral companion", which, being constantly nourished by it, accompanies its creator, sometimes even for many years, becoming stronger and stronger. Accordingly, this "elemental companion", being created by positive or negative thoughts and desires, determines the basic behavior and aspirations of a person. If the artificial elementals accompanying him are created by good thoughts and desires, then the presence of such a person is always pleasant to other people, and they often cannot even rationally explain why - a feeling of purity and benevolence simply comes from him. Well, the one whose thoughts are directed to rudeness, hatred, envy and other negative feelings - such a person, respectively, is surrounded by a host of harmful elementals, and carries a similar harmful atmosphere around him. And here already anyone will feel how unpleasant it is to be in his company ...
A person's thoughts about other people in the same way create elemental creatures that rush to them and cling to thoughts of other people similar to themselves. So it is quite a mistake to think that any thought, wish or emotion in the direction of another person "is wasted." On the influence of these "elemental messengers" various "evil eyes", "curses" and so on are based, which ordinary Muggles usually mean by this. Here it is worth once again paying attention to the fact that such unconsciously created "messengers" will have an impact on their target only if the target has similar "mental images" and desires in its aura, even if in an embryonic and unformed state - and can start developing them. In the absence of such, the elemental sent in this way will simply return to its creator - and join the elemental company that surrounds him. This is how the kickback law works.

2) Deliberately created elementals.

If such creatures are created even by a simple, obscure human thought, then one can imagine what a magician can create intentionally, having sufficient knowledge in this area. Adepts of White Magic often resort to the use of artificial elementals, created intelligently and for specific purposes. Among these, one can cite as an example a kind of "guardian angels", which can be given by adept magicians as protective forces to their students, during certain dangerous missions.
Black magicians are also capable of creating powerful elementals, but these are used by them for harmful purposes, usually to influence and harm others. However, there is no small danger that such an elemental will turn against its creator - if the victim is sufficiently "pure in mind". He will simply have nothing to cling to - and he will return back to the sorcerer who created him. If such a sorcerer manages to put up a certain defense, and repels this back blow of his own creation, then such an elemental becomes a kind of "wandering demon", which, like "animated shells", will try its best to prolong its existence and search for it. suitable victims.

3) Artificially created human beings

These creatures could be attributed to the category of "Shadows" discussed at one of the previous lectures, if not for the circumstances of their creation.
To understand what this is, one must turn to what is called "spiritualism."
Some secret magical organizations, in order to "defeat" the materialism of Science, tried to prove the existence of life outside the physical body (which Science officially denies), and organized special "spiritual circles". In these "groups" experiments and experiments were carried out, familiar to most as "sessions of mediums" - that is, contacts with spirits (spiritualists).
They acted as follows: on the Astral Plane, they chose some "deceased" person who sufficiently corresponded to their goals, helped her to become fully conscious there, and communicated all the necessary information. After that, such an "astral inhabitant" became the leader of the next "spiritual circle", in the same way he "developed" some other "dead", after which they all came into contact with the mediums of this circle.
Thus arose the trend of "spiritualism".
It is worth noting here that such activity of such "astral leaders" of course greatly "slowed down" their own progress through the planes. Therefore, it was decided that one "spirit-leader" should not be left in his "post" for too long. After a certain time, they "responded", were released from the obligations imposed on them, and were replaced by others.
However, when for some reason it was impossible to bring another "spirit", a special trick was used. And here we come to the description of the creatures of this section - "artificially created human beings." And the trick was as follows: the "leader" who had "served" his "leader" was released to continue his delayed "journey upwards." They took the "shadow" left after him, supported and nourished it, and left the "departed" at the same post. (As far as you must remember, the Shadow retains some of the basic mental traits of its "original" and can therefore sometimes be mistaken for it.)
In most cases, such a substitution went unnoticed by the members of the "circle", but sometimes, nevertheless, especially sensitive "mediums" were able to catch a change in the manners and character of the "spirit".
This is the origin of beings of this type. In the end, I note that those, as already mentioned, may well be classified in the category "People" and the subcategory "Shadows", however, it is still believed that since such a shadow is maintained intentionally and contains enough mental plane matter (not only remaining from its "original", but also specially transferred to it), then it should be attributed to "artificial creations".

Homework (1-10 points; +2 possible additional):

1) Artificial elementals affect people - their creators or others. Can they influence each other? If yes, how? If not, why not?

2) Does the law of blowback work with artificial elementals sent to another not with bad, but with good intentions? Why do you think so?

3) Tell us about any session of mediums that you have read about or that you know about. (Or in which, perhaps, you even participated yourself :).

Give up homework! (reception time - until the end of the trimester)

Additional task (1-10 points):

Today we have an essay on the topic "Astral Plane". In it you must disclose your own opinion, how you feel about the theory of Occultism regarding the Astral Plane and the beings inhabiting it, how this theory seems to you, how plausible and convenient, how difficult or easy, and so on. Try not to be brief, but write broadly and extensively. And I ask you not to tear the material from the relevant literature - I immediately recognize this. In this work, only your point of view, your opinion is important, and it will be evaluated, accordingly, not for Correctness / Incorrectness, but for your thoughts and conclusions. Own, I want to add more.

He walks, he talks and his heart beats, but he is not an ordinary person - he is the first fully bionic person in the world!

The Bionic Man is a robot made from a mixture of the most advanced human prostheses. Starting from robot limbs, ending with artificial organs (including blood and the circulatory system).

The “parents” of an artificial person, robotics Matthew Walker and Godin Teni, during an interview said: “Our task was to create a full-fledged bionic person from a huge collection of artificial body parts: organs, limbs, eyes, heads in six weeks. However, this task was not easy, because we did not install prostheses of missing body parts on a living person, but created HIM from prostheses.

The creation of a living robot cost almost $ 1 million. Its arms are advanced bionic prostheses, hands and fingers of which can rotate freely thanks to special motors hidden inside. The robot's ankles and feet are the work of an MIT engineer who himself used these prostheses because he lost his legs to hypothermia as a teenager. To support the prosthetic legs, the robot wears a Rex exoskeleton developed in New Zealand. However, Frankenstein himself could envy his clumsy jerky gait.

But that is not all. Also, the bionic man is equipped with an almost complete set of artificial organs, including: artificial lungs, heart, blood, pancreas, spleen, kidneys and a functional circulatory system.

SynCardia's artificial heart robot has previously been implanted more than 100 times in people with heart disease while they were waiting for a transplant. The circulatory system, created by medical researcher Alex Sifalian, consists of veins and arteries made from a polymer that is widely used to create many other synthetic organs.

Human bionics can even quite successfully mimic some of the functions of the human brain. It is equipped with a retinal prosthesis, which helps people with limited vision and even the blind to see. Also, a cochlear implant for speech recognition and its systems is mounted in the robot's brain. Engineers have equipped the bionic man with a complex bot program, as a result of which he can carry on a conversation on his own. Also, the robot successfully imitates about two-thirds of the movements of the human body. But it lacks several important organs, including the liver, stomach and intestines, which are very difficult to artificially create in the laboratory.

The existence of a bionic human raises a number of philosophical and ethical questions: Can robots threaten humanity? What does it mean to be human? Is it right that only some people have access to life-extending technologies?

Translation by Sergey Vasilenkov

Science fiction no longer seems so unrealistic - scientists bring it to life. Proof of this are the scientific breakthroughs made by researchers in the field of creating "artificial" organisms. So, in the second half of the 20th century, scientists were able to "read" the biological information that was contained in the genes of living organisms. As a result, the so-called. "genetic engineering" is the technology of isolating certain genes from one organism and introducing them into another organism. Based on this, scientists managed to create not only genetically modified plants and crops, but also animals with an "artificial" set of genes.

Organisms bred with the help of genetic engineering were not, in fact, a "copy" of their parents, but were a "product" of scientists with a programmed set of genes that affect their further development. For example, pink mice or animals that are not prone to certain types of diseases have been bred.

Quite different were completely "artificial" organisms, which became known as clones. Scientists managed to “extract” cells from the biomaterial of an animal, which were then introduced into the body of animals of the same species by artificial insemination. As a result, “copies” of those animals from which a biological sample was taken began to appear. So, 1990-2000 marked the appearance of cloned animals for the inhabitants of the planet, the most famous of which were:

1. Dolly

Sheep, bred in 1996 in the nursery of the Roslin Institute in Scotland, made a splash all over the world. It not only caused public astonishment, but also provoked violent protests against animal cloning.

One way or another, Dolly the sheep proved its viability - she lived 6.5 years and gave birth to six healthy lambs.

Late in life, Dolly contracted a lung infection and had to be euthanized. Her effigy is now on display at the Edinburgh Royal Museum.

2. Polly and Molly

Two sheep that were cloned in July 1997 at the Roslin Institute in the Scottish city of Edinburgh. This was the second most significant breakthrough in the scientific world - if Dolly was the first clone of an animal, then Polly and Molly were the first cloned animals with an introduced human gene, that is, the first genetically modified animals. It was planned that the sheep could be useful for scientists to study human diseases associated with poor blood clotting.

3. Snuppy

The first cloned dog, bred by scientists at Seoul National University in 2005. Since the birth of Dolly, many other animals have been cloned - cats, cows, horses, mice and others, but it was not possible to clone a dog for a long time. As a result, 123 individuals participated in the experiment to breed a cloned dog, but after artificial insemination, only three managed to get pregnant. Two born puppies died, only one remained, who was named Snuppy. This pup became a clone that emerged from the ear cage of an adult Afghan Hound. After that, Snuppy participated in the breeding of cloned dogs in 2008, then 10 puppies were born, whose parents were also clones.

4. Frog

The clawed frog was the first vertebrate in the world to be cloned. cloned a frog professor of zoology at the University of Oxford John Gordon in 1970. The British scientist has been conducting experiments on cloning using intact cell nuclei since 1958. By the way, when describing the results of the experiments conducted by the scientist, biologist John Haldane first used the word "clone" in relation to a living being.

5. Copycat (CopyCat)

Scientists from the College of Veterinary Medicine at the University of Texas managed to clone a cat for the first time in 2001. The name of the kitten was given "Kopikat", which in translation from English meant "copy cat". This experiment is an American company Genetic Savings and Clone, which, after the birth of a cloned kitten, began to clone pets on a commercial basis.

New Aspect: Return of Fossils

Amazing prospects have opened up before scientists since bioengineers from the University of New South Wales managed to obtain a cloned embryo of a frog that had become extinct 30 years ago in early 2013. The experiment was based on tissue samples from the Australian frog Rheobatrachus silus frozen in the 1970s. However, it was possible to "resurrect" the embryos for a short time - they did not last even a few days. However, as scientists believe, this opens up great opportunities for new scientific breakthroughs. In particular, extinct species such as the woolly mammoth and the flightless Dodo bird are on the waiting list.

According to legend, Rabbi Yehuda Lev ben Bezalel from Prague restored the ancient Kabbalistic formulas and with their help created a golem man of clay (translated from Hebrew means “unfinished”, “unformed”). The golem performed hard work, and also served the rabbi's family on Saturday, when, in accordance with the precepts of Judaism, a person cannot work. There is a version that the formula for creating a golem, thanks to Rabbi Bezalel, has survived to this day and is at the disposal of modern occultists.

Wizard's Helpers

To err is a human property; forgiveness is a property of a deity

If golems were for Kabbalists a confirmation of their high level of spiritual development and comprehension of divine wisdom and were used exclusively to perform primitive rough work, then European witches and occultists competed with God in the creation of life with slightly different goals. Their main task was to create a kind of magical assistant, endowed with a number of supernatural abilities: the ability to foresee the future, timely warn his master of imminent danger, facilitate the administration of witchcraft rituals and ceremonies, and perform some tasks of a magical nature.

Since the scope of these creatures was limited exclusively to the field of secret sciences, their creators did not endow them with either huge growth or physical strength, on the contrary, the dimensions of these assistants were so small that a small chest or an alchemical flask could well serve as their abode. In the European occult tradition, the Latin name "magistelli" - "little masters" - was attached to these creations of the secret sciences.

Plants were the material for the creation of artificial creatures, and the preference was invariably given to the mandrake, known for its magical properties. This explains another name for supernatural helpers, common in the witchcraft environment - apraun (the German name for the mandrake).

Anyone who decided to create their own alraun had to, first of all, find a mandrake whose gender would be the opposite of his own. So, the witch should look for a white, "male" mandrake, while the sorcerer's alraun should be created from a black, "female" plant. The best time to dig up a mandrake is one of the nights after the new moon between the winter solstice and the spring equinox.

Before proceeding with the operation itself, one should outline the plant with a sword or a knife with a black handle in a triple circle, then, loosening the ground around the mandrake with the same knife, carefully pull it out of the ground without damaging the root. This procedure was considered the most dangerous part of the operation - there was a belief that a mandrake pulled out of the ground emits a terrible cry, sometimes leading to madness and death. From the root of the plant, a human figure should be cut, be sure to mark the signs of sex on it and repeat the words during this work: "Keep this house in the name of Hertha."

The resulting chrysalis had to be buried in the ground for one month according to the lunar calendar and poured with a mixture of pure water and blood during all this time (some witchcraft traditions prescribed replacing blood with milk).

In case of luck, the magician, having dug out his alraun a month later, found that the root really looked like a little man. Now that the work was completed, the sorcerer or witch could rely on this supernatural creature created by their hands, which from now on became the devoted assistant and protector of its creator.

The process of creating an artificial creature was imagined differently by the Swiss physician, naturalist and occultist Paracelsus (1495-1562). In his fundamental work “On the Nature of Things”, he scientifically substantiated the possibility of “the birth of human beings without natural parents” and left for posterity a detailed guide to creating artificial people, whom he called “homunculi”, that is, translated from Latin, “little men ".

In accordance with the methods developed by Paracelsus, to create a homunculus, a male seed had to be placed in a retort and the temperature in the vessel should be maintained for 40 days, corresponding to the temperature of the horse's entrails. The human figure that appeared in the retort after the allotted time had to be fed with human blood for another 40 days, until it finally acquired the full extent of its ability to see the future and communicate to its creator the most intimate information that he only wishes to know.

Some credible sources claim that Paracelsus did not limit himself to theory, but repeatedly applied this knowledge in practice, which caused extreme discontent among the clergy, but nevertheless managed to gain a certain number of supporters and followers. Most of them over the years tried to repeat the experiments of Paracelsus and create homunculi in the retort. And almost everyone failed, until, finally, in 1775, luck smiled at the Austrian count von Kufstein, who managed to create as many as ten magical creatures, which he called spiritualists. Sealed in huge bottles of rainwater, the spirits were about 30 centimeters in size, had a completely human appearance and, like the homunculus of Paracelsus, possessed mystical abilities.

Written testimonies of the count's contemporaries have survived, claiming that these beings created by the power of magical art were used by Masons to predict the future and comprehend the secrets of nature and man. Interestingly, all the information reported by the mysterious spiritists was subsequently confirmed. Unfortunately, the description of how to create such useful magical advisers has not survived to our time: the count, repentant of his deed, destroyed his creations and all materials related to the creation of artificial life. It is possible that the highest hierarchs of Freemasonry, who always zealously guarded their secrets from the uninitiated, played a certain role in this.

The true knowledge of mankind is the knowledge of man

History knows many examples when the skill and inspiration of a skilled craftsman and the secret knowledge of a magician combined, creating unique and inimitable creations, genuine masterpieces. Now it is difficult to say exactly when the first mechanical creature was made, endowed through special ceremonies and rituals with the ability to think and feel.

Ancient Greek myths tell of Talos, a giant who guarded the island of Crete. The myth attributes its creation to Hephaestus, the god of blacksmithing. Three times a day, this mechanical guard went around the entire island and, noticing an enemy ship, threw gigantic boulders and pieces of rocks at it. Made of bronze, Taloe was completely invulnerable to weapons of that time, and it was possible to hit him only by striking a single vein on the ankle, through which the creator of Talos filled him with some kind of magical substance that supported vital activity. The copper giant was overtaken by death at the hands of the Argonauts, and they were only able to defeat the invincible guardian thanks to the help of the sorceress Medea.

In other ancient Greek myths, one can find mention of other mechanical creatures animated by the will of the gods or powerful magicians: iron birds, a copper bull that belched fire, a copper boatman, on whose chest a lead tablet was attached, covered with mysterious hieroglyphs and symbols. In Scandinavian myths, the boar Gullinbursti, forged in the forge of skilled gnomes from lead and gold, was harnessed to the chariot of the goddess of love Freya.

However, among the creators of animated automata, there were not only fairy-tale and mythological characters, but also real historical figures, of which the German scientist Albert von Bolstadt, also called Albert the Great, gained the greatest fame in this area. One of the medieval legends tells that the Virgin Mary visited Albert during one of his prayerful ecstasies and revealed to him many secrets of being, including the secret of the creation of life and the revival of dead matter. Based on these revelations, the scientist created a mechanical woman, which he called Android, and all the work took him more than 30 years. It is said that this animated statue was so human-like that Thomas Aquinas, a disciple of Albertus Magnus and one of the most eminent theologians of the Middle Ages, considered it a diabolical creation and destroyed it.

Advances in the field of exact sciences and applied mechanics allowed the masters of the 18th and 19th centuries. create automata, "animated" through a variety of springs, levers and gears; in essence, the mechanical people of the New Age were improved watch mechanisms and could not stand any comparison with the thinking and feeling apparatuses of legends. These masterpieces of mechanics were designed to perform a single action, such as playing one piece of music or drawing several drawings.

Attempts to artificially create life do not stop today. True, modern imitators of the Creator rely not on mysterious spells and magical ceremonies, but on the power of computer processors and the development of high technologies, genetic engineering. And although there are already some successful developments in this area, the laurels of the ancient Kabbalists, Albert the Great and Paracelsus, apparently, will remain an unattainable dream for the creators of artificial life for many years.

The science

Many modern discoveries in the world of science, which will be discussed, are really grandiose, but there is also but on the other hand, which few people know about, or simply do not think about.

The discoveries that have already been made, or the achievements of science, on the threshold of which we are, can turn against us. It is worth considering whether we need to genetically change our bodies, move our brains into virtual reality, or create military intellectual robots?

artificial organs

Liver- one of the organs of the human body, which usually suffers the most. It is much damaged by such excesses as alcohol, drugs, malnutrition. Until now, doctors do not have available effective liver substitute However, researchers are working hard in this direction. We have already achieved great results.

The researchers started grow artificial human organs in labs since 1988, but so far they've only had some success with bladders, hearts And kidneys.

An important advantage of growing artificial organs is that patients will be able to receive organs created from their own cells, there will be no need for anti-rejection drugs, as well as a long and painful search for a suitable donor.

A team of scientists from Yokohama City University in Japan recently mixed liver cells with umbilical cord cells resulting in a fairly functional mini-liver. However, despite all the advantages of these scientific achievements, there are some pitfalls.

Critics have already suggested that the effectiveness of the artificial liver created by the Japanese is very doubtful, since liver cells, as it turned out, do not differ much from cells in other organs, which contribute to the development of cancerous tumors.

Moreover, the experiments of the Japanese demonstrated the work of an artificial liver in mice for 1 month, and this is very insufficient for serious conclusions. It is also not known whether organs will develop cancer over time.

So far, the artificial liver not big enough so that it can be introduced into the human body. Everything that is created by man, including artificial organs, is very unpredictable things. These organs can fail at any moment. Of course it is bad news for patients who really have high hopes for new discoveries in the field of medicine.

man made artificially

We all simultaneously wait and fear when humanoid robots like the infamous Terminator.

Rex is the robotic exoskeleton, a million-dollar project that represents the latest development in the field of prosthetics and the creation of artificial organs. This 2 meter robot has an artificial spleen, pancreas, trachea And kidneys, and heart battery powered, synthetic blood protected from infections realistic face, which eerily resembles the face of one of its creators.

Designed in the image of a psychologist Bertolt Mayer who himself wears a bionic arm, Rex was created for display in London Science Museum. For those wary of the strange robot, Mayer clarifies that Rex does not pose a danger to people, although it may resemble the Terminator. He also doubts that during our life, as well as the life of our grandchildren, a bionic human body with an artificial mind will be created.

controlled brain

In 1963 researcher Yale University Jose Delgado discovered that brain neurons can be stimulated with electricity to control involuntary limb movements, manipulate feelings, and even stop aggression.

José demonstrated the results of his discovery by standing in a pen with an angry bull. He let the beast get angry and then stopped his aggression with a simple push of a button. This was made possible by an implanted device called "timoceiver", which transmitted electrical impulses through the brain cells and calmed the animal.

Today, this way of controlling the human brain is most likely to be used to control certain parts of the brain, which stopped working properly after any damage caused by seizures or injuries. Also, the discovery is a platform for developing treatments for diseases that were previously considered incurable, for example, parkinson's disease.

However, it is difficult to imagine what could happen if we learn control other people's brains with similar technologies? The plots of science fiction films immediately come to mind, where one part of humanity enslaves the other.

military robots

It appears that the members Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency they don't pay much attention to sci-fi movies. Otherwise, they would probably seriously think about is it worth developing the most complex military robotic vehicles.

Military robots are created taking into account the natural features of living beings that were created by nature over many years of evolution. For example, robot cheetah- one of the latest models of a military robot. This robot is not much like a cheetah in appearance, but it has incredible mobility. It moves at a speed that no other modern robot has yet been able to achieve.

However, the use of a treadmill, and not natural conditions in the experiment, so far only says that this robot can move limbs quickly, but he still cannot really move in space.

If you don’t have to worry about the cheetah robot yet, then another robot called Big Dog ("Big Dog") very successfully knows how to imitate a pack mule. Of course, transporting weapons of mass destruction was not the goal of the creators, but this robot may well do it. Robot also added mechanical arm, which is capable of throwing concrete blocks.

Robot Big Dog today is controlled by voice commands, which can allow soldiers to easily give the necessary commands on the battlefield. The robot can run on a straight surface, as well as climb debris. And now you can think about what kind of war could be in the future?

Head transplant

This procedure should not be confused with brain transplant: it involves the transfer of the head of one person to the body of another person. You will probably remember the plot of the notorious novel by Alexander Belyaev "Professor Dowell's Head", Where successful experiments have been carried out.

Opportunity effective head transplant was until recently only a theory, since the connection of very fragile connections of the spinal cord was considered a serious obstacle. A new method of nerve regeneration has already been discovered in the US, and researchers predict that thanks to this, head transplantation is just around the corner.

Successful experiments have already been carried out with the participation of rats, dogs and monkeys. Sewn on animal heads could control the new bodies. However, many may think Why are experiments like this needed? how ethical are they and should these technologies be developed?

In principle, a head transplant could help people with terminal illnesses or ailments acquire a new, healthy body. However, while such procedures have not been performed on humans therefore, it is not known what complications may appear in this case. In the same novel by Belyaev, as you know, the complications were quite serious.

Another very important question is of interest: will it be the same person who owned the head, or the person who owned the body?

Google Glass

Wearable device today Google Glass available for general sale. This device itself does not cause any concern. It allows you to do everything that we used to do with smartphones, but with it you can do hands-free access to apps and phone features. We all already know very well that technology never stands still, and if something new appears on the market, this is just the beginning.

Someone has already predicted that in the future we will probably be download your brain. It is not yet clear exactly how future technologies will make this possible, but computer technology has reached unprecedented levels.

Can transfer consciousness into a machine but how safe can it be? The question arises, how comfortable will the brain feel, realizing that it will be disconnected from all the elements of the body that it is designed to control? Instead, it will be trapped within a computer program.

When the human brain realizes that it is inside a machine, how long does it take him to not go crazy? Or he will feel something like "brain in a flask" when our mind has no idea that it is inside a computer.

Who knows, maybe it has already happened. Maybe you only think you are reading this article because some crazy scientists have already programmed your brain in such a way that you began to think that you were reading.

What do you think about the fact that our natural bodies in the very near future can be replaced by machines? Google engineers suggest that such an era will come already at the very beginning of the 22nd century.

genetically modified person

It is assumed that a genetically modified person will be able to avoid unwanted diseases and disorders, however, this concept seems too dangerous, knowing what problems genetically modified plants and animals have. It should be remembered that in the end we were able to successfully develop genetically modified organisms, but the path was long and accompanied by many mistakes.

Failed attempts to create artificial plants or animals are one thing, but what if attempts to create a GMO human are also will be followed by failure?

But still genetically modified children have already appeared. These children have hereditary additional genes - one from men and two from women. The consequences of this will soon manifest themselves, and the situation may turn out completely different from what scientists expected.

By the time these children become teenagers, it is not known how genetic trait in their own body, as well as in organisms of subsequent generations.

The rapid development of autism seems to be one of those side effects. Unfortunately, many children born in this way have not been carefully examined, nor are they closely monitored by scientists.

Although some researchers still argue that GM babies develop normally, this is not particularly convincing. Genetics confirm that "a new super-race of genetically modified creatures with increased intelligence and great potential" is not the goal, moreover, it is not possible to create such perfect people.

New species

ABOUT jellyfish rat, you've most likely never heard of it, but thanks to a team of scientists from Harvard University such a being is already real. This creature can act like a jellyfish it looks like a normal jellyfish. However, the peculiarity of this jellyfish is that it was created using genetic engineering from cells taken from a rat.

If today we are able to create such creatures, what awaits us in the future? We have already come up with some innovative ways to improve the world with creatures we created. The most primitive example of our attempts to create new species is the cross-breeding of animals.

In 1956 the first such attempt to create a "super bee" was made. However, the result was completely unexpected, as a dangerous creature was born "killer bee". Of course, it is interesting to see what else our intervention in genetics can give rise to, but is it worth it?

Revival of extinct species

Scientists are sure that humans are to blame for the extinction of some species, so we must find a way to revive the lost creatures. The revival of extinct species is carried out with the help of DNA, which is obtained from museum samples or preserved animal tissue samples.

Scientists hope they can revive long-extinct species such as mammoths, but there are obvious grounds for objection: some environmentalists believe it makes no sense to spend money on reviving extinct animals instead of spend them on the preservation of still existing living beings.

Another question arises in connection with the revival of extinct species: is there a danger that our world, in the case of successful experiments, will turn into something like this? Jurassic park? Even if it doesn't come to that, it's possible that revived species can do a lot of harm to existing species.

Our modern world is completely different from the world that existed on the planet millions and even thousands of years ago. We no longer live in an ice age, our planet is in a period of global warming.

However, it is worth thinking not about long-extinct animals, but extinct quite recently, for example, tasmanian wolf or Abingdon elephant tortoise. Maybe they still have a chance?

talking monkeys

If small changes in the genome can make chimpanzees talk like humans, so what? can become with their consciousness? Chimpanzees are most similar to us in terms of genetics: we share with them 98.5 percent common DNA.

Experiments in the 1960s showed that not only could chimpanzees memorize and use some 350 words of American Sign Language, but also pass these skills on to their offspring completely without human intervention.

Chimpanzee named Washoe for 42 years of her life proved that the monkey is quite capable of breaking boundaries when it comes to communication separating her appearance and human. However, chimpanzees do not have the physical features that would allow them to produce the articulate sounds that make up human speech.

A single gene is responsible for human speech, known as FOXP2: Chimpanzees have a slightly different variation of this gene, however monkeys still have it. Naturally, these are not the only genes associated with speech, there are several others.

The question arises, do we need the monkeys to speak and they have their own opinion? Again, the plots of fantastic action movies come to mind.