An interest in human progress has always been a part of William Sims Bainbridge’s life. His paternal grandfather, William R. Bainbridge, was a famous wartime reconstructive oncologist from whom our interviewee inherited the microscope and interest in research. Bainbridge is also the editor of one of the most important scientific reports of the 21st century: Convergent Technologies for the Improvement of Human Capabilities . We talked to him about all that.
– Could you explain what the “NBIC Convergence” is?
-NBIC is the combination of nanotechnology (N), biotechnology (B), information technologies (I) and new technologies based on cognitive sciences (C), and will constitute the heart of the technological development of the next decades. The impact of nano technology is due in part to biotechnology and computer science, but it allows both a new development of research to understand the functioning of the human mind, our ability to create computers, robots and all kinds of intelligent machines that meet our needs, in short, to have more tools to achieve our goals.
-What impact will NBIC convergence have on society?
– If we do not advance in this direction, there will be a stagnation of the economy of the developed nations, which could lead to a general paralysis. If we do not progress technologically in the NBIC direction, we will deplete our resources and will not be able to combat global warming and other environmental problems. But if we combine scientific progress with cognitive science, we will not only learn to make better use of material resources, but also to deal with some of the social problems that have not been solved in recent years.
-What should Europe do to lead the NBIC “race”?
-Europe is well placed and has a lot of advantage in the integration of social sciences with technology, because in the US they are not capable of merging the objectives of behavioral science research or of understanding human beings in a scientific way due to its cultural and ideological inhibitions, while Europe, in its diversity of perspectives and cultures and its deep intellectual history, is far more prepared.
– Do you agree with the English biologist Aubrey de Gray that in the near future the human being will have a very long life?
-I agree that both the quantity of life and its quality will significantly increase over time, but I cannot say when or what technological challenges we will have to face. Demographers predict that there will be a slowdown in increased longevity without a real push from technology. But the real goal of research is to achieve a full and productive life, not just a longer life.
-Can technology defeat death?
-Technology can provide us with new ways not only to extend life, but to give it greater scope. We can move outwards, in the galaxy, through the stars, but the distances and times that this requires will force us to develop beyond the limitations of our existence and our current knowledge. If you ask me if life can be extended to infinity, I am convinced that it is possible to reach a huge figure, like 1,000 years, for example, but we don’t know if that will come within a decade or a century.
-What do you think of the so-called mind uploading -the transfer to software of all the information contained in the mind- as a possible solution to death?
-Much of my research is dedicated to trying to understand how we can take advantage of mind loading . In prescientific times, philosophers distinguished between spirit and matter, and in a way they were right, not in the supernatural aspect of human character, but in spirit as the source of information, since humans are patterns of dynamic information; what happens is that these patterns do not necessarily have to be “enclosed” in a body. My research starts from the social and behavioral sciences to search for practical technologies that transfer aspects of the human personality first to an information system and then to robots and other systems that can actually perceive and act within the world. With current technology we can already achieve a transfer of personality, let’s say low fidelity. The question is when we can get it “high”.
-When can technology defeat diseases such as AIDS, cancer and Alzheimer’s?
-Each one is a separate case. My grandfather, an eminent oncologist who in 1914 wrote a book entitled The Problem of Cancer , would be amazed if he could see that the disease has not yet been defeated. I think it is a difficult fight that may take us a century, but I am optimistic because now we are beginning to understand cancer. Alzheimer’s is a very specific disease that will require specific treatment; Today there are already some that help, and I hope that a definitive solution will be found in the short term. AIDS is a case of chronic viral infection and unfortunately humanity has not yet managed to control these infections. So I think AIDS and cancer will be the hardest, while Alzheimer’s can have a cure in a decade or two.
-Do you think that the possibility of each one of using technology to improve their brain capacity should be considered a right?
-As a social scientist, I do not see any logical basis for society to prohibit its members who have voluntarily decided to improve their lives the right to do so, which should be recognized by law. Whether or not the state should cover it is another question. In my opinion, there are many serious problems of health, disability, education, poverty …, to consider that improving brain capacity should be a priority. In any case, everyone should have access to that possibility. I think we should stick together as a species, sharing everything. I believe in the division of tasks and in that there is no other direction than the lengthening of a life in which we will all win.
– Can NBIC technologies help society to protect itself from the terrorist threat?
-Tools such as the chemical detection of explosives are emerging that will help to apply the law. But terrorism is not a matter of a few wicked against the world. It is a very complex social conflict and the solutions to social problems must also be social.
Alejandro Sacristán and Giulio Prisco
