Policing Hybridity

Cryonic suspension (“cryonics”) is the practice of freezing the deceased in hopes that scientists will eventually develop the levels of technology required to facilitate their revival and rejuvenation. By tracing the practice’s ties to transhumanism, this article advances an interpretation of cryonics as a hybrid of religion and technoscience. Scholars have converged on transhumanism’s hybridity; it evinces a transposition of religious themes, e.g., redemption, transcendence, and immortality, into the this-worldly register of technoscience. This hybridity, however, is thoroughly transgressive—it destabilizes the presumptive boundary between “science” and “religion” as purified categories. The practitioners of cryonics inherited this hybridity and, through the act of freezing the deceased, render it concrete. Cryonics destabilizes culturally legitimated definitions of life and death, living and dead, and furthermore comes into conflict with otherwise accepted scientific truths and authorized forms of religiosity. This is all borne out by the fact that cryonics has a tendency to be dually designated, i.e., policed, as both “cult” and “pseudoscience.”

Metabolism of Photosynthetic Organisms

According to multiple definitions of life, metabolism is an indispensable characteristic of living organisms [...]

Emergent Bioanalogous Properties of Blockchain-based Distributed Systems

We apply a novel definition of biological systems to a series of reproducible observations on a blockchain-based distributed virtual machine (dVM). We find that such blockchain-based systems display a number of bioanalogous properties, such as response to the environment, growth and change, replication, and homeostasis, that fit some definitions of life. We further present a conceptual model for a simple self-sustaining, self-organizing, self-regulating distributed ‘organism’ as an operationally closed system that would fulfill all basic definitions and criteria for life, and describe developing technologies, particularly artificial neural network (ANN) based artificial intelligence (AI), that would enable it in the near future. Notably, such systems would have a number of specific advantages over biological life, such as the ability to pass acquired traits to offspring, significantly improved speed, accuracy, and redundancy of their genetic carrier, and potentially unlimited lifespans. Public blockchain-based dVMs provide an uncontained environment for the development of artificial general intelligence (AGI) with the capability to evolve by self-direction.

Многогранность понятия «Живое»: смыслы и атрибуты / Life as multifaceted category: its meanings and attributes

Состояние вопроса: Проблема определения понятия «жизнь» (в том числе – определения набора признаков и свойств, отличающих «живое» от «не-живого») давно является дискуссионной. Однако в современном мире с развитием синтетической биологии, робототехники, технологий машинного обучения и др. она приобретает особую актуальность. Одним из подходов к ее решению может являться признание внутренней неоднородности понятия «жизнь» и катего-рирование классов объектов, им охватываемых. Результаты: Исходя из анализа определений понятия «жизнь» были проанализированы его ос-новные атрибуты. Сделано предположение, что наличие своего «Я» (сознания/ самосознания) можно считать важнейшим родовым признаком «действительно живого»/ «субъектного» по сравнению с другими классами биологических и подобным им не-биологических объектов. На-личие же также способности к научному познанию, а что еще более важно – наличие этики у «живых» сущностей, позволяет нам говорить об их принадлежности к еще более высоким уровням понятия «живого». Область применения результатов: Предложенный в статье подход представляется полезным для более точного определения и обозначения «живых» объектов и их свойств как в дискурсе, так и при построении теоретических конструктов. Выводы: Понятие «жизнь» – сложное и неоднородное. При построении теоретических конст-руктов, в ходе ведения дискуссий, в практической деятельности необходимо, по возможности, сужать и конкретизировать классы рассматриваемых «живых» объектов. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Background: Nowadays there is no consensus about definition of the category “life” as well as about the attributes of “live item”. A tremendous upgrowth of synthetic biology, robotics, machine learning, etc makes this problem more and more important. The introduced approach is based on acceptation that “life” is a multifaceted category, so we should divide this term into some subcategories and find the most appropriate attributes to do that. Results: A number of definitions of “life” are observed. The key attributes of “life” are analyzed. It is proposed to consider evidence of “self” (awareness/ self-awareness) as the most important attribute of “real life”/ “life as subject”. Ability to deal with science and moreover with ethics (that is more impor-tant) can be considered as features of more advanced forms of it. Implications: The introduced approach seems to be beneficial as well for discussions as for theory development because it may avoid multiple meanings and thus make them to be more exact and productive. At least, the article may be considered as an “invite” to keep on the reflection. Conclusion: As “life” is a very multifaceted category we should specialize it when we hold discussion, develop theoretical construct or in actual practice.

The Astrobiology of Alien Worlds: Known and Unknown Forms of Life

Most definitions of life assume that, at a minimum, life is a physical form of matter distinct from its environment at a lower state of entropy than its surroundings, using energy from the environment for internal maintenance and activity, and capable of autonomous reproduction. These assumptions cover all of life as we know it, though more exotic entities can be envisioned, including organic forms with novel biochemistries, dynamic inorganic matter, and self-replicating machines. The probability that any particular form of life will be found on another planetary body depends on the nature and history of that alien world. So the biospheres would likely be very different on a rocky planet with an ice-covered global ocean, a barren planet devoid of surface liquid, a frigid world with abundant liquid hydrocarbons, on a rogue planet independent of a host star, on a tidally locked planet, on super-Earths, or in long-lived clouds in dense atmospheres. While life at least in microbial form is probably pervasive if rare throughout the Universe, and technologically advanced life is likely much rarer, the chance that an alternative form of life, though not intelligent life, could exist and be detected within our Solar System is a distinct possibility.

Life Cycle Costing for Sustainability

Life cycle costing supports sustainability by stressing the costs not only in the production and selling phases but also considering the costs which are incurred after the sale of the products. This chapter reveals main characteristics of life cycle costing as follows: Life cycle costing also includes production costs which are; (a) research and development costs, (b) marketing, selling, distribution and design costs, (c) and also user costs. User costs have three dimensions: transaction costs, maintenance costs, and disposal costs. Therefore one can simply assert that life cycle costing has a broader approach in the calculation of the costs compared to other conventional costing systems. After introducing the main characteristics and basic definitions of life cycle costing, this chapter will discuss the implementation of life cycle costing in comparison with other conventional costing systems. Following this, we will analyze the link between life cycle costing, waste management and sustainability. Overall review will be done in the conclusion.