[–] Chops 0 points 3 points 3 points (+3|-0) ago
Elon Musk is so crippled by his fear of AI, I feel it really hinders him in other aspects of his life. What does he think is going to fly his space ships when the entire crew is in suspended animation during the long flight?
I don't really see where his problem with genetic engineering is. "Hitler problem"? Why is genetic purity bad? Does he honestly believe that if we remove all genetic diseases that the next step is genocide? If we can isolate genes that cause problems and remove just those, we can still retain our human individuality and diversity while not having to worry about a heart defect 40 years down the line.
If anything it creates more of a GATTACA situation, with "natural" births being discriminated against but hopefully our society wouldn't go that route.
[–] Codexx 0 points 1 point 1 point (+1|-0) ago
Even if you can remove specific "problem" genes, you're reducing the overall gene pool, minimizing vectors for future mutation, and you risk short-sighted decisions having long-reaching consequences.
Some genes are "diseases" or "unclean". Some are just inefficient in a modern environment. ADHD is hypothesized to be an adaptation beneficial for hunter-gatherer societies. In agricultural societies, and cities, it becomes much less useful and indeed a hinderance. But would you want to eliminate ADHD from the gene pool? Many sufferers would volunteer, even without a mandate, to have their ADHD cured or to not pass it on to their children. So what happens down the line when that gene would be useful again?
If we hit the point where we can remove and add genes freely, and choose our own modifications, it may not be that big of a problem, but it will still present moral issues. Additionally, until we reach that point, our best bet for removing a gene will be selective embryo implantation, exactly like GATTACA, which can't control for every sequence but can rule out specific sets of genes. While better than mass sterilization, it's still crude and will lead to unforseen consequences as we bridge the gap to full genetic control.
We should at least wait for full sequencing before we start tampering. There are many questioned that need to be answered before we jump onboard. I only hope no corporations find a way to monetize services like this before we can plan ahead.
[–] RegularJerk 0 points 2 points 2 points (+2|-0) ago
But would a perfect human still be human? Should we make people smarter and stronger? Should humans be able to live forever?
How else are we going to explore space?
[–] SilvanestiTheErudite 0 points 1 point 1 point (+1|-0) ago
Yeah, if you look at a lot of the practical problems with space exploration a lot of them could be fixed with comparatively minor genetic tweaks. A good example is the food issue: humans could live off of spirulina algae and vitamin pills, meaning that an entirely closed life support system would be possible, if it weren't for the whole gout issue. Now it turns out there are only a very few species that have that problem, and most likely we could just do one gene swap and solve the problem. One swap, no new engineering, nothing that nature hasn't already done, could make space travel that much easier.
[–] tribblepuncher ago (edited ago)
Hey, if he wants to "stay human" and skip out on any enhancements, I sure won't stop him, but if given the choice I'd rather get stronger, smarter and longer-lived. And I think I'm far from the only one.