Who will rule over this new ‘interconnected global society’ with its ‘countries that exist in cyberspace’? perspective As the lines between digital and physical spaces blur, the RAND Corporation forecasts that metaverses may come to function like new countries in our society. With digital identity set to be your passport in the metaverse, and with your metaverse identity projected to be central to your day-to-day life, who will rule these virtual spaces and with what authority? According to the UK Defence-commissioned RAND report, “Cultural and technological change in the future information en ..read more

Transhumanism may lead to super-human capabilities for some & mind control for others: perspective The Internet of Bodies ecosystem may lead to the Internet of Brains sometime between 2035 and 2050, according to a UK Defence-commissioned RAND report. “An ‘internet of bodies’ may also ultimately lead to an ‘internet of brains’, i.e. human brains connected to the internet to facilitate direct brain-to-brain communication and enable access to online data networks” RAND Corporation, March 2024 Commissioned by the UK Defence Science and Technology Laboratory and conducted by RAND Europe and Fr ..read more

The more RAND describes the motives behind a synthetic pandemic, the more they sound like COVID-19 and the great reset: perspective The potential for synthetic pandemics and bioterror attacks is increasing as the technologies and capabilities become cheaper and more widely-accessible, according to a recent RAND Corporation report. The RAND report “Emerging Technology and Risk Analysis: Synthetic Pandemics,” says that over the next 10 years, “More potential terrorist actors will have access to synthetic biology knowledge and capabilities,” and, “The continued proliferation of biotechnology has ..read more

First came brain implants for disabilities, next comes brain-computer interfaces (BCIs) to read & write memories and thoughts: perspective Elon Musk’s announcement that the first human received a Neuralink brain implant this week comes almost three-and-a-half years after he said this technology would one day be able to upload and download memories between humans and machines. On January 19, 2024, Musk announced on X: “The first human received an implant from Neuralink yesterday and is recovering well. Initial results show promising neuron spike detection” The first human received an im ..read more

What’s to become of these ‘supersoldiers’ once their service has ended? perspective Cyborgs and genetically enhanced “supersoldiers” are projected to be the warfighters of the future, according to a recent RAND Corporation report. Published on January 2, 2024, the report, “Plagues, Cyborgs, and Supersoldiers: The Human Domain of War,” highlights advances in human-machine systems, along with AI and synthetic biology as being among the technologies that will be used to engineer the future warfighter. According to the report, these technologies will give rise to seemingly telepathic capabilities ..read more

Govt agencies that fund big pharma & deal with public health emergencies are working together on the pharmaceutical regulatory approval process: perspective DARPA and the US Department of Health and Human Services’ emergency preparedness and response division are teaming up on a research project “to demonstrate a real-time digital regulatory approval framework for multiple finished drug products.” Last week, the US Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) announced it will hold an industry day for its Establishing Qualification Processes for Agile Pharmaceutical Manufacturing (EQU ..read more

Scientists in govt, academia, and industry are thinking about gene editing & AI as catalysts moving society towards a posthumanism future: perspective By the year 2045, gene editing and Machine Learning R&D could indicate “the start of the posthumanism era,” according to one futuristic scenario from a tabletop exercise organized by RAND Europe. On Monday, RAND published a 112-page report called “Machine Learning and Gene Editing at the Helm of a Societal Evolution,” which included the results of a tabletop exercise exploring what types of policies could be implemented in about 20 years ..read more

DARPA is putting together the Intrinsic Cognitive Security (ICS) research program “to build tactical mixed reality systems that protect against cognitive attacks.” As the Pentagon sees mixed reality (MR) becoming ubiquitous in future military missions, the US Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) is looking to protect users against cognitive attacks in this hybrid environment. “The ICS program seeks breakthrough innovation for computational science to build tactical mixed reality systems that protect against cognitive attacks” DARPA, Intrinsic Cognitive Security (ICS) program, Oct ..read more

ARPA-H REACT program can be used to improve healthcare or enable a biomedical surveillance regime: perspective The United States Advanced Research Projects Agency for Health (ARPA-H) is launching an Internet of Bodies-infused research project to implant tracking devices while delivering bioengineered treatments in patients’ bodies. ARPA-H’s Resilient Extended Automatic Cell Therapies (REACT) research program aims “to develop new technologies that will automatically deliver treatments and monitor for disease from within an individual’s body.” REACT will develop two platforms: An implantable “L ..read more

Vaccines can serve as multiuse technologies that have economic and national security considerations, according to a RAND report. The report, “A Brief Overview of Emerging Vaccine Technologies for Pandemic Preparedness,” says that the importance of new types of vaccine manufacturing go beyond health and into the realm of international relations and national security. According to the report, “the multibillion-dollar vaccine industry contributes greatly to many nations’ economies. The industry boosts scientific innovation and collaboration, allowing opportunities for greater partnerships between ..read more