North Texan Posthumans

*No, really, they’re in mortal seriousness about this.

*”The Denton Singularity,” I reckon. Hey, I’d go.

Contact: Nancy Kolsti
UNT News Service
940-565-3509
Nancy.Kolsti@unt.edu

Authors of “Humanity 2.0,” “The Techno-Human Condition” to speak at University of North Texas

DENTON (UNT), Texas — Steve Fuller, professor of sociology at the University of Warwick in England and author of the upcoming “Humanity 2.0.;” Braden Allenby, Lincoln Professor of Engineering and Ethics at Arizona State University; and Daniel Sarewitz, professor of science and society and co-director of the Consortium for Science, Policy and Outcomes at Arizona State, will discuss how biology and technology may alter the idea of humanity in coming decades during a panel discussion at the University of North Texas Sept. 7.

“The Future of Humanity” is being presented by UNT’s Center for the Study of Interdisciplinarity, which is the first university center in the nation dedicated to developing the theory and practice of interdisciplinarity — a term used in academic circles to describe researchers or teachers from two or more disciplines pooling and modifying their approaches to solving a problem. The provides resources and networking opportunities for researchers and students interested in research and education that encompasses different academic areas.

In “Humanity 2.0.,” which will be published in November, Fuller draws on fields ranging from biology to theology to provide the first synthesis on the historical, philosophical and sociological insights to address the question of what will mean to be “human” during the coming decades. He provides an overview of key historical, philosophical and theological moments that have shaped our understandings of humanity, and discusses how race and religion are being reinvented to fit a new definition of humanity.

Allenby and Sarewitz are the authors of “The Techno-Human Condition,” published earlier this year. In the book, they explore what it means to be human in an era of technological complexity and change, and argue that humans must move beyond categories such as “human,” “technological” and “natural” to embrace a new human relationship with technology, including customized biological enhancements.

For more information, contact Keith Brown, programs manager at the UNT Center for the Study of Interdisciplinarity, at 940-565-4671.