How Neuroimplants Put Humans in the Driver Seat
NEW HOPE—In the year 2317, two human children made the last mistake that anyone ever made. Both attempted and failed to skip rocks across Mission Lake near their home near the Martian capital, New Hope. Their parents had forgotten (not had the recollection of a previously planned task) to take them to the regional medical hospital for their neuroimplants by their first birthday, over 4 terracycles earlier. This lapse was due to damaged NIs that were later fixed in the milestone event that finally brought all human brain activity to a sustainable standard as per the IGA Human Cybernetic Advancement initiative of 2285. With the subsequent NIs given to the children, twins aged 5 terracycles, the entirety of known human life were embedded with chips allowing shared experiences, Di-Hu interfacing, brain mapping, and many other augmentations that you have come to know and rely upon every day. These implants marked a milestone in human history and the next step in continued human evolution.
A Brief History of Neuroimplants
Neuroimplants were written about and studied as early as the 20th century on Earth on a much simpler scale than today. It wasn’t until DARPA developed a neuroimplant array that could be used to stimulate different parts of the human brain effectively in soldiers to suppress fear, pain, and stress that NIs became of high public interest. Initially, criticized as brainwashing machines to make super soldiers, NIs found much political backlash and American research was shifted entirely to private sector developers. By 2130, NIs were seen in nearly every industry as a way to help workers make fewer mistakes, communicate effectively, and have better interaction with computer systems including the very first full-function full-feeling cybernetic prosthetics. NIs went from scorned to sought after in under a decaterracycle, and by 2140 nearly 80% of the surviving population on Earth had at least some form of NI, and 61% of those had NIs with at least one non-medical enhancement. In, 2240 the first shared experience engine, Google Dream, launched after 5 years of internal and private beta tests. Dream allowed users to share experiences directly and introduced the now-commonplace Shared Dream Interface. It also allowed its users to make fewer mistakes by having both HUD warnings and AdverseImpulse systems, a first for any NI. 2249 saw the release of the OpenMind 19 API which became the base for the IGA’s NI standard, by which all NIs now comply. By 2285, NIs were now required to be implanted into all humans .75-1.5 terracycles after birth. Generation 1 NIs under this program were adopted at an admirable rate of 91%, Gen 2 at 93%, Gen 6 finally hit 100% adoption in 2312, but its hardware vulnerability to gamma rays saw an unexpected failure rate in certain orbital industry professions including the Gen 6 implants of Brian and Elise Tarkington, parents of the now famous Tarkington Twins, Mark and Ethan. The twins had been forgotten due to their parent’s malfunctioning Gen 6 NIs, and missed their own implants prior to being admitted into boarding academy while their parents were on an extended asteroid mining contract. Initially thought to have an unknown learning disability, the Tarkington Twins were left to their own devices rather than joining their age group in school. They reportedly were trying to learn to skip rocks when they were found by a nearby retiree who was disturbed by the noise. The twins did not know their address hexstring and were unresponsive to a neuroimplant shared experience (NISE) scan. They were given implants later that day and the faulty hardware failure led to the fully gamma shielded Gen 6 rev. 2 NIs still in use today.
Better Science, Better Living
Today’s NIs allow us to do more now than at any other point in human history. Workplace injury-related deaths attributed to human error reached zero for the first time in 2316. Long-suffered neurological diseases have been either eliminated or overcome in almost all cases, and human lifespans have increased on average 37 terracycles when controlling for other medical influences. Most remarkable is the absolute removal of the mistake, a wrong decision or action made in error based upon faulty information, carelessness, clumsiness, or inability. Shared Experience Engines or SEEs have allowed NI-augmented people to learn from collective experiences backed by quantum computing and situational analysis. Before these augmentations, it was the responsibility of the individual to learn, often by a process called “trial-and-error” to discover, grow and mature. Today, we have the collective knowledge of all humanity to replace the process of learning. NIs allow people who have never operated spacecraft to be proficient pilots instantaneously, and administer advanced medical treatment as a first responder without the need for antiquated training courses. The 21st century’s ongoing discussion on matters like equality and professionalism seem like distant concepts to today’s population of equally-talented and entirely capable workers. With unemployment amongst IGA citizens at 0.2%, we are in an age of hyper-productivity. NIs stimulating the areas of the brain that control joy and pleasure have reduced the need for entertainment, illustrated best by a push by congress to reduce the entertainments and arts spending budget by a further 30% over the next 5 terracycles to 3.8 billion Cryptocoins. Old adages such as “don’t be afraid to make mistakes” have fallen out of use as humanity moves forward with a singular shared experience, and a collective mind that no longer has the capacity for mistakes. The individual is no more, the expression of art and randomness is no more, the horrifying mistakes and pain of growth are no more as we make our way to the brightest future humanity has ever faced. Who would choose the feeling of embarrassment when the joy of self-improvement can be simulated rather than painfully fought for over the course of a lifetime? Our use of NI technology has allowed us to step forward as a collective polymind, and is the next step towards superintelligence and the continued evolution and survival of ourselves as a species. ■
Prepare for next week’s Cerebral Upload: The Need for Six Space Elevators on Europa
Trivia: receive 10% off poster design or get 10% off engagement photography when you email me the correct answer to the following question with the subject “Neuroimplant Trivia” (offer valid through October 30, 2015 and may not be combined with any other offer.)
Ternary computers, which differ from binary computers by using three possible values rather than two, despite facing current manufacturing difficulties have what primary advantage over traditional binary computers?
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