Brain Implants ‘Could Lead to Hackers Controlling Your Mind,’ Scientists Warn (Also the Bio-Digital Revolution With mRNA Vaccines Though They Not Talk About in This Article) Tesla Chief Elon Musk Teams up With Covid-19 Player CureVac to Build 'RNA Micro-Factories'

Read this here. 

Abstract

The biodigital convergence describes the intersection, and in some cases merging, of biological and digital technologies. Biodigital technologies include mRNA vaccines used to treat COVID-19, digitally controlled surveillance insects, microorganisms genetically engineered to produce medicinal compounds, and more. While significant scholarship has been paid to the ethical dimensions of biodigital technologies from a Western standpoint, little attention has focused on Indigenous views on the biodigital convergence. In this article, we explore the biodigital convergence from a Haudenosaunee perspective and suggest that insights from Indigenous philosophical traditions—specifically regarding relationality and territory—may be necessary for humanity to adapt to the profound and existential changes implicit in the biodigital convergence.

See here for more about the bio-digital convergence.

See here for more about Elon Musk and CureVac.

Elon Musk isn’t content with conquering space with Space X, revolutionizing transport with Hyperloop and making tons of money with his Tesla electric car.

One of his companies aims to create a Matrix-style ‘brain implant’ to plug humans directly into machines. It’s a leap forward that could lead to humans merging with machines – but a group of neuroscientists has warned that brain scans, brain implants, and related technologies could have terrifying side effects.

In a letter in the scientific journal Nature this week, 27 top neuroscientists highlighted some of the risks of the technology. The scientists pointed out that some people who have had brain implants report feeling an ‘altered sense of identity. The researchers write, ‘The technology could also exacerbate social inequalities and offer corporations, hackers, governments or anyone else new ways to exploit and manipulate people,.

‘It could profoundly alter some core human characteristics: private mental life, individual agency and an understanding of individuals as entities bound by their bodies.’ Algorithms that are used to target advertising, calculate insurance premiums or match potential partners will be considerably more powerful if they draw on neural information — for instance, activity patterns from neurons associated with certain states of attention.

‘And neural devices connected to the Internet open up the possibility of individuals or organizations (hackers, corporations or government agencies) tracking or even manipulating an individual’s mental experience.