Today I listened to the extraordinary 2019 Ted Talk of Rob Reid “How synthetic biology could wipe out humanity -- and how we can stop it.” Rob first instils chilling fear of the danger of apocalypse and then proposes some measures for mitigation.
How synthetic biology could wipe out humanity -- and how we can stop it
Below I have summarised Rob’s argument:
I do not disagree with any part of Mr Rob Reid’s talk. My point is about the suggestion “Improve mental health”. We can develop and distribute antibody pathogens dynamically and cheaply. We can enlist the support of the experts and the whole society. But what of inherent human greed?
I cite from Mr Rob’s lecture itself. He tells us of our experience with the financial system during 2007-2008, when the stewards meant to protect the common people themselves became massively corrupted as they figured out how they could cut corners, inflict massive, massive risks on the rest of us and privatize the gains, becoming repulsively wealthy while they stuck us with the $22 trillion bills. Rob calls it “Privatise the gains and socialise the losses”. He cited three banks that had skimmed the wealth of common people much before the economic failure of 2008.
So, In my opinion, after science and regulatory systems do their jobs diligently we still do need to instil the pure knowledge of Interdependence at the minimum and also the ultimate knowledge of the river flowing through us all and illusion of ego-self.
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How synthetic biology could wipe out humanity -- and how we can stop it
Below I have summarised Rob’s argument:
- Out of about seven and a half billion of us, a small subset choose the nihilistic route of killing people.
- For the suicidal murderers, technology is the force multiplier. So we can say, knife: terrible; gun: way worse. And aeroplane: massively worse.
- There are far more deadly weapons in our near future than aeroplanes, ones not made of metal.
- We are in the era of exponential technologies, which diffuse the super technologies developed by one or two living geniuses to more or less everybody.
- Synthetic biology is one such technology. In 2011, a couple of researchers modified the genome of the highly fatal but non-contagious H5N1 flu virus and made it not only every bit as deadly but also wildly contagious.
- Just two years after this work, the CRISPR system was harnessed for genome editing that makes gene-editing massively easier.
- Genetic sequencing has beaten Moore’s law —- now, gene sequencing, editing and synthesis can be done by students at any university.
- And once a genius makes a data file containing a genome sequence, any idiot can copy it, distribute it worldwide — and in near future print it on a DNA printer.
- If somebody tries this and is only 0.1 per cent effective, eight million people die.
- Rapidly enhance the R & D muscle to develop antibody pathogens at a really very low cost and make those available to all in the society.
- Improve mental health. Suicidal mass murderers although despicable, are also terribly broken and sad people. We need to ensure that nobody goes unloved.
- Make fighting the dangers core to the discipline of synthetic biology.
- Finally, educate the society by showing to them the real dark outcomes, by painting the true doomsday picture.
I do not disagree with any part of Mr Rob Reid’s talk. My point is about the suggestion “Improve mental health”. We can develop and distribute antibody pathogens dynamically and cheaply. We can enlist the support of the experts and the whole society. But what of inherent human greed?
I cite from Mr Rob’s lecture itself. He tells us of our experience with the financial system during 2007-2008, when the stewards meant to protect the common people themselves became massively corrupted as they figured out how they could cut corners, inflict massive, massive risks on the rest of us and privatize the gains, becoming repulsively wealthy while they stuck us with the $22 trillion bills. Rob calls it “Privatise the gains and socialise the losses”. He cited three banks that had skimmed the wealth of common people much before the economic failure of 2008.
So, In my opinion, after science and regulatory systems do their jobs diligently we still do need to instil the pure knowledge of Interdependence at the minimum and also the ultimate knowledge of the river flowing through us all and illusion of ego-self.
...
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