Bulletin #24: The Unforeseen Clash – Microprocessors in the Mind, Duplicates and Rebellion of the Swiftie Brigade
“DAI#24 – Brain chips, clones, and Swifties fight back”
“The Swifties made themselves known in a big way this week after they swarmed all over Twitter to ‘cancel’ their newest perceived enemy,” quotes from the original DailyAI article. It’s an apt representation of our current digital age: where fandoms feel as substantial as the mist in the ether, where brain chips somehow sound less outlandish every passing day, and where cloning only needs a dash more controversy to pitch its tent firmly into mainstream discussion.
There’s nothing that encapsulates our zeitgeisty hodgepodge more than literal brain chips. Musk’s Neuralink, a first-of-its-kind in-brain device. It’s as risky as riding a unicycle on a tightrope but steeped in the promise of helping nullify neurogenerative ailments or control smart devices with just a thought. Should we be concerned or keel over in awe? Probably a bit of both.
Shaking off the futuristic shock of the brain chip, let’s venture into the genetic puzzle box: cloning. It’s like science decided to take a walk on the wild side, only the wild side features identical twins born 10 years apart. Bizarre? Yes. Impossible? Thanks to Dolly the Sheep, apparently not. Ethical? That’s everyone’s favorite Pandora’s box.
Last but not least, is the curious battleground of the digital diaspora: Social Media. Swifties, the zealous fans of pop star Taylor Swift, are in full rebellion mode. An army of cat emoji-wielding warriors, quick to unholster their smartphones and passionately protect their beloved idol from all perceived slight. The mind boggles at the sheer power of collective conscientiousness and the proposed ‘cancel’ culture it can instantiate.
Whether we’re diving headfirst into the human brain, grappling with the concept of identical genetic duplicates, or jostling with the unpredictability of social media fandoms, the constraints of ‘normality’ are being regularly tested. It’s like being strapped into a time machine set for the future, except the future is already here, and it’s serving brain chips with a side of cloned organisms and Twitter-induced euphoria. So, let’s step back, buckle up, and attempt to make sense of it all. Step lively, because neither fandom fury nor bioethical debates are known to wait for stragglers.