If there is no today, there will be no yesterday tomorrow —— Reading A Brief History of Mankind

Following the global trend of selling a brief history of mankind, the new Israeli historian yuval? Herali once again came out of the mountain and wrote a brief history of the future. On the basis of re-examining the history of human development, he once again looked forward to the future from a grand perspective. Since ancient times, human beings have been curious about the future and explored the unknown future through divination and divination. What is the future of mankind? What is the ultimate of evolution? History is a mirror that illuminates reality and the future. Only by seeing clearly the road leading to today can we plan the future clearly and wisely. Therefore, the answer is naturally to be found in history.

As Nietzsche said: Everything that can't kill me will make me strong. Throughout the history of human development, the history of human development is a history of struggle with natural forces, and human beings continue to develop and evolve in the process of struggle with nature. Today, mankind has surpassed other creatures on the earth, standing at the top of the biological chain, waving scientific and technological weapons to give orders. Although the famine, plague and war that once hovered over human beings have not been completely solved, they have changed from "incomprehensible and uncontrollable natural forces" to "manageable challenges"

The cause of human death, yuval? Herali believes that there is only one, that is, there are some technical problems in the operation of the human body, such as the heart does not beat, the aorta gambles on fat, and cancer cells spread in the liver. These are all technical problems. As long as it is a technical problem, there will be a technical solution. Although I can't find it for the time being, I will find a technical solution one day. Therefore, immortality is not an illusion. If anyone doubts this, it is likely that Neanderthals did not understand the Nasdaq index.

For happiness, yuval? Herari thinks this is just a marketing trick of our biochemical system. As long as it is conducive to survival and reproduction, the biochemical system will respond with pleasure. If we master the biochemical system, then we have mastered the method to ensure long-term satisfaction. Although this will change the most basic lifestyle, it is by no means impossible. Preliminary progress has been made in experiments such as biochemistry and genetic engineering.

If man overcomes death, then man will go to the position of God. The immortal body, the technology of calling the wind and calling the rain, is in the bliss world without pain, and can build various systems at will, just like the gods. Yuval? Hurali believes that up to now, to increase people's strength, we mainly rely on improving external tools. But the future may focus on improving people's body and mind, or directly combine people with tools.

There are three main paths: bioengineering, electronic human engineering and non-organic bioengineering. Bioengineering means that human beings fully tap their own potential under the existing organism structure; Semi-robot engineering refers to the combination of various non-organic devices, keeping the organic brain as the core; Non-organic bioengineering means that intelligent software replaces neural network and inorganic life replaces organic life. We don't know where the road ahead will lead mankind, and we don't know what the future "human god" will look like. But we know that both biological engineering and electronic human engineering have important human elements, such as mind, will and so on. However, the emergence of inorganic life is subversive. Once technology enables us to rebuild the human mind, Homo sapiens will disappear from the earth and human history will come to an end.

To confirm this topic, yuval? In A Brief History of the Future, Hera used a lot of space to deduce this possibility. The uniqueness of human beings lies in the soul and soul and the meaning of existence. However, anatomy has searched every corner of human organs and found no so-called "soul" different from other animals; The mind exists in the neural network, not something illusory; The so-called free choice is just the choice of genetic code.

Alleged meaning, religion, doctrine, etc. They are all just tools woven by human beings to rule the world. Laws, binding forces, entities and places only exist in the imagination of Homo sapiens. When we look back, it is hard to imagine the situation at that time. Just as it is difficult for us to imagine joining the Crusaders in order to enter heaven now, it is also difficult for our descendants to understand our current beliefs.

It can be seen that we humans are not irreplaceable. Every animal, including Homo sapiens, is an evolutionary algorithm set. All behaviors can be solved by algorithms, and the function of the algorithm is not affected by the constituent substances. As long as the operation is accurate, there is no difference between carbon and silicon. According to this reasoning, all living things are algorithms, while life is processing data. With the support of huge data, unconscious but highly intelligent algorithms may soon know more about themselves than we do. As long as there are better algorithms and data, human biological algorithms will be eliminated. At that time, the future may be the era of artificial intelligence, most people will become "worthless groups", and only a few people can evolve into "gods" with changed characteristics. From this perspective, the blind pursuit of immortality, happiness and incarnation will inevitably lead to the destruction of mankind.

Sure, yuval? Herali's original intention is not to undermine the confidence and courage of human beings in pursuing progress. He pointed out: historical knowledge will change our future behavior, and learning history is to liberate from the old meaning; Forecasting is not for forecasting, and forecasting can change the future after discussion. Catch up with the future, grasp its essence, turn the future into the present, look at things from a brand-new perspective, see and master the current and future trends, see the possibility, and change the impossible. This is the meaning of predicting the future.

Because if there is no today, there is no yesterday tomorrow.