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What's so evolved about being part of the Overmind?

posted 8 years ago by blankaflip
9 replies | jump to latest

Here we are. Humans. We've come a long way since the first mammals appeared on Earth millions of years ago. But we still have a very long way to go. In fact, in comparison to other life forms that certainly may exist, we are merely lucky animals. What's next for us? Being lumped into a glowing light of thought that floats around the cosmos? Losing independent thought? What would we accomplish as part of the Overmind? Destroying other planets in order to gain even more assimilated consciousness? What do we gain?

The show did a decent enough job in adapting the story to screen, as it is generating these types of questions. The book, however, certainly must have illustrated The Overmind more clearly. I haven't read it, though I would be interested in gaining more insight into what makes being a part of the Overmind worth sacrificing a beautiful planet and billions of lives.

[–] spocktom 8 years ago

Read the book. It gives a better insight into what the Overmind is and its motivations. I agree with the rest of your statements. In many ways the Overmind and the Overlords were a symbol of a type of patronisation that mankind has always shunned. However the evolution of our species may very well be more spiritual and techno-cerebral than physical. I think our physical development has reached its peak...just like sharks are not all that different to the way they were millions of years ago (although they are somewhat smaller now). We've probably reached our physical "peak". It's the evolution of our minds and the parallel evolution of our technology which will see changes in the future.

Imagine a time when physical death will not mean the death of you as a mind and ID. Where the electrical impulses and neuron patterns can be uploaded to an electronic "mind drive' ready for downloading into a bionic machine or a fresh newly-cloned body. This is all technically feasible in the foreseeable future. It will be at this point that mankind will defeat evolution. Once we escape death AND once we establish a permanent foothold on worlds other than our own dear earth we will have rid ourselves of physical evolution forever. I'm reminded of the final scene in "Forbidden Planet" (1956)

"Alta, about a million years

from now the human race

will have crawled up

to where the Krell stood...

in their great moment

of triumph and tragedy.

And your father's name

will shine again...

like a beacon in the galaxy.

It's true, it will remind us...

that we are, after all, not God."

[–] nyarlath 8 years ago

I'm reminded of the final scene in "Forbidden Planet" (1956)

"Alta, about a million years

from now the human race

will have crawled up

to where the Krell stood...

in their great moment

of triumph and tragedy.

And your father's name

will shine again...

like a beacon in the galaxy.

It's true, it will remind us...

that we are, after all, not God."

It's amazing how drastic the change in perspective in only three years. The children in the overmind (in the book) ultimately destroy the Earth as casually as you would swat a fly. But Commander Adams warns that having godlike powers doesn't make you one.

[–] Dejay 7 years ago

IMHO a better model than cloning and dying / killing yourself would be:

1: Gene therapy to become immortal. Once we have enough control over our genetic we could change all our genes in our body through a designed virus that makes our cells immortal and rejuvenates us. We'll get a ton of medical complications the older we get but things like cancer etc will eventually be defeated. Mortality and aging were an advantage during our evolution.

2: Conserve the brain in a box or just connect our immortal bodies into a virtual reality with the ability to remote control a new body in the real world, or a virtual body. Then we learn how to adjust our genetic makeup to become more intelligent, grow more layers of brain etc.

3: Use nanobots (imho biology is really the ideal nanobot) to "upgrade" each neuron one by one. No loss of consciousness or death while your mental abilities are upgraded.

4: Be able to analyse and modify DNA through biological glands connected to your brain, and have full control over your body without the need for external devices.

5: Grow some backup brains distributed throughout your body that are synced to your main brain. Now even a headshot can't kill you, just regrow and resync your brain.

6: Finally read that book about how to talk to women

[–] brzeczyk 8 years ago

@spocktom, perhaps you might want to clarify that mankind has "always" shunned patronisation except when it was on its giving end (towards pretty much all other living creatures), and on its receiving end (with way more than half of mankind taking orders from a variety of fictitious deities, usually "represented by prophets" of all kind). I'd argue that the vast majority of mankind has always excelled at both patronising and being patronised.

[–] brzeczyk 8 years ago

Ps. I don't think it'll be long that we'll be the "most superior species" on this planet. In fact, in some cases we aren't anymore -- Google is. Once we've finally constructed sentient silicon-based life, which shouldn't be that far ahead, our role will be reduced to servicing it. One could already say that primitive silicon-based life forms exists, in form of the internet, and that it's taken a parasitic form on the human brain.

Making sure that electricity flows and that there is network coverage has become a priority for many people. They'll go to great lengths to provide resources to build faster network, only to download more... porn.

This is a simple addiction mechanism that ensures that we're farming this new silicon-based life form, that it can reproduce and grow. Addictive plants such as the coca plant or cannabis follow the same mechanism.

Sure, it's still mostly our own neural pathways that create software that then gets uploaded to the silicon structures, but I think this will change at some point. Since information can travel at the speed of light, it's potentially a much more superior form of life than protein/DNA-based life.

I think the evolution is heading towards a transition from genetic to memetic forms of life, and we, the humans, are just an intermediary step. Sure, we'll still be around for some more time, but I doubt our line of genes is the "perfect end of line". If that were so, it would be very very sad. I'm not overly patriotic when it comes to species.

[–] Dejay 8 years ago

I agree with you on AI and it's a good parallel to how our end could suddenly end with our "last invention" very similar to the "sudden evolution".

But if the first AI is benevolent and is programmed to act ethically, we would probably see humans become more and more diverse. Some would want to learn more and become smarter by expanding their brains, others will want genetically change to be able to live in nature without technology, others might just want to play the perfect VR game. And some will stay just as they are.

That is what bugs me about the story, it's not evolved or superior to destroy what doesn't fit your agenda.

[–] darkness_surroundz 8 years ago

well as a concept, The Overmind was from whom God took his orders....

[–] LibertarianSoldier 8 years ago

Neither you nor I know what it's like to be part of the Overmind. Who knows what it could be like? It could be heaven, it could be that you gain your own "universe" to become the "creator" of as you now have the power of Type VI or Type Omega-Minus collective. The possibilities of what it would be like to be such an evolved state could literally be unlimited, even by a lack of imagination...

[–] matt-whittall 8 years ago

its *beep*