FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Dear members and friends of the Mormon Transhumanist Association:

We hope this message finds you in good health and high spirits. Today, we must address a development that we believe is important to share transparently. One of our Board members, Roselle Stevenson, has been facing a challenging situation involving legal matters.

It is with sadness that we announce Roselle's resignation from the Board of the Mormon Transhumanist Association. Roselle has been an invaluable part of our Association, contributing her time and energy to move our shared mission forward. However, we have been informed that Roselle is currently facing felony charges that are unrelated to her involvement with the Association.

We want to underscore that the Mormon Transhumanist Association is not in a position to validate or pass judgment on the legal circumstances at hand. We uphold the fundamental principle of “innocent until proven guilty,” and we trust the legal system to address these allegations with fairness and impartiality.

While Roselle maintains her innocence, considering the situation and to ensure that the focus of the Association remains unwaveringly on its mission and the vision we serve, she has tendered her resignation from the Board. This decision, though difficult, reflects her desire to address these matters independently without casting any shadow on the work of the Association.

The Mormon Transhumanist Association announces the results of recent director elections. The following individuals received the three greatest number of votes and will become the new directors (listed in alphabetical order by first name, not by amount of votes received):

• Carl Youngblood
• Conor White-Sullivan
• Dallin Bradford

It is anticipated that all three will transition into their new term starting May 1, 2023.

We wish to congratulate the new directors and look forward to their service. We also extend our sincere thanks to the other nominees for their continued support and willingness to serve.

We are pleased to announce the launch of our new website, a unified resource for all content and events. Based on beautiful animated artwork from Canopy Design, the site conveys hope for a positive future in which humanity employs its creative powers in harmony with nature. Our inspiring call to action is: What will you create? It invites visitors to consider their latent capacity as children of God to build a better world together.

The Annual director elections are fast approaching. Each year in the month of April three positions on the Board are up for vote. To be considered as a candidate or to vote for the candidates, your voting membership dues need to be current. In addition to voting rights, your dues grant free admission to Association conferences. We welcome the opportunity to have more participants in this process and more eligible Board candidates. Become a voting member today. The nomination phase of the voting process will begin April 1, 2023.

The Mormon Transhumanist Association announces the results of recent director elections. The following individuals received the three greatest number of votes and will become the new directors (listed in alphabetical order by first name, not by amount of votes received):

• Connie Packer
• Roselle Stevenson
• Spencer Cannon

It is anticipated that all three will transition into their new term starting May 1, 2022.

We wish to congratulate the new directors and look forward to their service. We also extend our sincere thanks to the other nominees for their continued support and willingness to serve.

MTAConf 2022 website now live.

Philosophers and political scientists have long debated the challenge of balanced and sustainable governance. The problem of collective action or preference coordination has kept power sharing limited. For most of recorded history, humanity has been compelled to choose between anarchy and tyranny, with power usually concentrated within a relatively small group led by a single dictator.

The Mormon Transhumanist Association announces the results of recent director elections. The following three of five candidates have been elected by the voting membership:

• Teresa Garrison Pratt
• Charles Randall Paul
• Caleb Jones

We wish to congratulate the new directors and look forward to their service. We also extend our sincere thanks to the other nominees for their continued support and willingness to serve.

The Mormon Transhumanist Association is pleased to announce the formation of a new board of advisors. The board of advisors will consist of former members of the board of directors, and its role will be to advise the association presidency and board of directors in their efforts to fulfill the purpose of the association.

IMAGE: PHOTO OF MAN AND LIGHTS

This article was written by John LaRocco, PhD.

Introduction

Direct brain-to-brain communication has resulted in enhanced cognitive performance. Invasive, implanted devices have successfully demonstrated this in animals, while non-invasive testing demonstrated similar results for humans (Pais-Vieira, Chiuffa, Lebedev, Yadav, & Nicolelis, 2015; Rao, et al., 2014). While transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) was used for initial brain-to-brain interface in humans, transcranial focused ultrasound (TFUS) offers a smaller, more efficient alternative (Danilov & Kublanov, 2014; Sassaroli & Vykhodtseva, 2016).

IMAGE: PHOTO OF DEATH WORM

Last month my paternal grandfather, my Papa Jerry, passed away peacefully in his sleep at the age of 90, aided by the comforting care of hospice. He began showing signs of heart failure several years ago (swelling in the legs, shortness of breath, difficulty with exertion), but the risks had been present for many years: he had a pacemaker placed several years before, he had many years of high blood pressure, high cholesterol, a distant history of tobacco use and a family history of heart disease on his father’s side.