Transfiguration: Parallels and Complements between Mormonism and Transhumanism

Speaker 1

Our next speaker will be our The person who’s very kindly contributed the recording system that we’ve been using today, Carl Youngblood. So he’ll be working with a backup to record him. Carl has over 10 years of professional experience in software engineering. He received a bachelor’s degree in Portuguese from Brigham Young University and a master’s degree in computer science from the University of Washington. Carl is actively involved in the open source software community, having founded ConFreaks LLC, which is the group recording us today, as a way of preserving the proceedings of many events in that community. In the open source community. He is an avid technology enthusiast and serves as a director of the Mormon Transhumanist Association. Carl lives in South Jordan, Utah with his wife and four children. Today, Carl is going to be answering the question that Richard Bushman said many people came To ask, and that is what is transhumanism. He’ll be attempting to answer that by drawing parallels between Transhumanism and Mormonism. Carl Jungbled.

Carl Youngblood

All right, it’s good to be here. What I’m going to talk about today took me about an hour to talk about the last time I did this, so it’ll be an adventure to try to share all of this in 20 minutes. But basically, the order I’m going to go in is to first try to introduce some of the relevant Mormon doctrines or Mormon concepts that apply to this discussion, and then talk about transhumanism. and some of the principles that transhumanists might advocate. And then I’m going to discuss parallels between these two views. And finally, end on ways that these two movements might be able to learn something from one another. I also want to point out that I don’t necessarily These views don’t necessarily represent the views of all Mormons or all transhumanists, but we’ve tried to strive, as we wrote this paper, for kind of a common view that represents many people’s views in these groups, and we tried to strive for accuracy and those commonalities.

Carl Youngblood

So, first of all, I want to discuss what a discussion the dispensation of the fullness of times. So, a dispensation Is understood as a period of time in which God reveals knowledge and power to humanity. The present dispensation is known as the dispensation of the fullness of times to Mormons. And it consists of a restoration of past dispensations or the knowledge and things that were gained in past dispensations, and a time in which new knowledge will be revealed. And it will be a springboard for future dispensations and a period of accelerated progress. Joseph Smith said that during this dispensation, God would. Reveal all things. Nothing shall be withheld. All thrones and dominions, principalities and powers shall be revealed in this dispensation. Jesus also taught that in this dispensation we would see accelerated progress and that these days would be shortened. Latter-day prophets and apostles in the Mormon tradition also spoke of this accelerated progress. The work of God is being carried on far beyond that which we can see with our natural eyes. The work of the preparation of the earth and of its inhabitants is pressing forward with a rapidity that we who are taking part in it do not realize. And this great work of the last days will be cut short in righteousness. We have a relative of this person here in Lincoln Cannon.

Carl Youngblood

Another thing that’s an important point to bring up is that Mormons aren’t the only ones who will be involved in these processes. Orson F. Whitney said that this work was stupendous, magnificent, and altogether too arduous for this little handful of saints to accomplish by and of themselves. So, those are some of the concepts that will happen during the dispensation of the fullness of times.

Carl Youngblood

The next concept in Mormon theology that I like to talk about is the millennium. This is a specific 1,000-year period that is soon to come. So, when people talk about the millennium, it’s not any given millennium, but that which is about to happen. The advent of this millennium is imminent. No matter how long ago you heard it, it’s always going to happen very soon now. It’s widely unexpected, but some people see the signs, and generally it’s thought that radical and disruptive changes will occur, culminating in Christ’s return. And during this time, the work of God will continue. There will be a period of progressive transfiguration in which humans on the earth will Achieve extended lifespans and other health benefits. And we will also be involved in the work of resurrecting our ancestors and other individuals who have already passed on. And this will be a period of also accelerated progress.

Carl Youngblood

So we have some of these concepts in the words of the prophets. Of the Mormon tradition. So this day is even at the doors. And Jesus says, I come quickly. We know not at what time it might occur, and we should be ready and be prepared and watching for those signs. Also, there’s even the concept that many people in the world may not be aware of these events when they happen. So, Brigham Young even taught that When the millennium is ushered in, no man or woman will know anything about it, only by the power of God. He will rule and reign, and his glory shall be in Zion, and the wicked will not know it is the hand of God. So he says, but a few may actually be aware of this when it happens. So the awareness of this advent is not universal.

Carl Youngblood

Another concept in Mormon doctrine that I’d like to talk about is immortality. So, one of the things that we should first talk about is that Mormons believe that there are physical differences between mortal and immortal beings, and that there are diverse kinds of bodies. and these have various degrees of glory. And also that the processes of achieving immortality and resurrection are not instantaneous, they’re gradual. And that they may be performed as ordinances of the priesthood. So we have in the Book of Mormon that Mormon inquired of the Lord to see what had happened to these three Nephites who asked for the privilege of teaching the gospel for the remainder of their days. or for the rest of the existence of the earth. And he was told that there a change had been wrought upon their bodies. Paul talks about different kinds of bodies, celestial, terrestrial bodies, and also bodies that differ as the sun and the moon and the stars differ from one another. Brigham Young said that We don’t yet have all priesthood ordinances. And he says, We have not, neither can we receive here the ordinance and the keys of the resurrection. they will be given to those who have passed off this stage of action and have received their bodies again. And as many have already done it, and many more will.

Carl Youngblood

So the next concept I’d like to talk about is the Mormon view of heavens or degrees of glory. We are taught that Oh, there we go. We’re taught that all of the things that we see in the night sky, celestial bodies and other things that we witness as we observe the creation are kingdoms, and that any man who hath seen any or the least of these hath seen God moving in His majesty and power. It’s a really beautiful view. Mormons believe that these kingdoms are not supernatural, nor are they metaphysical. So they exist in time and space. Joseph Smith taught That those who inherited the celestial kingdom would have the means of viewing all things that were pertaining to an inferior order. and things that were pertaining to a superior order, which is interesting to think about the fact that although he did not name what these superior orders might be, it was understood that there were orders beyond even the celestial kingdom. Jesus also taught that those who believe on him shall do greater works than he did. The understanding of this exaltation process, this progress to greater degrees of glory, is that it’s not an instantaneous thing, so it’s progressive. And James E. Talmadge said that advancement from grace from grade to grade with any kingdom would be reasonable to believe, and from kingdom to kingdom would be provided for. And that this is kind of the order, the way things work. Eternity is progressive, perfection is relative.

Carl Youngblood

The next Mormon concept I’d like to talk about is gods. So, although in a very important sense Mormons believe Mormons are monotheistic in the sense that they worship God the Father, whom they believe is the creator of this universe, and they also believe that humans are the spirit children of God. Because of these beliefs, as such, humans have the capacity to become like God. So in this sense, although they worship an individual and a monotheistic God, they also believe in a plurality of gods or the capacity for man to become his God. So, I’m going to talk about some of the concepts of these gods and how they work. So, in the Latter-day Revelation of Moses, we have the teaching that the work and glory of God is to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man. And Joseph Smith said that you have got to learn to become gods yourselves, the same as all gods before you have done. Finally, as we said earlier, those who do follow the works of Jesus will do even greater things than he has done.

Carl Youngblood

Another concept in Mormon thought that I think is important is that God adheres to natural law. And we’re going to talk a little bit about what that means and the Mormon view of miracles. So, spiritual phenomena that we experience actually have materialistic explanations, even though we may not understand them. John A. Widsoe said, A miracle is an occurrence which first cannot be repeated at will by man, or second, is not understood in its cause and effect relationship. History is filled with such miracles. What’s more, The whole story of man’s progress is the conversion of miracles into controlled and understood events. The airplane and radio would have been miracles yesterday. James E. Talmadge also said that the human sense of the miraculous wanes as comprehension of the operative process increases. Which is kind of like saying I guess is a complex way of saying that we just get so used to the things that we have around us every day that we take them for granted.

Carl Youngblood

Mormons also have an enthusiasm for science and discovery. They’re not generally Luddites. In fact, we have a list of many inventions that Mormons have. invented that are that is quite astounding and quite lengthy that I think Lincoln compiled. And in general, they’re in favor and enthusiastic about learning more, about gaining knowledge, about Gaining an education. Brigham Young went so far as to say that Mormonism embraces all truth that is revealed and that is unrevealed. whether religious, political, scientific, or philosophical. It embraces every true science, all true philosophy. Every true philosopher, so far as he understands the principles of truth Has so much of the gospel, and so far he is a Latter-day Saint, whether he knows it or not. So there.

Carl Youngblood

Now I’m going to talk a little bit about transhumanism and some of the concepts and principles that transhumanists might find exciting or interesting. First of all, they have this concept of epochs of technology, epochs or epochs of technology, which are sort of phases in the development. of life and the universe and civilization. And transhumanists often use the word technology more broadly than its conventional definition. So they refer to things like physics, chemistry, biology as a type of technology, although it’s a little bit beyond the conventional definition. So, we’re going to talk. So, if you look at this diagram here, you’ll see that like Most of the history occurs during that little sliver right at the right edge of the graph. And what this graph is trying to show is that As each epoch advances, the rate of progress is accelerated.

Carl Youngblood

So first the thing the first thing I really want to talk about is exponential growth, which is a concept that underlies a lot of these transhumanist ideas. So, exponential growth is very unintuitive to humans. It’s very surprising. And I’m going to talk about some parables or examples to help you understand this. So there’s this parable of the king and the sage, and it goes that the king wanted to give the sage a gift in In exchange for all the good service that he had done in the kingdom. And the sage said, All I ask, dear king, is that you Place on that chessboard one rice on the beginning square and add and double the amount of rice with each successive square. And once you do that, that’s all I ask for. And so if you look at this sequence here, which I had my computer just crank out like that. By the time you get to like the second row of squares, you can no longer fit rice on the chessboard. And by the time you get to the last square, the entire earth would be covered with rice about 50,000 grains deep. I think that was our back of the napkin calculation. So it’s overwhelming how much how quickly exponential growth occurs and how astounding it is to human intuition.

Carl Youngblood

I have some examples in the natural world of exponential growth. So you might, for example, let’s say you have a lovely cabin in the woods, and you have a little pond next to your cabin, and it tends to get lily pads on it. These lily pads, you might leave one weekend and say, oh, there’s hardly any on the lake, and I’ll clean them off later. And then you come back from your weekend getaway and it’s filled. And the reason why is that the rate of reproduction of these lily pads is very slow to begin with, but reaches a breaking point or a cusp where suddenly it just really skyrockets. The growth of populations, although they’re limited by their environment and eventually they consume the resources of their environment, is also a principle of Exponential or an example of exponential growth. And I should add that exponential growth doesn’t mean necessarily that there aren’t limiting factors that would slow the rate of progress or consume resources. But in general, if the trends are in that exponential direction, then we call it exponential growth.

Carl Youngblood

Another example might be food poisoning. You might have that yummy burrito that you stuck on the counter and leave it for five hours and eat it and it’s great, but then you wait one more hour and you’re heaving in the bathroom because you the number of bacteria in that in that uh burrito just duped they uh reproduce and it got too large. The spread of contagious diseases is another example.

Carl Youngblood

So um we have some technological examples of exponential growth. First of all, Moore’s law is a concept that says that about every two years, the density of circuitry in electronic components doubles. And this has been observed ever since the advent of computing. So They always were saying, as this occurred, they were saying, Well, we’re reaching a point at which the density, things just can’t get any closer. We’re going to reach a barrier that we can never get across. But as you can see, with each time they approach that barrier, the actual underlying technology that they were using changed that allowed them to proceed further. And most scientists believe that although our current we’re reaching some very fine limits in Our current technologies, that there are many other possible areas to explore that would allow this exponential growth to increase. So, this means, according to Moore’s Law, that the computing capacity essentially Doubles with every two years, and even now it’s gotten a little faster to 1. 5 years.

Carl Youngblood

All right, so let’s talk about the concept, the transhumanist concept of the singularity The singularity is a term that’s been borrowed from math and physics, and it’s that general point in which a given mathematical object is not defined, or a point in space-time Where its curvature becomes infinite, such as with the Big Bang. So it’s like one of those really kind of milestones or on the very edge of the limitations that we’re aware of. And Ray Kurzweil, in his best-selling book, The Singularity is Near, used this term to describe a theoretical point in the future of unprecedented technological progress. That was caused in part by the ability of machines to improve themselves using artificial intelligence. So, what we have here that I’d just like to briefly describe is that Right now, according to the progress of Moore’s law, computers have a certain capacity. And if you extrapolate from this rate of progress, Kurzweil predicts that based on measurements that neurologists and others have been able to perform, by about 2012, $1,000 will buy I’m sorry, but more like 2020, I think, is the right year. $1,000 of today’s money will buy enough computing capacity. To be basically equivalent to how many calculations are going on in the typical human brain. And But what really becomes astounding is when you look at the exponential growth that is occurring with Moore’s Law, which scientists predict will probably continue for many decades to come. By only 2045, that’s only about 20 years after this point, that same $1,000 of today’s money. will buy a computer with more computing capacity than all of the brains in the entire world combined. And the amount of problems, real problems, that could be solved with this computing capacity is astounding.

Carl Youngblood

Right now, we have supercomputers all over the world that are crunching numbers that allow scientists to heal diseases and to understand the functioning of the human body better. And with this kind of a computer, which will become dirt cheap by 2045 we would be able to solve all these current problems like that. Kurzweil talks about this exponential growth and how often these technologies, these new technologies, will have you know, difficult starts where they look just pathetic and no one wants to use them and they just are really clunky and they’re not that interesting. But he says that the range of intelligent tasks or performance often shifts from pathetic to daunting, and that the range of tasks that can be done with computers is constantly expanding.

Carl Youngblood

So I’m going to just I’m almost I’m out of time now, so I’m going to briefly go over a few more concepts and then talk about the complements between these views. Transhumans are simply humans in a state of transition toward a better future state. And Kurzweil talks about the kinds of revolutions that will occur in the next few years to bring this about. Nick Bostrom, who you’ve heard about, discusses what this concept of transhumanism is, or transhumans is. Another concept that’s important that we’ve discussed in other presentations today is the concept of computed worlds, or the idea that the world in which we now live may be abstracted, may it may it’s possible that it may be computed by other beings in another dimension besides our own. And it’s an interesting concept that I don’t have time to explore right now. Finally, we come to neo-humans, which are kind of the culmination or an arbitrary point at which humans become so advanced that they’re not that they don’t Have a strong resemblance to us today, or you know, transhumans today. Now let’s talk about some of those parallels just briefly.

Carl Youngblood

So the dispensation of the fullness of times parallels Kurzweil’s fourth epoch, so the fourth phase of development. And the advent of the millennium parallels this singularity that we talked about, the transhumanists discuss. The immortal beings of the millennium parallel these transhumans that are in a state of improvement and progression in their physical capabilities. Heavens, or the worlds that we may create in the future, parallel these computed worlds. And the gods, or the plurality of gods, that Mormons believe in. bear striking resemblances to these neo-humans of transhumanists. In fact, C. S. Lewis said that we may be You know, that the beings we interact with every day may be beings someday who we would be strongly tempted to worship. So I don’t have time to read the quote.

Carl Youngblood

I just want to discuss briefly some compliments that I think are very important, and that is First of all, the ways I think Mormonism can inform transhumanism and benefit it. And that is just that often transhumanists have a disdain for Traditional values and religious people, or at least you see this from time to time. And we think that some of the, you know. Accusations that more traditional people levy against transhumanists: you’re playing God, man was never meant to go in this direction, have you thought of the children? Those kinds of things that That Mormonism provides better answers to some of these issues, chiefly being that That we should possess the love that is emph that is demonstrated by our Father in Heaven Also, as I discussed, a respectful attitude of traditions. And finally, that these technologies should be available to all, not just the select few.

Carl Youngblood

Now, transhumanists can benefit us by giving us some rational basis for our faith in certain things that we have previously taken for granted. So they could give us a superstitious versus a reasonable hope. And they could help us to actually exercise active faith in some things that have kind of laid dormant in our theology. Just the idea of You know, the resurrection, immortality, the millennium, what can I possibly do about those things? Well, transhumanists would say there are many things you can actively pursue and support to help these things come about.

Carl Youngblood

Finally, I wanted to talk about how they could provide us with a less pessimistic outlook for the future. You often hear Mormons say: the world is going to hell in a handbasket. What are we going to do? Things are getting worse every day. I just brought in this recent presentation of Steven Pinker, who demonstrated that the level of violence in the world today Is at an unprecedentedly low level in the history of the world based on all the evidence we can gather from archaeology and other sources. So often we think that the world is just getting worse and worse, but many other if we look closely, we can see that that is not always the case. And sometimes with our access to media today, it’s exaggerated.

Carl Youngblood

Finally, I wanted to leave you with this thought that if you take good care of yourself, The old-fashioned way for just a little while longer, and you may actually get to experience the next fundamental paradigm shift in our destiny. Thanks for your time today. That’s fine.