Virtual Immortality - God, Evolution, and the Singularity in Post- and Transhumanism

by Oliver Krüger, Ali Jones (Translator), Paul Knight (Translator)

Overview

In recent years, ideas of post- and transhumanism have been popularized by novels, TV series, and Hollywood movies. According to this radical perspective, humankind and all biological life have become obsolete. Traditional forms of life are inefficient at processing information and inept at crossing the high frontier: outer space. While humankind can expect to be replaced by their own artificial progeny, posthumanists assume that they will become an immortal part of a transcendent superintelligence. Krüger's award-winning study examines the historical and philosophical context of these futuristic promises by Ray Kurzweil, Nick Bostrom, Frank Tipler, and other posthumanist thinkers.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9783837650594
Publication date:	10/27/2021
Series:	Cultures of Society
Pages:	356
Product dimensions:	6.10(w) x 9.45(h) x (d)

About the Author

Oliver Krüger is professor for the Study of Religions at Fribourg University (Switzerland). His Ph.D. which he completed in 2002 at the University of Bonn was awarded by the German Association for the History of Religions. He then researched rituals of the Wicca movement as a postdoc at the University of Heidelberg. This was followed by a project at Princeton University on funeral rituals in the United States. Since 2007, Krüger has been teaching and researching at Fribourg University, primarily on sociology of religion and new media and science in relation to religion. He also served as president of the Swiss Society for the Study of Religions.

Table of Contents

Frontmatter 1
Contents 5
Foreword to the English Edition 11
A Who is Who? of Post- and Transhumanism 15
1. Virtuality, Media, and Immortality. An Introduction 19
Introduction 29
2.1 Virtuality and Time 31
2.2 Virtuality and Space 37
2.3 Virtuality and Corporeality 40
2.4 Virtuality, Reality, and the Imaginary 43
3.1 Human Beings and Technology in the Work of Günther Anders 51
3.2 Virtuality and Death 55
4.1 Post- and Transhumanism 61
4.2 Intellectual Predecessors and the Transhuman 62
4.3 Early Transhumanism: Ettinger, FM-2030, Leary 68
4.4 The Extropy Institute and the (Vita-)Mores 75
4.5 The World Transhumanist Association / humanity+ 78
4.6 Other Actors and Institutions 82
4.7 Religious and Spiritual Transhumanism 87
4.8 Conclusion 89
Introduction 91
5.1 The Posthuman and Posthumanism 92
5.2 The Face of Posthumanism 95
5.3 Posthumanism and Art 105
6.1 Writing the "History of the Future" 115
6.2 How We Became Posthuman 118
6.3 Annihilation or Infinite Progress 158
6.4 Singularities 197
6.5 Immortality 218
6.6 The Transcendental Superintelligence 260
6.7 Omega 276
Introduction 291
7.1 Economy 292
7.2 Control and Contingency 297
7.3 Secular Progress and Christian Salvation History 301
7.4 The End of the Affronts 310
List of Abbreviations 317
Bibliography 319
Index of Names 348

Editorial Reviews

"Krüger observes the explicit or implicit relationship between posthumanism and religion (not only Christianity but also New Age spirituality), placing it in a historical and philosophical context. Moreover, he does so by employing a clear and accessible style, which makes the book a pleasure to read."

Zuzana Marie Kostiová

"Krüger schafft argumentativ eine gute Balance zwischen nutzbarer Vision und kritischer Tatsachenbetrachtung, wodurch die Studie eine angemessene Divergenz aufweist. Dabei tritt er in kritische Distanz zu spiritueller Verblendung und benennt die Diffusität religiöser Argumente als solche und begreift diese Thesen als Hypothesen von denkbarer Möglichkeit. Diesbezüglich macht das Buch viel Spaß und stimuliert zum Weiterdenken."

Tobias Bieseke

Speculation about “the end of the human being” and questions about human survival on this planet have been constantly gaining ground since the turn of the millennium. In his masterful analysis, Oliver Krüger introduces the reader to a huge field of research that has gone largely unnoticed by scholars of religion and culture. Written in a highly accessible style, this book is a must-read for everyone interested in the links between technology, virtuality, media, and humanity’s future.

Kocku Von Stuckrad

Virtual Immortality offers a thorough and detailed exploration of how embedded and in-bodied technological innovations continue to stretch our ideas of what the limits of being human in the 21st century truly are. Krüger provides a useful who’s who of key thinkers defining and pushing the boundaries of posthuman thought and existence.

Heidi A. Campbell