Lecture

Transhumanism and religion

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In course

HUM-436: Sciences and religions I

Le but de cet enseignement est de revenir sur les conditions (historiques mais aussi épistémologiques) qui ont permis aux sciences de prendre de l'autonomie par rapport à la religion. ...

Description

This lecture explores the intersection between transhumanism and religion, discussing the evolution of the transhumanist movement from its origins in California in the late 1980s to its current status as a potentially secular religion. It delves into the philosophical and ethical implications of transhumanism, examining key figures like Julian Huxley and Pierre Teilhard de Chardin. The lecture also analyzes the religious undertones within the transhumanist movement, such as the quest for immortality, the fusion of human and machine, and the concept of the Singularity. It concludes by questioning the emergence of a new scientism that worships technological progress as a form of salvation.

Instructor

Jean-François Bert

Teaching & PhD Past EPFL PhD Students as codirector Alina Volynskaya Courses Anthropology of belief HUM-382 This course is an introduction to the question of conspiracy theories especially in the field of science Darwin, religion and science HUM-365 This course takes the long history of opponents of Darwin and Darwinism (creationists, neo-creationists, supporters of intelligent design) to try to understand their strategies and arguments. Sciences and religions I HU

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Related concepts (32)

Philosophy

Philosophy (love of wisdom in ancient Greek) is a systematic study of general and fundamental questions concerning topics like existence, reason, knowledge, values, mind, and language. It is a rational and critical inquiry that reflects on its own methods and assumptions. Historically, many of the individual sciences, like physics and psychology, formed part of philosophy. But they are considered separate academic disciplines in the modern sense of the term.

Analytic philosophy

Analytic philosophy is a branch and tradition of philosophy using analysis, popular in the Western world and particularly the Anglosphere, which began around the turn of the 20th century in the contemporary era in the United Kingdom, United States, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, and Scandinavia, and continues today. Analytic philosophy is often contrasted with continental philosophy, coined as a catch-all term for other methods, prominent in Europe. Central figures in this historical development of analytic philosophy are Gottlob Frege, Bertrand Russell, G.

Contemporary philosophy

Contemporary philosophy is the present period in the history of Western philosophy beginning at the early 20th century with the increasing professionalization of the discipline and the rise of analytic and continental philosophy. The phrase "contemporary philosophy" is a piece of technical terminology in philosophy that refers to a specific period in the history of Western philosophy (namely the philosophy of the 20th and 21st centuries).

Immortality

Immortality is the concept of eternal life. Some modern species may possess biological immortality. Some scientists, futurists, and philosophers have theorized about the immortality of the human body, with some suggesting that human immortality may be achievable in the first few decades of the 21st century with the help of certain technologies such as mind uploading (digital immortality). Other advocates believe that life extension is a more achievable goal in the short term, with immortality awaiting further research breakthroughs.

Scientism

Scientism is the opinion that science and the scientific method are the best or only way to render truth about the world and reality. While the term was defined originally to mean "methods and attitudes typical of or attributed to natural scientists", some scholars have also adopted it as a pejorative term with the meaning "an exaggerated trust in the efficacy of the methods of natural science applied to all areas of investigation (as in philosophy, the social sciences, and the humanities)".

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