Episode 2: Of Men And Machines
Tomorrow begins Hell Week. Monday's the worst of the worst. Misty's dad will have to have me transport him into Philadelphia for the first of many many rounds over the next six weeks in his fight with stomach cancer. Doesn't help that Ma has lung cancer that resurfaced after 15 years.
So what'll happen? Well, I'll hop into their car, swing Pa down to one side of Philly to have the chemo popped into the port and then swing him over to the other side to have the doctors there at the other appointment zap him for about fifteen minutes with radiation. Geez! Talk about awful. I can't imagine what that's like for him. The other day when I did it, he and I joked about our respective weight. He jokingly told me that I could easily shed some of the pounds I've packed on with his weight loss plan. No thanks, Pa, I think I like my workout regimen and diet more.
Kinda makes you think about how early science fiction writers might have been more prophet than storytellers. These days, there are procedures such as cyberknife that can remove tumors without being as invasive as the arcane scalpel method. If you cruise through cyberspace sometime, you'll see that double amputees now have new legs that can make them run faster than you or me. There are even people working on cybernetic eyes.
Man and machine are melding in ways of which we never thought possible. Now, before you start thinking that we're going to be able to replace amputated arms with something that resembles the arm of the Model T-800 Terminator, think again. The problem with that type of cybernetic attachment is that we, as a species, fluctuate in size. Take Trent Reznor for example. Once, he was this skinny dude but now he's all stacked out from lifting weights. Imagine trying to train like that with a cybernetic arm. Parts of your biological limb would eventually rupture and tear away from the connections of the robotic arm. Not exactly feasable yet.
Pacemaker/defibrillators are one means we've accomplished cyborgs. Once the heart goes into an irregular heartbeat...ZANG! Welcome to the world of the kickstarted. Hearing aids have gotten smaller and more effective, advancements in laser surgery...name it.
Though there is better living through science and chemistry...we are all becoming cyborgs.
So what'll happen? Well, I'll hop into their car, swing Pa down to one side of Philly to have the chemo popped into the port and then swing him over to the other side to have the doctors there at the other appointment zap him for about fifteen minutes with radiation. Geez! Talk about awful. I can't imagine what that's like for him. The other day when I did it, he and I joked about our respective weight. He jokingly told me that I could easily shed some of the pounds I've packed on with his weight loss plan. No thanks, Pa, I think I like my workout regimen and diet more.
Kinda makes you think about how early science fiction writers might have been more prophet than storytellers. These days, there are procedures such as cyberknife that can remove tumors without being as invasive as the arcane scalpel method. If you cruise through cyberspace sometime, you'll see that double amputees now have new legs that can make them run faster than you or me. There are even people working on cybernetic eyes.
Man and machine are melding in ways of which we never thought possible. Now, before you start thinking that we're going to be able to replace amputated arms with something that resembles the arm of the Model T-800 Terminator, think again. The problem with that type of cybernetic attachment is that we, as a species, fluctuate in size. Take Trent Reznor for example. Once, he was this skinny dude but now he's all stacked out from lifting weights. Imagine trying to train like that with a cybernetic arm. Parts of your biological limb would eventually rupture and tear away from the connections of the robotic arm. Not exactly feasable yet.
Pacemaker/defibrillators are one means we've accomplished cyborgs. Once the heart goes into an irregular heartbeat...ZANG! Welcome to the world of the kickstarted. Hearing aids have gotten smaller and more effective, advancements in laser surgery...name it.
Though there is better living through science and chemistry...we are all becoming cyborgs.
posted by Lord Genocyde at 9:04 PM
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
<< Home