Human Batteries Superhuman Evolution?Anna Hunt, Contributor Can you imagine being able to charge your cell phone just by walking, or power your iPod by eating and moving your jaw? No longer a matter of science fiction, scientists have discovered how to harness the energy that the human ear creates during movements, paving the way for the creation of walking human batteries. An auditory neuroscientist at Harvard University Medical School in Boston, Tina Stankovic, has developed a technique that may allow the human ear to power electronic implants in the brain and inner ear, or cochlea. Stankovic was able to insert a prototype into an ear of a guinea pig, which was able to power a small radio transmitter. Life Saver While the specter of transhumanism, a radical technological transformation of the human race, is justifiably alarming to many, should we be apprehensive about augmenting the body with new medical inventions? To be fair, we must not overlook or undermine inventions such as the pacemaker, a device that aids patients who suffer from heart rhythm disturbances, and that has positively affected millions, with a whopping 700,000 patients worldwide each year undergoing the implantation of a pacemaker or a defibrillator. Microchip implants are another technological invention that is being used in medical applications. For example, the company MicroCHIPS, Inc. has developed a microchip that is filled with multiple individual doses of medication, with a goal to help reduce discomfort of treatments requiring daily shots. Pharmaceutical companies have revealed that they are interested in developing microchips that will reside in the brain which treats disease through electrical signalling in the brain and elsewhere. (source). Scientists are also working on accessing an animals memory, artificial limbs powered by electricity and a persons thoughts, and brain caps that allow thoughts to be downloaded to a computer. At what point is it too much?? Concerns about technological implants range from potential for abuse of superhuman powers to the implementation of the biblical mark of the beast chip that really is a global ID system to track all human beings and all monetary activities. There is also justifiable concern for personal privacy and the further disruption of the bodys natural electro-magnetic patterns, if we implant ourselves with tiny electrical devices. Have you even wished you could bottle up a childs energy? Perhaps with inventions such as Stankovics and Dr. Karamis, well soon live in a world where this is possible, but in what ways might we come to regret letting this genie out if its bottle? Certain cultures and individuals have developed strong beliefs against surgery, implants, and amputations, and have no interest in being augmented or artificially enhanced. For example, music legend Bob Marley, who died of cancer in 1981, refused to have his toe amputated at an early stage of his disease because of his Rastafarian beliefs that the body must be whole and that amputation would be a sin. Rasta no abide amputation. I dont allow a mon ta be dismantled. (Catch a Fire, Timothy White) So, while the suspicious in our society watch the technologically curious develop amazing things like human beings that act as batteries, the question ultimately will be, at what point do these technologies become non-voluntary, and declared compulsory? Such exciting advances in science certainly introduce a great deal of possibility for our already complex society. Sources: RELATED ACTIVIST POST ARTICLES: Anna Hunt is a writer and entrepreneur with over a decade of experience in research and editorial writing. She and her husband run a preparedness e-store outlet at www.offgridoutpost.com, offering GMO-free storable food and emergency kits. Anna is also a certified Hatha yoga instructor. She enjoys raising her children and being a voice for optimal human health and wellness. Read more of her excellent articles here. 