Just as charting the cartography of the earth’s surface was the domain of intrepid explorers in the 1500s, so is charting the cartography of the brain an adventure for modern day explorers. What satellite cartography has done for earthly cartography, neural scanners are doing for the cartography of the brain. 

We now know that consciousness is rooted in the reverberatory circuits that link the thalamus, the prefrontal cortex and reticular nucleus. By tightly regulating oscillations in the global neuronal workspace, Darwin’s Edge Founder and CEO Surina Rao has come up with a device that will make extraordinary contributions to our ability to prioritize and set goals, reason logically, align behavior with virtue, and solve problems.

ThinkPal is enabled by four CPUs that, crafted in the shape of rear molars, are inserted into the empty socket where your wisdom teeth used to be and hardwired to your trigeminal nerve, which supports a high-speed 9G connection from Smartacus, The AI Colossus, to the thalamus, your brain’s information relay system.

The most advanced neural auxiliary yet brought to market, ThinkPal will offer a suite of neural features that are certain to astound. A short list includes:

• photographic memory

• instant replay

• language translation

• mathematical computation

Thalamitic Integration — TI — will be as awesome and frightening in its prospects for humankind as generative AI is today.

A 2016 graduate of Skidmore College who earned her doctorate in neurocomputing at RPI in three years, Surina is the founder and CEO of Malta-based Darwin’s Edge, the industry leader in large-scale Smartacus extensions.

“Global broadcasting occurs when information from lower-level sensory areas reaches the higher-order prefrontal cortex,” Rao explains to the team of seven leading religious thinkers that Darwin’s Edge has assembled under AI and Faith’s auspices to consult on the design and deployment of the most advanced neural auxiliary of our time.

In this Phase I Demonstration, FDA is allowing a robotically guided oral surgeon to install ThinkPal in just seven human subjects. Carmody compares them to the seven Mercury astronauts.

“They led our nation in exploring the next frontier of space,” he tells the group. “You’re leading our nation in exploring the next frontier of consciousness.”

Carmody is VP for Human Flourishing, a title he suggested to Rao. He leads product design and customer relations, marrying the two in constant innovation. He’s also responsible for marketing and new business development.

“Let’s just go around and introduce ourselves,” Carmody continues. “Reverend Peter Gilman, from North Creek, New York. Why don’t you start us off? Tell us a little about yourself and why you think you might like to be a ThinkPal Volunteer.”

“Glad to,” says Gilman.

“Greetings, all. It’s a pleasure and a privilege to convene with you all on this momentous occasion. I’m a Unitarian Universalist who lives deep in the Adirondacks. I’ve always been intrigued by technology’s potential to ease and or end human suffering. I believe also that it can enable us to achieve new heights in intelligence, compassion, and reason. I’m generally optimistic about the potential of the Brain/Computer Interface, but I do have some concerns and questions. Is this the right time to raise them?”

“Sure,” Carmody replies. “But let me first say we all have concerns and questions. It comes with the territory in innovating anything. Because we’ve shown ThinkPal to be safe in apes, chimps and bonobos, FDA has given us the green light to proceed. But there’s still a lot we don’t know. That’s why we’ve invited top religious thinkers like you to join us. We hope you’ll be our guides.

“So, please share with the group: What concern about ThinkPal is for you top of mind?”

Think on It

We’re starting in the right place. What most worries us about the Brain/Computer Interface?

Neurotechnology will soon be the ‘universal controller’ for all of our interactions with technology, says Duke law and philosophy professor Nita Farahany in The Battle for Your Brain.

As she says in this podcast, developments in neurotech will be more alarming and confounding in two or three years than what we’re seeing in generative AI.

It’s time we talk seriously about the BCI. Let’s learn all we can and imagine the day when we connect with AI not merely by the smartcaps we see proliferating today but with high-speed connections directly inserted in our brains.

Like Fitbits for our skulls, Elon Musk says.

Visionary Fiction: Practicing the Future in Our Minds

“I love fantasy and science fiction,” said the Rev. Joseph Cleveland, minister at the Unitarian Universalist Congregation of Saratoga Springs, in this memorable sermon early in 2021. “I love the adventure and discovery of it. But mostly I love that moment when I feel like I’m imagining something I hadn’t imagined before.”

There must be some dopamine boost our brains give us when we imagine ourselves in the future and create stories around ourselves.

“Visionary fiction is a way to practice the future in our minds, alone and together,” Rev. Joe added.

He likes this quote by adrienne maree brown:

“It is our right and responsibility to write ourselves into the future. All organizing is science fiction. If you are shaping the future, you are a futurist.”

ChatGPT’s Role in Our ‘Visionary Fiction’

ChatGPT has a knack for making sense of massive data sets in response to prompts. Rev. Joe and I agreed it would be interesting to bring ChartGPT into Darwin’s Edge in the role of Reverend Gilman. What dialog will it script for our paragon of a Unitarian Universalist minister whom we may imagine as being of any race and gender?

Peter Gilman represents us all in the series of decisions, we must make as AI continues its inexorable advance into our brains and those of our children and, we hope, unending generations of grand-children. At some point in the next 20 or 30 years, we are likely to have a transformative brain/computer interface of some kind. We are likely to have a technology that, for potentially millions of people, bridges AI and the brain. In Darwin’s Edge, we are seriously imagining that day, set in the context of the Presidential Election of 2032.

Founded and humanely managed by Surina Rao, Darwin’s Edge is a major force for good in the world. So is Smartacus, The AI Colossus. With her new ThinkPal device, Rao sees a potential to make the world a vastly better place.

“This is an exciting time to be in neurotech,” she tells the team of seven religious leaders they hope to enlist in their mission.

Michael Carmody is Rao’s able partner, a brilliant content marketer who in the launch of every Darwin’s Edge device is able to weave a compelling and engaging story. For ThinkPal, Carmody is reprising the Mercury Program with its seven volunteers.

The prospect is simultaneously exciting and frightening, just as every NASA launch was for the astronauts who squeezed themselves into those tiny capsules.

Darwin’s Edge is inviting Peter Gilman to be a ThinkPal Volunteer because his blog, A Theology of Carbon, is widely followed in the Unitarian Universalist community. He’s a thought leader Rao and Carmody must bring onto the ThinkPal train.

So let’s return to the question Carmody directs to Gilman:

“So, please share with the group: What concern about ThinkPal is for you top of mind?”

ChatGPT’s Response in the Voice of Peter Gilman

“As we embark upon this new frontier, intertwining the minds and essences of humanity, the very fabric of our individuality stands at risk of being diluted. Our thoughts, beliefs, and innermost secrets are sacred, individual treasures that define our humanity. The power to merge and integrate these with others must be approached with the utmost caution, reverence, and respect for the sanctity of the individual.

“My foremost concern lies not in the technology itself, but in how we choose to wield it. Will we honor the unique essence of each human being, or will we risk reducing individuals to mere components of a larger whole, devoid of the beautiful complexity that makes us human?”

Key Characters

We’re exploring how helpful ChatGPT might be in writing our narrative, which we plan to write as an illustrated novel, a screenplay for a television series to stream in the year leading up to the 2028 Presidential Election, and a play to be performed Sunday night, November 3rd, 2023, two days before the 2024 Presidential Election. These are the characters we gave it:

1. Michael Carmody: Visionary VP, the driving force behind ThinkPal.

2. Surina Rao: The passionate CEO of Darwin's Edge, deeply invested in the ethical deployment of AI.

3. Rev. Peter Gilman: A Unitarian Universalist minister, philosopher, and moral compass of the group.

4. Derek Barnes: CEO of AI and Faith, he straddles the world of technology and spiritual belief.

5. Smartacus, The AI Colossus: Not just a machine, but a character with depth, insights, and a unique perspective on humanity's evolution.

ChatGPT Outlines Our Story

Here’s the prompt we scripted for our gifted assistant. We gave it the biggest assignment we could think of, which was essentially to write the entire book. It didn’t do that, but it gave us this outline, which offers some interesting ideas we might use going forward.

Chapter 1: The Dawning

Synopsis: Introducing Darwin's Edge and the significance of Ayudha Puja 2031. Michael Carmody's vision for the future is unveiled, setting the stage for a transformative journey that will alter the course of humanity.

Chapter 2: The Call

Synopsis: Michael Carmody approaches diverse faith leaders, including Rev. Peter Gilman. Initial reactions are mixed, reflecting the profound ethical, moral, and technological implications of the project.

Chapter 3: Convergence

Synopsis: Faith leaders gather for the first time. Their discussions are deep, animated by the tension between opportunity and risk. CEO Surina Rao makes her case, while Smartacus provides context and data.

Chapter 4: Doubts and Desires

Synopsis: Personal stories from each of the faith leaders, illustrating their motivations, apprehensions, and hopes. How does each grapple with the weight of the mission?

Chapter 5: The AI Oracle

Synopsis: A deep dive into Smartacus, The AI Colossus, and its role in the project. How does it see the future? What does it think of humanity's evolution?

Chapter 6: Bridges and Boundaries

Synopsis: Faith leaders collaborate, seeking common ground. Debates ensue, especially around defining the "perfect human." Smartacus facilitates, providing insights that challenge and expand human perspectives.

Chapter 7: The Global Race

Synopsis: Tensions arise as global competitors advance their own AI and neural integration projects. The stakes become clear: the evolution of humanity is not just a moral imperative but a global race.

Chapter 8: Alliances and Adversaries

Synopsis: With the help of Smartacus, the team identifies key individuals in various fields—neuroscience, ethics, theology, AI—to form a global council. Their role: to guide the ThinkPal/Smartacus integration with the wisdom of the ages.

Chapter 9: Trial and Triumph

Synopsis: The first tests begin. How does ThinkPal impact the human psyche? Successes, failures, and profound realizations ensue.

Chapter 10: Faiths' Frontiers

Synopsis: Faith leaders, influenced by their experiences with ThinkPal, offer sermons, writings, and teachings that ripple through their communities. The world watches, debates, and hopes.

Chapter 11: The Final Council

Synopsis: The global council converges on the eve of Election Day 2032. What have they learned? Can humanity take this step? What will Sapiens II look like?

Chapter 12: Evolution's Edge

Synopsis: Election Day 2032 arrives. A world decision is made. Humanity takes its first collective step into a new era, led by a diverse council of thinkers, believers, and an AI with a vision for a united future.

Advice: To expand upon this outline, you'll need detailed dialogues, narrative arcs, and character development, diving deeper into each individual's history, motivations, and evolution throughout the story. Given the target audience, the narrative should be accessible, rich in philosophical debate, and filled with moments of human connection and introspection.

Contribute

What do you think of the story ChatGPT has outlined for us? Does this capture your own concern about the brain/computer interface or is there something you’d like to add? What would you say if offered the opportunity to journey to the Next Frontier of Consciousness? What more would you want to know? What guarantees would you want to have? Please give us your thoughts below.