Meshuggah, Transhumanism, and the Allure of Cults

In one of Meshuggah’s most well-known tracks, New Millennium Cyanide Christ, we find an exploration of the themes of transhumanism and cults. Drummer Tomas Haake, who writes the lyrics for the band, said of the track in an interview with Greg Prato: That’s more of a dystopian take on a sectistic or extremist kind of…

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Finding Systemic Solutions to Food Insecurity

Food insecurity – the lack of regular access to enough nutritious food for growth, development, health, and activity – continues to be a major global problem. 2.37 billion people did not have access to safe and nutritious food in 2020 and worldwide undernourishment and hunger are on the rise. The world is off-track to meet the…

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Does Lab-Grown Meat Deserve the Hype?

Lab-grown meat is being heralded as a viable solution – the solution we desperately need – to the ecologically destructive effects of animal agriculture. Animal agriculture is responsible for at least 16.5% of the world’s greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, which is more than that caused by all transportation combined. In addition, it takes 2,500 gallons…

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Digital Antinatalism: Is It Wrong to Bring Sentient AI Into Existence?

Digital antinatalism is the philosophical view that it is morally wrong to create sentient artificial intelligence (AI). It is a variant of antinatalism, which promotes the view that we should refrain from procreating for moral reasons. We can consider digital antinatalism to be a selective – or weaker – form of antinatalism since one may…

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Glitchy Portraits by Justin Bower: An Exploration of Humanity’s Relationship With Technology

Justin Bower is a Los Angeles-based artist who creates oil paintings that have the appearance of being digitised, yet they are, in fact, entirely hand-painted. His portraits feature anonymous subjects with expressive, glitchy faces, attesting to our close relationship with technology. His exhibit “The Humiliations” is intended to show how we are losing our free…

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