Holger, I explained the relationship between transhumanism and extropianism
in my post of 10/30/97. If you didn't receive that message, please let me
know and I'll resend it. Again, in brief: Extropianism in one specific
version of transhumanism. It's specific character is defined by the
Extropian Principles (see our web site at www.extropy.org) There can be
many kinds of transhumanists, all of whom share general goals of overcoming
human limits. They may differ on the best means of doing so, and on what
they emphasize.
>Would it be correct to say "Extropians are more critical than
>Transhumanists"?
I don't think you could say this as a general statement, though sometimes
it will certainly be true. Extropians definitely emphasize critical
thinking (along with creative thinking). This has always been stressed --
see the principle of Self-Transformation (and in the forthcoming version
3.0, see the principle of Self-Ownership).
We've seen some transhumanists who are not very critical, though this may
be simply their personality rather than an explicit part of their version
of transhumanism. There are people who could be called transhumanists who
apparently do not value critical thinking, and who look to scientifically
implausible methods for overcoming human limits. As our ideas spread, I
expect to see religious versions of transhumanism -- Christian
Transhumanism, Islamic Transhumanism, and (not too far from their current
beliefs) Mormon Transhumanism. Since religious generally promote faith over
reason, those transhumanists will not be as critical as Extropians.
>I'm living in Munich, Germany and am currently trying to find a few
>people around me who are open to Extropian ideas for discussion
Sorry we didn't meet when I was in Munich in March this year. I believe
Extropy Institute have a couple of contacts in the area. We would like to
encourage an Institute offshoot there.
Onward!
Max
Max More, Ph.D.
more@extropy.org
http://www.primenet.com/~maxmore
President, Extropy Institute: exi-info@extropy.org, http://www.extropy.org