A professor with 36 kilos of computer on him, a woman who can peel bananas with a bionic arm, an artist who “feels” colors through an antenna in his skull. These are the stories of the “pioneers” who chose to become real cyborgs: but don’t think of Terminator. Think, instead, of completely ordinary people with completely extraordinary stories.
Some have become so by necessity, others by choice, but all are redefining what it means to be human in the age of technology. Technology has not made them less human. On the contrary, it has amplified their capabilities, allowing them to overcome challenges that seemed insurmountable.
The artist who listens to the colors
Neil Harbisson deserves always a place in my "collections on the subject". Also because he is the first among the real cyborgs to have been officially recognized as such.
With that antenna sticking out of his head, he looks like he stepped out of an episode of Black Mirror. But his story is fascinating: born with a very rare form of color blindness that allowed him to see only in black and white, he now “hears” colors thanks to a device that translates them into sounds.
We have a duty to use technology to transcend ourselves.
I like to think of Harbisson as a sort of modern shaman, who perceives the world in a way that we can only imagine. Amy Winehouse for him it sounds red and pink, while the phone ringtones are green.
The Cyborg Professor and His Telepathic Wife
If you think Harbisson is extreme, wait until you hear about it. Professor Kevin Warwick, nicknamed “Captain Cyborg”. This cybernetics professor of theUniversity of Reading He had a chip implanted in his arm that allows him to control lights and computers remotely.
But the most incredible part? He also involved his wife in the experiment, allowing him to feel her tactile sensations. It's as if they had created a form of technological telepathy. Star Trek, move aside.
Real Cyborgs: From Tragedies to Opportunities
Jesse Sullivan e Nigel Ackland have similar but unique stories. Both lost body parts in terrible accidents at work, but technology allowed them to be reborn. Sullivan, an electrician, became the first “Bionic Man” with thought-controlled prosthetics.
Ackland, on the other hand, can pour liquids into a glass with a precision that would make many bartenders envious, thanks to his hand bebionic3. Not bad for someone who had given up hope of ever returning to a normal life.
The living USB memory
Sometimes the simplest solutions are the most ingenious. Jerry Elm, a Finnish programmer, after losing a finger in a motorcycle accident, decided to replace it with… a USB stick. A 2GB one, to be precise. It’s not exactly like downloading information directly into your brain, but it’s definitely handy.
It's the perfect example of how you don't have to be a robotics genius to become a true cyborg. Sometimes all it takes is a little creativity and the courage to think outside the box.
The athlete who defied fate
The story of Cameron Clapp is particularly touching. From a typical Californian surf-loving teenager to a triple amputee after a terrible train accident. Thanks to bionic prosthetics controlled by microprocessors, however, he not only walked again, but became an athlete and an activist.
His advice? “Surround yourself with positive people.” It sounds trite, but when technology meets human determination, miracles happen.
Real Cyborgs, the Future is Already Here
Looking at these stories, I realize that the future we imagined has arrived on tiptoe. Not with robot invasions or cyberpunk apocalypses, but through people who have chosen to embrace technology to overcome their limitations.
As he says Stelarc, artist and cyborg, the last-but-not-least who closes the list: “We shouldn’t have a Frankenstein-like fear of incorporating technology into the body.” And he’s right: the future is not something to fear, but something we are already building, piece by piece.
