LONDON, England (PNN) - October 14, 2018 - Professor Stephen Hawking feared a new race of “superhumans” could destroy the rest of humanity if genetic engineering continued unabated.
The scientist died in March but left a collection of articles that outlined his concerns about the future of the human race.
In his final book, In Brief Answers to the Big Questions, Professor Hawking states that he fears wealthy people will begin to edit their own and their children’s DNA to create “superhumans” who will be more intelligent and live longer.
He wrote, “Once superhumans appear, there will be significant political problems with unimproved humans who will be unable to compete. Presumably, they will die out, or become unimportant. Instead there will be a race of self-designing beings who are improving at an ever-increasing rate.”
He predicted that even if laws were passed to curb genetic engineering there would always be people prepared to break any rules that would spark the rise of superhumans.
In an excerpt printed in The Sunday Times, the professor said, “I am sure that during this century people will discover how to modify both intelligence and instincts such as aggression. Laws will probably be passed against genetic engineering with humans. But some people won’t be able to resist the temptation to improve human characteristics, such as memory, resistance to disease, and length of life.”
Instead of lauding modern medical breakthroughs, Hawking cited Crispr, which allows scientists to modify or remove harmful genes from people’s DNA, to support his argument.
However, the author of A Brief History of Time will have his critics, including his old friend Lord Rees, who believes there is a massive difference between preventing diseases and attempting to “improve” humans.
