Ideas about humanity’s fate are evolving

Are humans destined to morph into a genetically and cybernetically modified master race? Have we been able to suspend the rules of natural selection, or will our wasteful ways catch up with us big time? Are we doomed to failure, or are we destined to muddle through pretty much as humans always have?

Over the past month, we've received about 600 e-mails musing on such questions, in response to our "Fast Forward" report on speculative scenarios for future human evolution.

Some were tickled to hear how experts rated the prospects for Unihumans (globally blended culture), Survivalistians (adapted for the post-apocalypse), Cyborgs (machine-human hybrids), Numans (genetically modified elite) and Astrans (optimized for interstellar colonization). The report was even adapted for newspaper publication in The Australian.

Others thought the whole exercise was just silly.

"People will evolve to the point where they no longer write crap like this article," wrote Bob Meyer of Kirkland, Wash.

For the record, when we asked MSNBC.com users to rate the likelihood of the various survival scenarios, the top vote-getter in our unscientific survey was "none of the above," with Unihumans as a close second.

The scenarios were drawn up under the assumption that the human species would not go extinct, but would be subject to evolutionary pressures that would change its character over the course of millions of years. A good number of readers took issue with those assumptions: Some said they were sure humanity's days were numbered. Others said the rules of natural selection would be suspended as long as humans were the planet's dominant species. Still others relied on religious texts to contend that evolution itself was a scientific fiction.

Then there were writers who put forth their own scenarios for future evolution. For example, why bother keeping the Astrans in suspended animation? A robot-controlled ship could simply carry stores of sperm and eggs to an outlying planet for "seeding" when the time was right.

Some of the e-mails were deadly serious. Others were downright funny, and that kind of good humor is just what's needed when you're discussing a subject that contains at least as much science fiction as science fact. Speaking of that, several readers recommended science-fiction novels or speculative books that go into far more depth on the subject of future evolution.

You'll find reading recommendations and snarky comments as well as serious reflection in the following selection of e-mails:

Jim from Montana:
One factor not mentioned in your scenarios is that of sending sperm and eggs on "slow boats" into space. [The sperm and eggs] would be combined by selectively intelligent robotics at a long distant future time. The humans would be educated, again by selectively intelligent "teachers," and then they would take over for themselves. In such a program, more than likely only the most highly developed (of current times) would be selected for contributions, and therefore a natural "super" race be the result. Keep in mind that after the great many years of travel needed have passed, base humanity may well have surpassed that technique and have futuristic humans waiting to greet those arriving on the slow boat.

Jon from Shanghai:
I think, as more technology develops, we will just evolve into "Lumps." A "Lump" is just a large set of buttocks with two eyes and four stubby appendages. This comes from sitting behind desks, lounging in front of the TV, or surfing the Net and not really needing to go out and do much of anything.

Gina Burdge, Temecula, Calif.:

Numan: DNA and drugs enhance intellect and physique.

This all sounds so ridiculous.  Are we trying to scare people with scientific advancement?  Robin Cook's idea of putting people in comas for organ farms never happened because of organ transplants. In-vitro fertilization was supposed to create labs where babies were being grown in jars. By the year 2000 we were all supposed to be living like the Jetsons, but we're scaring people into believing we're going back to the Flintstones.

Stem cell research may revolutionize medicine just like penicillin or organ transplantation, but it is being demonized by those who do not understand science. Each scientific advancement has improved life as we know it, and I believe future ones will continue to do so. However, I do believe we have the capacity to destroy our environment if we ignore the scientific principles we know exist and do not heed them.

Jake in Berkeley, Calif.:
I am extremely disappointed with your attempts at an intelligent article. It is obvious that very little, if any, attempt was made to reconcile these far-reaching statements with simple Mendelian ratios. A little math of the multiplication variety would immediately show you that a larger interbreeding pool does not lower variety: Your concerns about losing racial variety are completely unfounded. I don't have a problem with you printing complete science fiction, but if you want to try to sell it to the reality-based community known as science, I suggest you at least consult a population geneticist first.

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