Extropianism, also referred to as extropy, is an evolving framework of values and standards for continuously improving the human condition. Extropianism describes a pragmatic consilience of transhumanist thought guided by a proactionary approach to human evolution and progress. (Extropians were once concisely described as libertarian transhumanists, and some still hold to this standard.) Extropianism, also reffered to as extropy, is a transhumanist philosophy characterized by a set of principles regarding extropy, defined by Dr. Max More in The Principles of Extropy. ... Consilience, or the unity of knowledge (literally a jumping together of knowledge), has its roots in the ancient Greek concept of an intrinsic orderliness that governs our cosmos, inherently comprehensible by logical process, a vision at odds with mystical views in many cultures that surrounded the Hellenes. ... Transhumanism is an emergent school of speculative philosophy analysing or favouring the use of science and technology, especially neurotechnology, biotechnology, and nanotechnology, to overcome human limitations and improve the human condition. ... The proactionary principle, phrase coined in 2004 by cultural strategist Natasha Vita-More, who is known for her writings and multi-media transhumanist works, is an ethical principle intended as a pro-innovation counterbalance to the more famous precautionary principle. ... This article or section does not adequately cite its references or sources. ... Progress can refer to: The idea of a process in which societies or individuals become better or more modern (technologically and/or socially). ... See also Libertarianism and Libertarian Party Libertarian,is a term for person who has made a conscious and principled commitment, evidenced by a statement or Pledge, to forswear violating others rights and usually living in voluntary communities: thus in law no longer subject to government supervision. ...

Originated by a set of principles developed by Dr. Max More, The Principles of Extropy,[1] extropianism stems from the transhuman tradition of F.M. Esfandiary and as conceptualized by More, places strong emphasis on rational thinking and practical optimism. According to More, these principles "do not specify particular beliefs, technologies, or policies". Extropians share an optimistic view of the future, expecting considerable advances in computational power, life extension, nanotechnology and the like. Many extropians foresee the eventual realization of unlimited maximum life spans, and the recovery, thanks to future advances in biomedical technology, of those whose bodies/brains have been preserved by means of cryonics. Max More (born January 1964, Bristol, England formerly known as Max OConnor) is a philosopher and futurist who writes, speaks, and consults on advanced decision making and foresight methods for handling the impact of emerging technologies. ... FM-2030, born Fereidoun M. Esfandiary (October 15, 1930–July 8, 2000), was a transhumanist philosopher and futurist who professed a deep nostalgia for the future. ... Optimists see the world as a positive place Optimism, the opposite of pessimism, exemplifies a lifeview where one looks upon the world as a positive place. ... Look up Future in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... Life extension refers to an increase in maximum or average lifespan, especially in humans, by slowing down or reversing the processes of aging. ... Buckminsterfullerene C60, also known as the buckyball, is the simplest of the carbon structures known as fullerenes. ... Maximum life span is a measure of the maximum number of years a member of a group has been observed to survive. ... Cryonics (often mistakenly called cryogenics) is the practice of cryopreserving humans and other animals that can no longer be sustained by contemporary medicine until resuscitation may be possible in the future. ...

Extropy, coined by Tom Bell (T. O. Morrow) in January 1988, is defined as the extent of a living or organizational system's intelligence, functional order, vitality, energy, life, experience, and capacity and drive for improvement and growth. Extropy expresses a metaphor, rather than serving as a technical term, and so is not simply the hypothetical opposite of Information entropy. 1988 (MCMLXXXVIII) was a leap year starting on Friday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Intelligence is the mental capacity to reason, plan, solve problems, think abstractly, comprehend ideas and language, and learn. ... For other uses, see Life (disambiguation). ... Look up Experience in Wiktionary, the free dictionary This article discusses the general concept of experience. ... Look up metaphor in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... Claude Shannon In information theory, the Shannon entropy or information entropy is a measure of the uncertainty associated with a random variable. ...

The Extropy Institute

In 1987, Max More moved to Los Angeles from Oxford University in England, where he had helped to establish (along with Michael Price, Garret Smyth and Luigi Warren) the first European cryonics organization, known as Mizar Limited (later Alcor UK), to work on his Ph.D. in philosophy at the University of Southern California. 1987 (MCMLXXXVII) was a common year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... The University of Oxford, located in the city of Oxford in England, is the oldest university in the English-speaking world. ... The University of Southern California (commonly referred to as USC, SC, Southern California, and incorrectly as Southern Cal[4]), located in the University Park neighborhood in Los Angeles, California, USA, was founded in 1880, making it Californias oldest private research university. ...

In 1988, "Extropy: The Journal of Transhumanist Thought" was first published. This brought together thinkers with interests in artificial intelligence, nanotechnology, genetic engineering, life extension, mind uploading, Idea Futures, robotics, space exploration, memetics, and the politics and economics of transhumanism. Alternative media organizations soon began reviewing the magazine, and it attracted interest from likeminded thinkers. Later, More and Bell co-founded the Extropy Institute, a non-profit 501(c)(3) educational organization. "ExI" was formed as a transhumanist networking and information center to use current scientific understanding along with critical and creative thinking to define a small set of principles or values that could help make sense of new capabilities opening up to humanity. 1988 (MCMLXXXVIII) was a leap year starting on Friday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Hondas humanoid robot, ASIMO The term Artificial Intelligence (AI) was first used by John McCarthy who used it to mean the science and engineering of making intelligent machines.[1] It can also refer to intelligence as exhibited by an artificial (man-made, non-natural, manufactured) entity. ... Buckminsterfullerene C60, also known as the buckyball, is the simplest of the carbon structures known as fullerenes. ... An iconic image of genetic engineering; this autoluminograph from 1986 of a glowing transgenic tobacco plant bearing the luciferase gene, illustrating the possibilities of genetic engineering. ... Life extension refers to an increase in maximum or average lifespan, especially in humans, by slowing down or reversing the processes of aging. ... In transhumanism and science fiction, mind transfer (also referred to as mind uploading or mind downloading, depending on ones point of reference), whole body emulation, or electronic transcendence refers to the hypothetical transfer of a human mind to an artificial substrate. ... It has been suggested that this article or section be merged with robot. ... Space exploration is the physical exploration of outer space by both manned and unmanned spacecraft. ... Memetics is an approach to evolutionary models of information transfer based on the concept of the meme. ... A non-profit organization (abbreviated NPO, or non-profit or not-for-profit) is an organization whose primary objective is to support an issue or matter of private interest or public concern for non-commercial purposes, without concern for monetary profit. ... 501(c)(3) is a provision of the US tax code that provides exempt status, for Federal income tax purposes, for some non-profit organizations in the United States (see 26 U.S.C. Â§ 501(c)(3)). The term refers to: Section 501. ...

The Extropy Institute's email list was launched in 1991, and in 1992 the institute began producing the first conferences on transhumanism. Affiliate members throughout the world began organizing their own transhumanist groups. Extro Conferences, meetings, parties, on-line debates, and documentaries continue to spread transhumanism to the public.

The Internet soon became the most fertile breeding ground for people interested in exploring transhumanist ideas, with the availability of websites for such organizations that have joined the Extropy Institute in developing and advocating transhumanist (and related) ideas. These include the World Transhumanist Association, the Alcor Life Extension Foundation, the Life Extension Foundation, Foresight Institute, Transhumanist Arts & Culture, the Immortality Institute, Betterhumans, Aleph in Sweden, TransVision in Europe, the Singularity Institute for Artificial Intelligence, and the Institute for Ethics and Emerging Technologies. The World Transhumanist Association is an international non-profit membership organisation which advocates the ethical use of technology to enhance human capacities. ... This bigfoot Dewar is custom-designed to contain four wholebody patients and six neuropatients immersed in liquid nitrogen at −196 degrees Celsius. ... The Life Extension Foundation is a membership organization that informs people about the latest advances in the life extension sciences, sells dietary supplements, and funds life extension research by offering grants to scientists in universities and by supporting startup biotech companies. ... This article reads like an advertisement, and therefore is not neutral in tone. ... The Transhumanist Arts & Culture center was founded in 1982 by artist and cultural critic Natasha Vita-More as an attempt to explore and influence the future directions of art and creativity as well as preserve a history of transhumanity, transhumanist arts, and extropic art. ... The current Immortality Institute header/logo. ... Aiming to connect people to the future so that they can create it, Betterhumans is an editorial production company thats dedicated to having the best information, analysis and opinion on the impact of advancing science and technology. ... is the reconstructed name of the first letter of the Proto-Canaanite alphabet, continued in descended Semitic alphabets as Phoenician , Syriac , Hebrew Aleph , and Arabic . Aleph originally represented the glottal stop (IPA ), usually transliterated as , a symbol based on the Greek spiritus lenis , for example in the transliteration of the... The Singularity Institute for Artificial Intelligence is a non-profit organization with the goal of developing a theory of Friendly artificial intelligence and implementing that theory as a software system. ... The Institute for Ethics and Emerging Technologies was founded in 2004 by philosopher Nick Bostrom and bioethicist James Hughes. ...

In 2006 the board of directors of the Extropy Institute made a decision to close the organisation.[2]

See also

• Proactionary principle
• Transhumanism

The proactionary principle, phrase coined in 2004 by cultural strategist Natasha Vita-More, who is known for her writings and multi-media transhumanist works, is an ethical principle intended as a pro-innovation counterbalance to the more famous precautionary principle. ... Natasha Vita-Mores Primo is an artistic depiction of a hypothetical posthuman of transhumanist speculation. ...

External links

• Extropy Institute
• The Principles of Extropy, published by the Extropy Institute