It’s simple, straightforward, and weird. That is…if you became a cyborg, what specific features would YOU want in your cyber-body?
For the purposes of this discussion, “cyborg” can range from “human with a few cybernetic additions” to “full-robot body housing a human brain,” and all points in between.
And the cybernetic additions can be completely serious and prosaic, or completely silly and aesthetic.
For myself, I’d say…
•Wireless internet access…straight to my brain.
With a good firewall (and a surge protector) so I won’t get my brain erased, or taken over, or infected with a computer virus. But I’d like to be able to access the collected knowledge of mankind at any time, any place, and at a moment’s notice. I’d probably want access to my Mac, too. (I might be able to use my visual cortex to augment my video card.)
•Heavy, thudding footsteps. With some electro-hydraulic noise, too, if possible.
What’s the point in being a freakish amalgam of man and machine if you can’t sound like freakin’ Robocop stomping around? Or King Kong, even.
•A spotlight.
This’d probably come in handy more often than one would expect. (Assuming you’re not running into combat, where passive night-vision would be a better idea.)
Oh, and the usual stuff, like the strength to crush a person’s skull using one hand. Hey, maybe a taser built into a hand, too.
Super strength and heavy thudding footsteps, definitely.
Laser beams in the eyes.
A direct link to a supercomputer, so I can be a true know-it-all.
Most important, a decent warranty on all parts and service.
A waist that swivels 360°. Sometimes you need to sit backwards in a chair without straddling the seat. The same feature would be handy for when two people carry bulky objects up and down stairs. So, add object sensors in the toes to prevent stumbling.
Tractor beams in the fingertips.
Warming/cooling pads in the palms. Your drink would always be just the right temperature. Oh, heck. Just make it temperature control for your whole body.
Actually, I think I’d just want improvements, such as added strength, resistance to disease, perfect vision/hearing, infallible memory, GPS tracking so I never get lost. I still want to look human on the outside, and experience love and emotions and all that other human junk.
Also, a brain that constantly recharges itself, so I can bypass the need for sleep.
Let me control my own brain with electronics, my body can go to hell. That’d kick alot of ass, being able to experience anything you want like love, terror, pain, hope, faith, belonging, isolation, etc. all by punching in a few buttons and being able to stop them at will would be great.
Also a direct connection to the internet would be nice too. no more having to study.
-hydraulically-enhanced arms and legs, so I can lift 800 pounds.
-a way to control whether or not I feel physical pain
-3 prong grounded outlet build into chest, for recharging things like my laptop; also useful in looking like that electric guy from The Venture Brothers
-storage compartments
-weapon that causes immense pain but no permanent damage in left arm
-machine gun in right arm
-bult in printer where my ass used to be
-USB ports so I can transfer data directly into my mind
First step is to take out all this weak, useless flesh. I want to be battery-powered, servo-actuated, and neuro-wired. Dump my senses of taste and smell for a full chemical spectroanalisys setup, gimme some neat laser-sights built into my eyes, up my tactile sense so I can hear with my entire body, etc.
Super-Strength would be handy for lifting boxes and such, but not terribly useful in combat with fleshlings, who are limited by puny nervous systems. A nice light synthetic frame would be very nice: the fact that heavy winds might push me over would be balanced by some truly nifty top foot speeds.
Also, if at all possible, I’d have my brain burned into ROM and then trashed.
I would not have an off switch, or any form of override.
I will have subroutines for handling basic work. It would be interesting to take a job as, say, a short-order cook 24/7 while my mind spent time looking at the new models of sexy vacuum-cleaners.
The only meat I want is my brain, and even that with some caveats. I want my brain to be doped/enhanced/engineered to be practically immortal. Then I want the most accident resistant and safe container and life support system that can be designed to house it, I want one firewalled output and input… hardwired please. I would like the sensation of always being full, relieved of body waste and no possibility of ‘phantom body’ pain. I would like to be able to taste and enjoy food and drink for social reasons among the non borged/, but never require it for nutrition (my lifesupport functions should be as self sufficient as possible or require replenishment only rarely). I would like a modular chassis with many possible configurations as well as a humanoid general purpose configuration. My brain will be hot swappable. I would also like a stasis setting so that if necessary I could shut down all of my higher brain functions and go into a coma for long durations of time if necessary. Everything else would be cosmetic I think.
How do you get back out of stasis? Do you trust someone else with a remote control? Do you have a timer on it? What if you set the timer and something happens while you’re in your coma? That would be pretty scary for someone taking all sorts of precautions to try to live forever, wouldn’t it?
