Birth of the Superhero (for real)

I recently watched a lecture on TED.com by Ray Kurzweil, one very smart man. Let me attempt to sum up his thesis; evolution from the very beginning has been a mechanical process; different molecules, and atoms performing different jobs, which eventually create cells, and DNA, then plants and animals, and so on. Here's the catch--he says, and shows statistically that evolution always accelerates exponentially, in other words it took much longer to make DNA than it did to make man, and we are still in the process. 

Kurzweil conjectures that humans, like molecules and atoms are still participating in rapid evolution... but not biologically, technologically. He suggests that the rate of technological growth is overwhelming, and the world will continue to change more and more rapidly. Take for example the phone--it took several decades to catch on, and the same with the TV. Cell phones and the internet (as we know it) are more sophisticated on caught on in less than a decade each...

So, what's this got to do with super heroes? Two words: nano technology. Already, scientists are creating tiny nanorobots which flow through the blood stream and do many of the same functions. One nanorobot cured type I diabetes in animal test subjects. 

Another nanorobot in the works collects and stores more pure oxygen from the lungs than a normal red blood cell. This could help cure numerous diseases... and become the first step toward the modern super hero.

If you were to replace 10% of your blood with these nanorobots, in a single breath you could be run an olympic-speed sprint for 15 minutes and sit at the bottom of the pool for four hours. Athletic, and physical capabilities skyrocket into realms unknown by humans today.

Kurzweil continues, by suggesting nanorobots open unbelievable doors and realms for medicine and human performance. What if humans used nanorobots to build stronger muscle tissue, increase the firing speed of synapses in the brain, or heighten all senses to create binocular vision, super sensitive hearing and smell.

I read an article in the Washington Post claiming that if Batman actually existed, he would metal in 14 olympic events. But, with enough money, in a few years, this doesn't sound too unrealistic. 

The dawn of super heroes is upon us, and their smaller than a red blood cell.

-Patrick