Jessica Ice's Methodology Proposal: Posthuman/Computer Identity

Given the nature of my research, I will not be doing ethnography like many of the other researchers in the KSU Digital Ethnography Anonymity Project. Instead, my research focuses on questions about the future.

I am asking questions about the future of identity: what is personal identity, when does a non-human machine possess a personal identity, and how do technological developments that blur the lines between non-human and human identity change the behavior of both entities. After all, nearly everything a self-reflecting entity does is dependent on how it understands it's existence. Therefore, there are huge implications that come with a shift in this understanding of oneself. A posthuman/bot revolution would transform the traditionally biological human and usher in a new kind of person, one that is not biological, yet still intelligent and possibly self-aware. Yet, humanity has thought of itself as the ultimate intelligence of the universe (that we know of), and this affects the ways we behave towards each other and other creatures. We have already created machines that mock our personal characteristics to some extent (e.g chatterbots), and this has quickly changed the way we understand ourselves. As technology progresses faster than we can keep up with, we must step back and ask ourselves, who am I as a human, and what is that/who are they as a machine? Let's explore the meaning of personal existence in light of computer technology... :)

As I said, my research will not be ethnographic, but instead will consist of mainly literature review and teaching myself the relevant technological concepts (which are many) in order to apply them to social theory about the future of identity. I will do an extensive literature review, looking mainly at the kinds of technologies that have been proposed in the past few years, when those technologies were theoretically feasible, and those that have actually been created. I will analyze these technological advances not with any claim of much practical knowledge in the computer and biochemical sciences etc., but instead rely on people in relevant disciplines that are regarded as experts within their field.

This methodology must be very interdisciplinary because it requires a certain understanding of computer science, biology, psychology, philosophy, nanotechnology, chemistry (e.g molecular nanobots), and of course anthropology.
So far, I have read many of the most prevalent thinkers in tranhumanist/posthuman theory such as Ray Kurtzweil, Hans Moravec, and Nick Bostrom. I will also be analyzing the ideas of those opposed to transhumanism and writers who believe rapid technological changes will bring about more bad than good or a change in culture that is detrimental.

However, although it is easy to get caught up in the philosophical aspects of technology, and I will cover this, I do not want to stray far from my current research question of how technology will change personal identity, human or non-human. Therefore, I will focus less on analyzing their good or bad nature, and instead I'll focus on their affect on identity, interaction, ideology, society, etc. I hypothesize that if the understanding of human and computer as persons is changed, then social nature will be radically changed. I believe it is also very important to analyze the existing cultural ideas we have about the future of technology and humanity. I'll note that different cultural traditions have very different ideas about robots, dystopias, A.I, and the future of other technologies that always affect our opinion on good/bad or predictions about the future.

In formulating my own ideas I will first read everything I can on the subjects of personhood, technology, (especially artificial intelligence), and computer-human interaction on the web and off, as well as the theories of mind from psychology, anthropology, and philosophy. This will certainly be a traditional research format of reading and forming my own hypothesis afterward. I also want to stress that, although I find transhumanism to have many desirable ideas, I will remain objective during my research by critically analyzing theories and hypothesis put forth by writers.