7 Things About Neo-Geneticism

1. Nature versus Nurture

There was in the Petroleum Era a great debate over what was the greater influence over what made a person who they were, their inherited nature, or their education, environment, and upbringing. In the Cosmic Era, dominated by neo-genetics and cognitive science, has firmly planted itself on the nature side in the debate. Human beings are highly advanced mammals, but are still animals, and will respond to stimuli in highly predictable manners, following their genetic biological imperatives.

The role of neo-genetics in Nature Versus Nurture is to change the underlying biological impulses and cognitive biases of the human animal to produce a better grade of humanity. In the science of studying society and cultural values, the Cosmic Era has realized that it is on the cusp of 'genoculture' where it will be able to transcend animal nature and impulses, and rise to become an 'exoculture' that will be able to expand beyond the solar system.

Intersectionality and Protoculture

The Great Filter

2. Regression to Mediocrity

One of the problems with basic genetics and evolution is that the extremes are weeded out, leaving the common denominator. One of the examples of this was the genetic expression of the cheetah. In the parable, the fastest cheetah didn't pass on its genes to increase the overall speed of all cheetahs. Likewise, the slowest cheetahs followed suit. Instead, the bulk of breeding cats were of average speed, and this is simply an expression of the law of averages. The existence of genetic engineering,beneugenics, and the rest of the bag of tricks, it is possible to overcome the trend to regression, allowing for those who demonstrate their genetic superiority and strength to see their genes spread further and to greater benefit. With gene splicing and engineering, the best sections of a gene can be selected, so that it doesn't become a genetic bottleneck with a small number of people functionally having a stupendous number of children.

3. Composite Humanity

Each ethnic cluster has its associated undesireable traits, ranging from a propensity for certain diseases, to having diseases that only affect that particular cluster, such as sickle cell anemia, or almost omnipresent alcoholism, GI cancer, and so forth. The application of phenocladistics can introduce new and technically artificial new ethnic clusters, and retrovirii designed to alter the undesirable traits.

The introduction of phenoclades is contentious, but also trendy, as one can 'join' a phenoclade.

4. Deliberate Deviation

To be exceptional, one must first deviate from the statistical norm. While things like Phenocladistics and other eugenic factors iron out the lows from the average, Deliberate Deviation raises the high points. Using genetic engineering and cybernetic augmentation human abilities can be raised by staggering amounts. The figurehead of Deliberate Deviation is the Supersoldier. Better, stronger, smarter, faster, and tougher than a normal human, the supersoldier is a deliberate deviation. Other examples include humans augmented to think as fast as computers and use irrational variables that machines cannot. The best of the best and engineered to be the best, the best athlete, the best minds, the best looking. As these outriders advance, the technology and programs behind them filter down into the mass of humanity, just as the technological innovations of extreme motorsports find their way into the family minivan and economy compact cars.

5. Eugenics

Eugenics isn't the dirty word in the Cosmic Era that it was in the Petroleum Era. Rather than gallivanting off into racial supremacy and anti-miscengeniation, CE eugenics is the basic application of genetic screening to find known genetic defects and flaws, such as basic things like vulnerability to specific diseases like cancer and diabetes, as well as specific weaknesses like a genetic predisposition to alcohol or drug abuse, obesity, mental illness, or even in utero diseases like Down's Syndrome, cerebral palsy, and the basic handicaps like being deaf, blind, mute, or otherwise sense, ability, or bodily compromised.

To the typical resident of the CE, out modern era is a cesspool of rampant genetic filth. Pandemic cancer, rolling epidemics of diabetes, neurochemical brain disorders. It is a wonder the species didn't self destruct. The Second Dark Age was all but inevitable.

6. Lamarckian Inheritance

18th century French biologist Jean-Baptiste Lamarck postulated the existence of 'gemmules' or basically reproductive cells that carried 'soft inheritance' or quite simply, genetic memory. One of the genetic pipe dreams of the Cosmic Era is the creation of actual Gemmules, so that lifetime experience and memories could be passed down via sexual reproduction. A human being born with the genetic ability to read, or to dance, or play a music instrument, or born with the innate skill set of a soldier or politician would have lifetimes of experience over their non-gemmule having counterparts. None of these programs have panned out.

Lamarckian Gemmules would allow a person to carry on their memories of their ancestors, which would certainly be interesting because they would have the blended experiences of both parents, producing a child with male and female experiences, and there is no telling how long a memory could be passed down through a genetic line.

7. Anthropotronics

Technopobia is the fear of technology, while Anthropotronics is the application of technology to control and guide human life. Like autocorrect, training wheels, and spam filters, anthropotronics iron out the worst elements of human behaviour, mitigate the ones it cannot remove, and eliminates the ones that cannot be otherwise dealt with. This ranges from the common anti-crime computer to mood controlling machinery in arcologies to screenery to the daily discourse directing public bile.