Noosphere achieved?
The noospehere, by online definition, is a “postulated stage of evolutionary development dominated by consciousness, the mind, and interpersonal relationships”. It represents the highest stage of biospheric development, (everyone or everything) cerebrally connected, telepathically.
The concept was introduced by Vladimir Ivanovich Vernadsky and Pierre Teilhard de Chardin and first used in publications from 1922. The common thesis is that “together human reason and the scientific thought has and will continue to create the next evolutionary geological layer” (Wikipedia – sorry.)
The above screen shot is from Ian MacKenzies 2013 Tedx talk on the Noosphere. On the left is a neurological map of the human brain, and on the right a map of the internet. The similarity of the structures of an individual consciousness and our best attempt at a global consciousness so far are not coincidental.
If nanotech can map us neurologically and upload us into a shared space or drive, we could have any intelligence we want, communicating at light speeds.
Then again, who stays to look after the servers, this drive or space? Can remaining humans, maintaining the host location of the noosphere be trusted?
If you have read this far into my thoughts and research on this topic, I’d like to make a recommendation: Yuval Noah Harahi is one of my favourite authors, currently. He tackles much of the philosophy at the heart of these issues in his book ‘Homo Deus’, which is the sequel to his famous and bestselling ‘Sapiens’. He looks into the future, making predictions based on facts and does a really good job of explaining complex concepts and issues in matter-of-fact, accessible lay terms for people like me.
Harari, Yuval Noah. Sapiens: A brief history of humankind. Random House, 2014.