The ship of Theseus is a paradoxical thought experiment most notably discussed by the Greek philosopher Plutarch. The paradox goes as follows, if a ship replaces each component as it is damaged or rots, once all original pieces have been replaced, is it still the same ship ? An interesting question (or paradox), and one that’s answer is up for interpretation depending on who you speak to. Whichever side you fall on, if you believe just because all materials have been replaced it is still the same ship, or it most definitely is not ! This small blog discussion would like to tie this classic paradox in with cell renewal biology on the human body, and the niche sociology of ‘the cyborg’. I will try and keep this discussion brief and to the point, lest it become a dissertation or even a thesis (Theseus lol) of its own.
An often toted biological fact that always brings me a strange sense of comfort is that every 7-10 years, every cell in the body renews itself. This would mean that every 7 years, we, like the ship of Theseus, no longer consist of our original materials. I am no biologist, and this fact is not entirely true, cells renew at different rates (like neurons or fat cells), and DNA remains the same since the day of birth. However, the bulk of your cells, it would seem, do renew, and as the underrated film ‘It’s Such a Beautiful Day’ states, you have more in common with a stranger than a photo of yourself 7 years ago genetically. I paraphrased that, in fact I have not seen that film in many years, but I vaguely remember that quote, or a quote like it. I digress, so biologically, it would seem we do not qualify entirely for the Theseus paradox, but we get pretty close.
So what about technology ? This is where I would like to introduce the concept of the cyborg. A key text in this field that is worth checking out is a book titled ‘A Cyborg Manifesto by Donna Haraway’. To sum the core of this book up, it looks to dissolve the segregation we create with labels that separate ‘human’ and ‘machine’. The work primarily focuses on feminism, however, this blog would like to take this concept in a different direction for now. Humans subtle transformation into cyborgs has been happening for much longer than what one might originally think. Take the 30’s for example, wrist watches had started to become popular, and by the 1950’s they were a staple for many people. This integration of technology became a subconscious way for us to check the time to its exact measurement, with an extension of our own arm. Not quite what most people think when they hear cyborg, however, even great changes start small. Humans are not able to know the exact time down to the second biologically, but with the addition to the wrist watch, we gained an ability beyond our natural physicality.
So, 70 years later and things have changed since the mind blowing extra abilities the wrist watch bestowed upon us. Now, most of us own a smart phone, that has access to the internet. This means that virtually all human known information is but a few key words away, we can also take photos and videos in immense detail. Along with a plethora of other things (like banking, face and fingerprint recognition, language translation, and apps that keep us entertained by learning our subconscious interests through algorithms). This is just what our phones can do, and in ten years time anyone reading this may giggle to themselves at the supposedly impressive abilities our phones have now. In fact, many children growing up, especially in wealthier areas I imagine, are finding it hard to write with pens and pencils due to digital alternatives (link at the end). So without spending more time labelling the influx of cyborg like implementations to modern human life, what does it mean ?
Well, bringing this back to the ship of Theseus, will we reach a point where all of a humans natural traits have been replaced, and if such happens, are we still human ? This is a hypothetical, and a rather far away one, we may never reach such an evolution of the cyborg. Much like sci-fi writers ponder over a time where humans can upload their consciousness onto a machine. Does this mean that the end goal for humans, is to stop being humans ? Furthermore, my mind runs wild with ideas of cells becoming data points, does that mean we can erase ones entire existence ? Strange questions that’s answers we may never have to worry about. However, with the growing integration of the cyborg in daily life, we, like the ship, are slowly replacing ourselves, and maybe its worth noting before we become a paradox. This end goal of complete cyborg-hood may even offer a viable solution to antinatalism (the theory that humans are inherently harmful, therefore, procreation is ethically unjustifiable). As it would allow us to exist in a virtual space that would remove our biological propensity for violence and harm (at least that’s the goal).
If you liked this or are intrigued by any of the subjects mentioned through this blog I will include a small ‘check these out’ list below, along with the link promised within the article. Hope this was interesting, and if you enjoyed the read feel free to hit like, share it, comment on it, or even hit me up on my social medias available on the home page !
Emil Cioran- antinatalism
Donna Haraway- A cyborg Manifesto
It’s Such A Beautiful Day, a film by Don Hertzfeldt
Plutarch- Life of Theseus
AMKent books 
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