George Young publishes blog post on 'Huffington Post'

George M Young, Ph.D., fellow, Â鶹´«Ã½Center for Global Humanities, published a blog entry on Aug. 1, 2012 for the Huffington Post titled "Do You Want to Be Immortal? Really?"

Young, the author of The Russian Cosmists: The Esoteric Futurism of Nikolai Fedorov and His Followers, discusses the Cosmists' belief that medical technology is advancing so rapidly that humans at some point may become immortal.

In the blog, he asks: "The important question now may not be whether remaking ourselves and our universe to eliminate limits to present life is possible, but whether it is desirable. For centuries poets have intuited profound value in the mystery of death. As Shakespeare tells us in Sonnet 73, death gives life meaning, and love grows more strong for that 'which thou must leave ere long.' Or, as Wallace Stevens wrote in 'Sunday Morning,' 'Death is the mother of beauty.' Could many of our best intangibles be lost in the transition from human to 'transhuman'?"

About the Â鶹´«Ã½

The Â鶹´«Ã½ is Maine’s largest independent university, with two beautiful coastal campuses in Maine, a one-of-a-kind study abroad campus in Tangier, Morocco, and an array of . In an uncommonly welcoming and supportive community, we offer hands-on learning, empowering students to make a positive impact in a world full of challenges. The state’s top provider of health professionals, we are home to Maine’s only medical college, Maine’s only dental college, a variety of other interprofessionally aligned health care degree programs, as well as nationally recognized programs for marine science degrees, natural and social sciences degrees, arts and humanities degrees, and business degrees.