We sometimes joke from time to time about robot uprisings, the day when technology becomes too much for humanity to handle, or how we might be able to use it to be able to “live” forever. There have been countless television and movies that have explored those ideas (and associated fears) over the years – but now one scientist thinks he could actually live forever via tech.
Or at least become part robot.
Dr. Peter Bowman Scott-Morgan is a roboticist who has been diagnosed with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). It’s a degenerative condition, also known as Lou Gehrig’s. It has few treatment options and no cure, so Scott-Morgan decided to work toward becoming the “world’s first full cyborg.”
Image Credit: Twitter
After undergoing four medical procedures in an attempt to prolong and improve the quality of his life, he refers to himself as Peter 2.0.
Peter has a feeding tube that goes directly into his stomach, a catheter that goes directly into his bladder, a colostomy bag into his colon, and he also underwent a laryngectomy to remove is larynx, which connects his mouth and nose to his lungs.
He’s not able to speak with a natural voice and can breathe only with a respirator, but it also takes away the risk of saliva accumulating into his lungs, which would basically cause him to drown.
He tweeted after coming home from the hospital the last time.
Just home from 24 days in Intensive Care. All medical procedures now complete and a huge success. My mini-ventilator keeping me breathing is a LOT quieter than Darth Vader’s. All speech is synthetic but at last sounds like me again. Long research road ahead but in great spirits. pic.twitter.com/JPjwjagDLT
— Dr Peter B Scott-Morgan (@DrScottMorgan) November 11, 2019
“Just home from 24 days in Intensive Care. All medical procedures now complete and a huge success. My mini-ventilator keeping me breathing is a LOT quieter than Darth Vader’s. All speech is synthetic but at last sounds like me again. Long research road ahead but in great spirits.”
Scott-Morgan writes on his website that he’s working on the “experiment of this life,” and plans to use his robotics knowledge to not only survive, but to thrive with a disease that spells the end for everyone who gets handed the diagnosis – over 220,000 people around the world.
NOW REPLUMBED AS A CYBORG four tubes will keep me alive long after I become fully paralysed (apart from my eyes, which will still move). My body’s sole function will then be to sustain my brain. This first transition has not been so much based on Medical Science as Engineering. pic.twitter.com/AqkeMwnQ4I
— Dr Peter B Scott-Morgan (@DrScottMorgan) November 13, 2019
In addition to the surgeries, he’s made big upgrades to his wheelchair that make it easier to move around his home, and will undergo laser eye surgery so that he can better read and control the computer screen using only his eyes – because in time, he won’t be able to control any of the other muscles in his body.
You can catch a documentary detailing his journey into becoming Peter 2.0 in 2020.
And for now, Peter is living happily in Devonshire with his husband, Francis.
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