Many key thinkers in both non‑fiction and science fiction link long‑term survival with **trans‑human** or post‑human evolution, especially in space and interstellar contexts.nickbostrom+1
---
## Non‑fiction authors and works
## J. D. Bernal
- **Key work:** [[The World, the Flesh and the Devil_ (1929)]][wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Transhumanism)
- **Concepts:**
- Early vision of space colonization via large, engineered habitats.
- Speculation on radical bodily modification, cyborgization, and disembodied intelligence as paths to long‑term survival in space.[wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Transhumanism)
## Nick Bostrom
- **Key works (non‑fiction):**
- “[[A History of Transhumanist Thought]]” (paper).[nickbostrom](https://nickbostrom.com/papers/a-history-of-transhumanist-thought/)
- _Superintelligence: Paths, Dangers, Strategies_ (AI‑driven post‑human futures, not space‑specific).newyorker+1
- **Concepts:**
- Transhumanism as deliberate self‑transformation beyond biological limits (life extension, cognitive enhancement, uploading).nickbostrom+1
- “Astronomical value” of a future filled with trillions of digital post‑human consciousnesses potentially colonizing space.criticalposthumanism+1
## George F. Sowers Jr.
- **Key work:** “[[The Transhumanist Case for Space]]” (essay).[georgesowers](https://www.georgesowers.com/files/123449659.pdf)
- **Concepts:**
- Argues that psychological drives and survival logic make space colonization a natural project for transhumanists.
- Frames advanced humans or post‑humans (enhanced biology, AI integration) as better suited for deep‑space living and long‑term survival.[georgesowers](https://www.georgesowers.com/files/123449659.pdf)
## Broader transhumanist discourse
- **Humanity+ / World Transhumanist Association (Bostrom, David Pearce, others):**
- Promotes radical life extension, cognitive and bodily enhancement, mind uploading, and eventual post‑biological or space‑based civilizations.aeon+2
- **Core non‑fiction themes:**
- Extending healthy lifespan to make multi‑century or millennial projects meaningful.
- Genetic and cybernetic enhancement for radiation resistance, low‑gravity adaptation, and high‑reliability cognition in space.reddit+1
---
## Science‑fiction authors and works (space + transhumanity)
These are mostly “hard” or near‑future SF where transformation is tied to realistic or semi‑realistic space travel and survival.
## Arthur C. Clarke
- **Representative works:**
- _Childhood’s End_ – humanity transcends into a collective, non‑corporeal Overmind, leaving Earth behind.[nickbostrom](https://nickbostrom.com/papers/a-history-of-transhumanist-thought/)
- _2001: A Space Odyssey_ – an astronaut transformed into the “Star Child,” a post‑human being linked to cosmic intelligences.[nickbostrom](https://nickbostrom.com/papers/a-history-of-transhumanist-thought/)
- **Concepts:**
- Evolution of humanity into non‑biological or higher‑dimensional forms catalyzed by contact with advanced beings, making interstellar existence feasible.[nickbostrom](https://nickbostrom.com/papers/a-history-of-transhumanist-thought/)
## Isaac Asimov
- **Representative works:**
- _The End of Eternity_, parts of the _Foundation_ universe, and robot stories link long‑term human survival with tight integration between humans and super‑advanced AI/robots.barnesandnoble+1
- **Concepts:**
- Positronic robots and AIs as guardians of human longevity and galactic‑scale civilization.
- Implicitly trans‑human future where biological humans coexist with or rely on more durable machine intelligences over vast timescales.[nickbostrom](https://nickbostrom.com/papers/a-history-of-transhumanist-thought/)
## Stanisław Lem
- **Representative works:**
- _Fiasco_, _His Master’s Voice_, and others dealing with post‑contact and post‑human intelligence.[nickbostrom](https://nickbostrom.com/papers/a-history-of-transhumanist-thought/)
- **Concepts:**
- Critical, often skeptical examination of radically altered humans and alien intelligences.
- Suggests that post‑human cognitive shifts might make our present motives and notions of exploration unrecognizable.[nickbostrom](https://nickbostrom.com/papers/a-history-of-transhumanist-thought/)
## Alastair Reynolds
- **Representative works:** [[Revelation Space sequence]] (including _Revelation Space_, _Redemption Ark_, _Absolution Gap_).[reddit](https://www.reddit.com/r/printSF/comments/pbteef/transhumanist_sci_fi_recommendations/)
- **Concepts:**
- “Ultras”: heavily modified, ship‑dwelling humans with cybernetic and biological changes, adapted to relativistic travel and long campaigns in deep space.[reddit](https://www.reddit.com/r/printSF/comments/pbteef/transhumanist_sci_fi_recommendations/)
- Long‑baseline survival strategies: augmentation, partial digitization, and extreme radiation‑hardening to endure millennia‑scale interstellar histories.
## Peter Watts
- **Representative works:** [[Blindsight]], _Echopraxia_.[nypl](https://www.nypl.org/blog/2015/07/29/books-interplanetary-travel)
- **Concepts:**
- Radically modified humans (surgically altered, cognitively re‑engineered) and resurrected baseline‑breaking lineages (e.g., “vampires”) to handle deep‑space missions and hostile contact scenarios.[nypl](https://www.nypl.org/blog/2015/07/29/books-interplanetary-travel)
- Questioning whether post‑human cognition (highly efficient, less self‑aware) is better for survival than human self‑consciousness.
## Dan Simmons
- **Representative works:** [[Hyperion Cantos]] (especially _Hyperion_ and _The Fall of Hyperion_).[nypl](https://www.nypl.org/blog/2015/07/29/books-interplanetary-travel)
- **Concepts:**
- Far‑future humanity with extensive cybernetic enhancement, body modification, and AI‑network integration; factions of highly altered “Ousters” living in deep‑space swarms.[nypl](https://www.nypl.org/blog/2015/07/29/books-interplanetary-travel)
- Long‑term survival tied to hybrid human–AI ecologies and distributed populations across space.
## Octavia E. Butler
- **Representative works:** [[Lilith’s Brood (a.k.a. Xenogenesis trilogy)]].[bookriot](https://bookriot.com/sci-fi-books-about-space-travel/)
- **Concepts:**
- Post‑apocalyptic humans genetically merged with alien Oankali, creating hybrid species better adapted for survival on new worlds and in space.[bookriot](https://bookriot.com/sci-fi-books-about-space-travel/)
- Raises ethical questions about consent, identity, and whether survival as a hybrid/post‑human lineage “counts” as human continuity.
## Ramez Naam
- **Representative works:** [[Nexus trilogy (Nexus, Crux, Apex)]].[booktrib](https://booktrib.com/2021/02/23/7-novels-about-transhumanism-humans-but-better-or-maybe-worse/)
- **Concepts:**
- Brain–computer interfaces enabling shared consciousness, massive cognitive enhancement, and global/space‑capable post‑human networks.
- While mostly Earth‑bound, the logic extends directly to long‑duration space missions where enhanced resiliency and networked minds help overcome isolation.[booktrib](https://booktrib.com/2021/02/23/7-novels-about-transhumanism-humans-but-better-or-maybe-worse/)
---
## How this maps to your interest
- **Non‑fiction:** Bernal, Bostrom, and Sowers explicitly tie transhumanism to space colonization, arguing that long‑term survival may require enhanced or post‑biological descendants rather than baseline humans.aeon+2
- **Science fiction:** Clarke, Reynolds, Watts, Simmons, Butler, and Naam explore concrete narrative models where interstellar or extreme long‑term survival only becomes plausible once cognition, bodies, or substrates change—exactly the “trans‑human interstellar” space Greene is skeptical about, but taken seriously in speculative form.[youtube](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QIj5aIbh_VE&t=575s)bookriot+2
If you like, the next step can be a small Obsidian schema just for “Trans‑human Space Survival” with properties like “Type (bio‑enhanced / digital / hybrid)”, “Scale (interplanetary / interstellar)”, and “View on baseline humanity (continuity vs. replacement)”.
1. [https://nickbostrom.com/papers/a-history-of-transhumanist-thought/](https://nickbostrom.com/papers/a-history-of-transhumanist-thought/)
2. [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Transhumanism](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Transhumanism)
3. [https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2015/11/23/doomsday-invention-artificial-intelligence-nick-bostrom](https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2015/11/23/doomsday-invention-artificial-intelligence-nick-bostrom)
4. [https://criticalposthumanism.net/transhumanism/](https://criticalposthumanism.net/transhumanism/)
5. [https://aeon.co/essays/the-future-of-humanism-from-toni-morrison-to-nick-bostrom](https://aeon.co/essays/the-future-of-humanism-from-toni-morrison-to-nick-bostrom)
6. [https://www.georgesowers.com/files/123449659.pdf](https://www.georgesowers.com/files/123449659.pdf)
7. [https://www.reddit.com/r/transhumanism/comments/1524hgm/transhumans_are_the_answer_to_space_travel/](https://www.reddit.com/r/transhumanism/comments/1524hgm/transhumans_are_the_answer_to_space_travel/)
8. [https://www.polytechnique-insights.com/en/columns/health-and-biotech/immortality-an-ancient-fantasy-revived-by-transhumanism/](https://www.polytechnique-insights.com/en/columns/health-and-biotech/immortality-an-ancient-fantasy-revived-by-transhumanism/)
9. [https://www.barnesandnoble.com/blog/4-books-where-interstellar-travel-is-insane/](https://www.barnesandnoble.com/blog/4-books-where-interstellar-travel-is-insane/)
10. [https://www.reddit.com/r/printSF/comments/pbteef/transhumanist_sci_fi_recommendations/](https://www.reddit.com/r/printSF/comments/pbteef/transhumanist_sci_fi_recommendations/)
11. [https://www.nypl.org/blog/2015/07/29/books-interplanetary-travel](https://www.nypl.org/blog/2015/07/29/books-interplanetary-travel)
12. [https://bookriot.com/sci-fi-books-about-space-travel/](https://bookriot.com/sci-fi-books-about-space-travel/)
13. [https://booktrib.com/2021/02/23/7-novels-about-transhumanism-humans-but-better-or-maybe-worse/](https://booktrib.com/2021/02/23/7-novels-about-transhumanism-humans-but-better-or-maybe-worse/)
14. [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QIj5aIbh_VE&t=575s](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QIj5aIbh_VE&t=575s)
15. [https://eitw.nd.edu/articles/training-transhumanists-at-oxford-university/](https://eitw.nd.edu/articles/training-transhumanists-at-oxford-university/)
16. [https://www.reddit.com/r/sciencefiction/comments/5keqsq/looking_for_space_operas_with_transhumanism/](https://www.reddit.com/r/sciencefiction/comments/5keqsq/looking_for_space_operas_with_transhumanism/)
17. [https://lareviewofbooks.org/article/transcending-gravity-the-view-from-postcolonial-dhaka-to-colonies-in-space](https://lareviewofbooks.org/article/transcending-gravity-the-view-from-postcolonial-dhaka-to-colonies-in-space)
18. [https://modernagejournal.com/transhumanism-the-oldest-trick-in-the-book/253278/](https://modernagejournal.com/transhumanism-the-oldest-trick-in-the-book/253278/)
19. [https://www.thriftbooks.com/b/interstellar-travel/](https://www.thriftbooks.com/b/interstellar-travel/)
20. [https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC11559535/](https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC11559535/)
21. [https://philosophynow.org/issues/160/A_Philosophical_History_of_Transhumanism](https://philosophynow.org/issues/160/A_Philosophical_History_of_Transhumanism)
-----