My paper “Preparing For Our Enhanced Future” is now available in the latest issue of the Journal of Medical Licensure and Discipline (published by the Federation of State Medical Boards of the United States). A subscription is needed to access it.

Here is the abstract:

Rapid advances in human genetics raise the prospect that one day we may be able to develop genetic enhancements to promote a diverse range of phenotypes (e.g., health, intelligence and behavior, etc.). Perhaps the biggest challenge that genetic enhancements pose for medical practitioners is that they will compel us to re-think a good deal of the conventional wisdom of the status quo. Radical enhancements are likely to have this effect for a variety of reasons. First, the status quo is premised (at least in large part) on a sharp distinction between treatment and enhancement; a distinction that at least some genetic enhancements will call into question. Second, the prospect of radical enhancements requires us to keep an open mind concerning how we conceive of the harm of non-intervention (i.e., the harm of the status quo). Third, some enhancements might compromise the preservation of personal identity. All of these issues may have important consequences for state medical boards, ranging from the way we view the aspiration to prevent harm and ensure reasonable standards of care, to malpractice, continuing competency and medical specialization.

Cheers,
Colin

Experts who study creativity find that to get really, really, really good at something takes about 10,000 hours. That breaks down to about 40 hours a week for five years of constant practice. Or 20 hours a week for ten years.

Any well-known sports star, musician or other talented individual has done this: Tiger Woods, Tony Robbins, Dale Carnegie, Shakespeare, Nicola Tesla or any other name you can think of. Mozart put his 10,000 hours in before he was eight-years-old.

The point is, to excel in anything takes time, dedication and commitment. To become an expert at anything doesn’t happen overnight.

Perhaps you know someone who tried to learn to play an instrument, intending to become world famous? They took lessons, came back home and practiced a little bit and continued that cycle for a few weeks or months. Perhaps they even kept it up for a few years. But they were never really good, were they? It’s because they didn’t commit to the 10,000 hours.

The reason I mention this is because you’re currently in the process of training your mind. And to really excel at creative thinking and breaking out of the mold will require time, dedication and commitment.

The good news is that the mind can be trained to fast-track the learning process, by building on the lessons learnt and experience gained by others who have been before. That’s the purpose of this website: to gather together tools that have proved useful in the past.

The process of finding worthwhile tools can be frustrating - there’s a huge amount of worthless info out there. I’ve had to spend way more than 10,000 hours sifting through useless books, websites and other tools to prepare a collection of meaningful tools.

Have I missed something?
Do you know of something truly worthwhile which hasn’t been mentioned?
Please let me know by posting a comment.

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