Extropianism

Extropianism stems from the word extropy, which means "the extent of a living or organizational system's intelligence, functional order, vitality, and capacity and drive for improvement." "Extropy" expresses a metaphor, rather than serving as a technical term, and so does not mean "the opposite of entropy".

The Principles of Extropy define Extropianism. According to their author, Max More, who co-founded Extropy Institute, these "do not specify particular beliefs, technologies, or policies." Advocates of this philosophy believe that an ever-accelerating progression to higher intelligence (due to processes like evolution and technological progress) appears highly likely. Whether this leads to a so-called technological singularity or just continues in an exponential-growth fashion remains the subject of debate amongst extropians. In general, they tend to have an optimistic view of the future, expecting considerable advances in computational power, life expectancy, nanotechnology and the like; possibly culminating in the eventual perfection of humanity, including unlimited life spans, and resurrection (for those preserved by means of cryonics) by technological means.

An extropian shares the values and attitudes expressed by the Principles of Extropy. As a sub-set of transhumanism, Extropianism places strong emphasis on rational thinking, on open societies, and on practical optimism.

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