The concept of a cyborg is often seen as this futuristic creature; part man, part machine. The organic meeting the inorganic. We associate this (what seems to be) mythical creature with this the post modern era in which we do not live in where flying cars, and robotics serve a more automated purpose in our life. But maybe we’ve weaved this definition of the cyborg so closely that we don’t realize that perhaps we’ve achieved this “post modern era” where cyborgs walk the earth.
Mythically speaking we can think about stories that involve these cyborgs that have super human powers from the inorganic part of them that allows them to do the impossible. That or they are a part of this post apocalyptic world where the cyborgs identify with their mechanical side and are part of an uprising of the machine vs man. But what is the definition of a cyborg?
Talking to my boyfriend, he talked about being a cyborg it’s half human half machine. The ratio and unit measurement of half is varied and doesn’t physically have to be half. Ratio is important, but it’s not set in stone. He points to that having a robotic finger wouldn’t be cybernetic, but having four fingers would be closer. He believed that the mechanical part of the cyborg must enhance the human beyond human capabilities. He didn’t consider that having a prosthetic arm or pace maker be qualifications to be classified as a cyborg because they don’t go beyond the functions of a human organ. For example, ten years ago the pace maker didn’t enhance or even equal the function of a regular heart because once they were put in, people didn’t live more than 5-10 years after it. It was a detriment to the human body.
Objects such as Night Vision Goggles or cell phones, in my opinion, wouldn’t be qualifications to be called a cyborg because they are not a physical part of the human body. Yes they enhance what humans can’t do on their own, but it would be considered an extension of the human body. They are not infused in the body being half machine and half human. It is all human with the capabilities of manipulating a separate object. Being a cyborg means the fusion of human and machine are intertwined together in which both cannot be separated, which we also discussed. The fact that these dualisms exist because they are intertwined and cannot exist separately without the other.
Ex: Can’t have a whole, if there aren’t any parts and can’t have a part if there is no whole.
In this case: Can’t have a cyborg with machine without the human and can’t have the human without the machine.
susancinderella 
Feb 22, 2015 @ 02:27:40
I think what makes this such a complex issue is the fact that it is almost entirely a matter of opinion. Some people would say that any dependence on a certain type of technology would fall under the category of being a cyborg, seeing as some people during our class discussion thought this to be true for cell phone users. This also goes for prosthetics and pace makers. Prior to reading your post, it never crossed my mind that some people may only consider something to be a cyborg if the machine portion enhanced the person beyond human capability. I guess that’s what keeps this conversation interesting!