Our generation has brought about significant changes in the way that we live, and it is now expected that whatever we do will enhance the lives of those that come after us. Seasteading is just another one of these opportunities for change which may lead to a better future. While we wait to see where and when the first floating city will arise, we continue to examine the possibilities for improvement. As with any new venture there are unpredictable changes that will occur, but the initial gains that these new cities will bring are:
- Personal Freedom – Pioneers in change, the first residents of any seasteading nation will be in charge of themselves. As the only unclaimed territory on our planet, the water provides
the chance for a clean start, and occupants will need to find ways of redeveloping government and collaboration to benefit the limited population. It is imperative that they learn from the mistakes that other nations have made before, and improve on all their strong points. - Chance to Increase Wealth – Whenever humans expand their colonisation, there is always the opportunity for many to gain a significant monetary advantage. The new seasteading nations will need goods and services, and ways in which they can continue to exist outside regular society. This close proximity to the ocean will also allow for further exploration into harvesting its strength for energy.
- An Alternative to Continued Destruction of Land Masses – Our disregard for the planet has led to a serious depletion of natural resources, resulting in the breaking down of the earth itself. Instead of destroying more land masses in an effort to accommodate our ever expanding population, creating one that will sustain itself while floating on the sea may help the earth to heal and, over time, rebuild necessary resources.
- Expanding our Horizons – Living on the sea will give us more of an understanding of the obstacles presented in occupying a different type of habitat. This may be the first step into furthering our knowledge enough in order to branch off into living in the unknown.
Even though seasteading is a relatively new phenomenon, the building of an independent nation in the middle of the ocean has been attempted before. In 1971, a wealthy real estate mogul, Michael Oliver, began setting up his dream of a self-sufficient territory on a small land mass situated in the Pacific Ocean, about 250 miles away from Tonga. Oliver’s idea was to eliminate taxes and economic intervention, and create a nation whose main source of income was tourism. The people who lived there were expected to support themselves by fishing, trading and agriculture. His dream was becoming a reality after he extended the land mass, to build The Republic of Minerva with its own declaration of independence and currency. Unfortunately, before the island became acknowledged worldwide, Tonga declared their ownership and the project had to be abandoned.
In the science based fiction ENDLESS FIRE FUTURE FURIES, the corporate state of SPEA establishes the seasteaded city-state of Venus in the Pacific Ocean Kiribati island chain. The seasteaded state is established to acquire intellectual freedom, escape onerous US immigration and religious laws and to achieve fiscal, energy and environmental self-sufficiency. Due to advances in engineering, communications and food production, a seasteaded city-state such as SPEA’s Venus is now possible.
Among the leaders in technological advancement and development, Dubai has one problem that it constantly has to battle, which is the desert heat. This means that they have had to come up with creative ways to keep their buildings cool. The O-14 is one that displays an ingenious way of doing this, even winning many architectural prizes for its unique and workable design. It has been built with a space that is 1m wide, between its façade and glass windows. The façade is made of an extremely fluid concrete and houses 1000 circular openings. Along with the space, this design cools the entire building down by allowing hot air to rise and cool air to enter.
Dubai is one of the most expensive places in the world to live, and the world’s second largest oil supplier. The country has still made it a priority to limit the ways in which it uses oil and is increasingly relying on cleaner energy sources, such as solar panels. There is a long term plan in place for them to become the cleanest city in the world by 2050. Dubai’s aim is to preserve the environment for future generations, and the country intends to do this using a combination of cleaner energy sources and 3D printing.
The core mission of the United States Navy is to meet America’s global security commitments at sea. In order to do this they are continuously carrying out tests and training, in the major water bodies surrounding the country. These include using sonar technology and carefully monitored underwater explosions. The effects of these tests on marine life are still not completely understood. In order to ensure that the animals are being protected as well as possible the US Navy monitors and reports conditions that might affect them, following guidelines which are outlined under the Endangered Species and the Marine Mammal Protection Acts.
Marine Mammal Ecology and Population Dynamics.
‘Gene therapy’ is currently as far as human genetic engineering has extended, meaning that the process is applied to non-reproductive cells. Doing this has facilitated the ability to find cures for certain diseases. As a result, it has become a revered application in the medical field.
China isn’t the only country experimenting with human genetic engineering, and in the western world there is a lot of development in the field as well. In the United States, James Grifo has found a way to transfer cell nuclei from eggs of older women to younger ones with the aim of overcoming infertility. The infants that will be born, from these eggs, will genetically have three parents.
R. E. KEARNEY 