Science and Science Fiction: The Convergence
- Susan Kuchinskas
- Jul 26, 2019
- 2 min read
Scientific discovery is progressing so rapidly that I feel like I’m living in a science fiction novel.
One example: the microbiome. This is the community of bacteria, fungi and viruses living in our guts. While everyone's is a bit different, there are plenty of commonalities—some must-have bacteria like bifidobacterium; highly beneficial but not ubiquitous ones like lactobacillus ruteri; and some bugs like e. coli that, if they proliferate, can cause problems.
The plot of my upcoming science fiction/detective novel, Singularity Syndrome, turns on a madman's plan to transform humanity into complacent slaves of an artificial intelligence by changing the microbiome.
New discoveries about how our gut microbes influence not only physical health but also mental health lead me to believe this is entirely possible.
Check out these discoveries:
Boosting the amounts of one gut bacterium reduced symptoms of ALS in mice, while two others seem to be implicated in more severe symptoms.
The microbiome has been linked to depression, schizophrenia, anxiety, bipolar disorder and autism.
Some microbes in the gut produce a compound related to dopamine, the "feel-good" brain chemical, and are connected to better quality of life.
Transferring the microbiome colony from one mouse to another caused the recipient mouse to behave more like the donor.
In fact, science has known for many years that the gut also produces most of the same chemicals as the brain, leading Michael D. Gershon, M.D., to call it "The Second Brain."
The assumption is that this second brain is inferior to our "real brain," that organ in our head that allows us to think and reason. But what if that brain in the gut isn't based in our intestines at all?
What if that brain in our gut is the result of trillions of microorganisms that have banded together and become, if not exactly sentient, at least efficient at ruling the human body to produce conditions most favorable to their own existence?
What if "people" are really zombies, each controlled by a unique civilization of microbes? What if our "thoughts" are just the attempts of our own organisms to make sense of the commands of our microbiomes?
Seriously.
Could someone take over the world by controlling our microbiomes? Stay tuned for Singularity Syndrome to find out.
PHOTO courtesy of www.microbiologybytes.com