Transhumanism and Spirituality Conference
1 October 2010
University of Utah
Salt Lake City, Utah

The 2010 Transhumanism & Spirituality conference will take place in Salt Lake City at the University of Utah on 1 October 2010. Keynote speakers for the conference include Natasha Vita-More, James Hughes and Terryl Givens. Vita-More is the founder of Transhumanist Arts, Sciences & Culture, and is on the board of directors for Humanity+. Dr. Hughes is the founder of the Institute for Ethics and Emerging Technology (IEET) and a former executive director for the World Transhumanist Association from 2004 to 2006. Dr. Givens is a professor of literature and religion at the University of Richmond, and a scholar of deification paradigms throughout Western civilizations.

The host school, the University of Utah, is pursuing an aggressive science and technology agenda through the state-funded Utah Science Technology and Research (USTAR) investment initiative. The University spun out 23 companies in the 2009 fiscal year, and 82 companies over the past four years—more than any other US school during that period except for the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

In addition to being a fast-rising technology hot spot, Salt Lake City is also a major hub in both the American and global spiritual landscape. Most well-known as the headquarters of the Latter-day Saint religious movement, Salt Lake City hosts a rich diversity of spiritual traditions. Settled by Mormon pioneers, the history and culture of Salt Lake City are inseparable from its spiritually-driven founding, making Salt Lake City an exceptionally appropriate host city for the 2010 Conference on Transhumanism & Spirituality.

With renowned keynote speakers and world-class facilities, the 2010 Conference on Transhumanism & Spirituality provides an international forum for presentation and discussion of key concepts shaping the transhumanist movement.

We call for scholarly papers on the intersection between transhumanism and spirituality. Topics may include, but are not limited to:
technological enhancement of ritual or meditation
affects of emerging technology on established religious traditions
theological and mythological analogs in transhumanist thought
historical figures or precedents exemplifying a spiritual transhumanism
relevance of religion and theism in posthuman futures
transhumanist ethics and esthetics

Proposals must be submitted no later than 11 July 2010. A proposal may be either a full paper or an extended abstract, submitted with the understanding that it will be suitable for a presentation time of 20-30 minutes. Please send proposals in a standard format to admin@transfigurism.org and include the author's full name and contact information, as well as the title of the proposal.

The conference committee will choose a limited number of proposals for presentation at the conference, based on the applicability of and compatibility between received proposals. Authors will be notified of acceptance no later than 1 August 2010.

For more information, visit the conference web site at transhumanism-spirituality.org.