Virtual Dictionary
Biohack
A biohack is a single act of biohacking – the art of taking control of one's own body via real time biometric monitoring of as many of the internal processes as possible.
One biohack is a single feedback channel from a bodily process via a worn, or even implanted device, providing a long-term or permanent way to track that variable.
One possible example of a biohack would be a heart rate monitor sewn into clothing, providing feedback of the heartbeats as and when they happen, and maybe monitoring for changes in the rhythm. Another possible example would be a blood oxygen monitor permanently covering a fingertip or other thin body part, providing a continual data readout of the oxygen level in the blood. An almost endless number of different bihacks are possible, depending largely on the individual's willingness to wear or have implanted the biometric sensor systems doing the monitoring.
Biohacks typically store this data somewhere, usually on an external computing device, so the individual can monitor their behaviour over time.
The key difference between a biohack and medical monitoring is that medical monitoring of vital signs is performed whren the individual is unwell, or injured in some fashion, and keeping an eye on their vitals helps clue the medical professionals in to how to speed their recovery. A biohack on the other hand, is performed to enhance a healthy body to greater levels of health. Specifically improving it when there is no medical reason to do so.
Rather, a biohack, as in the whole process of biohacking, is working to inform the individual of what is going on inside an otherwise healthy body, in order to optimise that body's performance still further.
See Also: Biohacking, Biometric, Smart Prosthetic, Wearable Computing, Transhumanism, Grinder, Feedback Channel
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