Cyberpunk Now?

Is it really that hard to imagine that modern cities are facing the prospect of becoming cyberpunk metropolises? For the readers who don’t know what I mean by “cyberpunk”, Lawrence Person defines “cyberpunk” by describing the genre of cyberpunk fiction. Person said, “Classic cyberpunk characters were marginalized, alienated loners who lived on the edge of society in generally dystopic futures where daily life was impacted by rapid technological change, an ubiquitous datasphere of computerized information, and invasive modification of the human body.”
So, do modern day cities meet the description of a cyberpunk city? Let’s take a look at a modern city like New York.

Are there marginalized, alienated loners living on the fringe of New York society?

Check, a definite check.

Can New York be described as dystopic?

Check

Is New York subject to rapid technological change?

Check

Does New York possess a large, ubiquitous datasphere of computerized information?

Check

Does invasive modification of the human occur in New York?

Not quite

Four out of five isn’t bad. To be clear, body modification does occur in New York, but it tends to be in the area of artistic expression rather than in biological enhancement.

Okay, so New York doesn’t quite fit the bill. But, keep in mind that New York isn’t the most modern of the modern cities. What about Tokyo or other modern Japanese cities. As William Gibson, the disputed father of cyberpunk said, “Modern Japan simply was Cyberpunk”. It isn’t clear when he said this, but I imagine it was a few years ago. So, it is fairly safe to say that Modern Japan has progressed into an even more cyberpunk metropolis.

But what about that invasive body modification criterion? Modern Japan still doesn’t quite meet that criterion (unless we’re talking about artistic expression). Not to worry, though. Prosthetic arms and legs have been around for quite a long time. And recent improvements in prosthetic limbs have lifted them to the level of cyberpunk fiction. My guess is that, as the science advances and prosthetic limbs begin to offer physical enhancements, the widespread use of these limbs will begin. Perhaps, one day, people will sever their limbs in order to be fitted with a prosthetic implement. That’s probably a bit extreme. The likelier case is that people will use exoskeletons to boost their physical capacities. Prosthetic limbs aren’t the only technology to recently undergo rapid progress. Visual prosthesis, or bionic eyes, have made leaps and bounds in development and implementation.

All of this prosthesis technology doesn’t quite equate to physical augmentation. However, the fact that this technology has been developed is a major stepping stone to physical augmentation. Simply said, improvement in mechanical prosthetics will lead to the improvement in mechanical augmentation which, in turn, will lead to the widespread use of mechanical augmentation. Provided the technology is affordable.

New York, and all other modern cities, may still have their cyberpunk day.