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How humans can reinvent themselves to live on other worlds

Phys Org
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A new sci-fi movie, " Mickey 17," is about an expendable space traveler dying to save mankind.

Christopher Mason , a Cornell University biomedical researcher, is intrigued by the movie's premise.

He argues that it's up to us humans to ensure the long-term future of life in the universe by taking the tools of evolution into our own hands.

"You could imagine a case where you can ethically and responsibly and safely modify someone to get them into space," Mason says.

And if space travelers run into unexpected challenges on another world, they wouldn't have to handle it on their own.

In that case, the alien microbe's genetic code could be sequenced on site, using a next-generation version of equipment already tested on the International Space Station .