Wait, what?
Yep, that’s the takeaway from a recent Bloomberg article about humans with (very, very) rare genetic mutations:
These Superhumans Are Real and Their DNA Could Be Worth Billions
Perhaps unsurprisingly, the focus of the article is on drug companies exploiting such mutations to develop new blockbuster products, but let’s just take a second to look at the bottom line:
Rare mutations > affect a tiny percent of the human population = superpowers.
/enough said
Yes, it’s Unbreakable all over again, only this time for real. If there’s a way to convert such mutations into useful (rather than simply profitable) innovations, great. Without (hopefully) the evil mastermind willing to sacrifice innocent lives in the search for outliers.
Are there challenges to life as a “superhero”? Of course, the most obvious being the dramatic downsides for those with dangerous mutations like insensitivity to pain, but I have to say: I find this hopeful.
Why? Because it’s a reminder that there is no one “normal” and that the continuum of human evolution isn’t done with us yet, not by a long shot.
That the range of human experience is deep and varied, and that there is room in our world for everyone.
And that the impossible can, under extraordinary circumstances, become possible.
J.R. Johnson 