Word of the Day: Polycule
A metaphorical word sneaks up on me.
In the context of polyamory, a polycule is a group of individuals connected by set of overlapping relationships – romantic, sexual, and sometimes also platonic – that connect all the members in the group in the same way that atomic bonds connect the atoms in a molecule.
What happens when the figures most associated in the public mind with pushing for reproductive technologies switch from the nice couple next door to Silicon Valley tech overlords?
Consider the recent attention to Elon Musk’s pronatalist ambitions, especially his desire for “smart people” to have more children, his reported extensive use of I.V.F. and surrogacy and his serving as a sperm donor to live up to his word. Even amid a discourse overwhelmingly committed to liberalization of reproductive technology, it is striking how willing commentators have been to recognize something here that is just … well, weird.
It could be a portent. The Information recently reported on how billionaires like Sam Altman, Peter Thiel and Brian Armstrong are “behind a boom in fertility tech start-ups developing sophisticated embryonic testing, sperm freezing — even artificial wombs.” The subtext is unmistakable: Just imagine the headlines if the first baby born from an artificial womb is not to a sympathetic middle-class couple unable to conceive after a hysterectomy but to a polycule of tech gurus with designs of populating a seasteading colony.
| Ari Schulman, A Vibe Shift is Coming for I.V.F.
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