"Transhumanism" means becoming more human, both technically and philosophically. Transhumans as cyberpunks try to achieve these by means of high technology.

Transhumans usually want to become posthumans. Posthumans will be persons of unprecedented physical, intellectual, and psychological ability, self-programming and self-defining, potentially immortal, unlimited individuals. Posthumans have overcome the biological, neurological, and psychological constraints evolved into humans. Extropians believe that the best strategy for attaining posthumanity to be a combination of technology and determination, rather than looking for it through psychic contacts, or extraterrestrial or divine gift.

Posthumans may be partly or mostly biological in form, but will likely be partly or wholly postbiological - our personalities having been transferred "into" more durable, modifiable, and faster, and more powerful bodies and thinking hardware. This is called cyborgization. Some of the technologies that we currently expect to play a role in allowing us to become posthuman include genetic engineering, neural-computer integration, molecular nanotechnology, and cognitive science.

One important aspect of transhumanism, and the way to gain posthumanity, is mutation:

"How human beings change themselves through technology, ideology, identity, sex, drugs, media and - of course - genital piercing. From cyborgization to memetics - from the spread of diseases to medical technology - from artificial life to extropian concerns like nanotechnology, biotechnology, longevity, intelligence drugs, and space exploration - from transgenderism to neo-dadaism, MUTATE!"
-- R.U.Sirius

Transhumans belive, that we humans can, and should continue to develop ourselves in all possible directions. The bodies and minds evolution has given us are wonderful, but far from perfect. They can be improved in many ways, and this can be done in a rational manner using science and technology. In the same way many other parts of the "Human Condition" may be changed through new methods and visions. In the long run, we will no longer be human anymore, but posthuman beings.

Extropians can be considered as a subgenre of transhumans.

Links and References

Transhumanist Resources

All possible information about transhumanism.
By Anders Sandberg <nv91-asa@nada.kth.se>

The Architecture of Cyberception

"Not only are we changing radically, body and mind, but we are becoming actively involved in our own transformation."
By Roy Ascott.

Legacy Systems and Functional Cyborgization of Humans

About humans becoming more and more like cyborgs.
By Alexander Chislenko.

Will Robots Inherit the Earth?

We are becoming robots and computers.
By Marvin Minsky from M.I.T. AI Lab.

How to Mutate & Take Over the World

About a hack/prank book about cypherpunk movement and transhumanism. Book looks at tech ranging from robotics and nanotechnology to smart drugs and plastic surgery.

Cybernautics

A biocraft repair manual. By Orfeo Jiva.