Honestly, I would be very curious to know if chemical castration (which is apparently not as nasty as it sounds — I think I read that it results in no permanent physical changes and is reversible by discontinuing administration of the drug) would have positive effects on rationality. I can see how it might; considering that (as Will put it) your thoughts are bent by what you wish to signal, cutting out the drive to constantly signal reproductive fitness could remove a significant source of thought-bendage.
Not that I'm volunteering to try it, but...
Tried it. Similar effect to satiating desire, but without the positive affect. May cause depression. My memory is dim; I may be unconsciously extrapolating from the opposite of doing the opposite, rather than remembering. Signalling is probably a habit, not to be so easily dropped.
See One year follow-up study of the association between chemical castration, sex hormones, beta-amyloid, memory and depression in men for a summary of effects in a study.
Leading singularity proponent Ray Kurzweil co-authored a book titled Fantastic Voyage: Live Long Enough to Live Forever. A singularity believer who thinks that if he makes it to the singularity he has an excelling chance of living forever, or at least for thousands of years, should be willing to sacrifice much for a slightly higher chance of living long enough to make it to the singularity. This is why I think singularity believers make up a vastly disproportionate percentage of members of cryonics organizations.
According to a new scientific article there is a medical procedure that might be able to greatly extend some peoples’ lives. Although we don’t have a huge amount of data one small study showed that several hundred people on average lived 14 years longer than those that didn’t get the procedure.
Singularity proponents should be extremely interested in the procedure. Indeed, a way of testing whether members of the SIAI such as Eliezer really and truly believe in the singularity is whether they at least seriously consider having the procedure.
The procedure is discussed at the end of this article.