Ignoring Ethics

This article was written by Rushworth M. Kidder who is the president of the Institute for Global Ethics. He argues that society is developing all new sorts of technology and disregarding their "moral and ethical consequences." He tells the story of when he went to visit the Chernobyl nuclear power plant. There was an explosion in April 1986 and Kidder learns its cause. On the night of the accident, two electrical engineers were experimenting with equipment they were not authorized to be using. In order to do their experiment they had to override six alarm systems. The first system shouted "Stop, go no further, terribly dangerous." The men went on anyway and faced awful consequences. Kidder states that these men were intelligent humans but lacked the "sense of a conscience, the understanding of ethics." He later on states that the ethics in our society have only gotten worth throughout time. The prime example from the 21st century is that The Human Genome Project will cause a huge employment issue. Employers are told specifically at what age their potential employees will be sick and no longer able to work for their company, or it will tell them that their health insurance is going to increase so they will be responsible for that payment. Kidder feels that employers should have no record of their employee's genomes because it is "essentially a question of ethics." He blames this whole situation primarily on the school systems who spend their time teaching about the technology itself but forget to include why these new inventions are unethical. It is even recorded that sixty-five percent of high school students admitted that they would cheat on an important exam in order to pass it. Also a Louis Harris poll for the Girl Scouts asked 5,000 American students who they hold the greatest amount of trust in. Expecting the answer to be in sciences or media, they were wrong. They said the only person they trust is him or her self. Kidder does have hope however. He states that as our country gains knowledge, values can improved. The more experience this world has with life itself, the better individuals' values and ethics should become. This is exactly what Kidder's goal is by being president of the Institute for Global Ethics. Their aim is to "track value shifts as we move into the new century." Hopefully with their hard work and cooperation of the citizens in America, the nation will continue to progress and make ethical decisions.

Kidder, Rushworth M. "Ethics for the Twenty-First Century." Opposing Viewpoints: American Beyond 2001. Ed. Oliver W. Markley and Walter R. McCuan. San Diego: Greenhaven Press, 1996. Opposing Viewpoints Resource Center. Gale. Deerfield High School. 7 Feb 2010. http://find.galegroup.com..

An Athletic Anarchy

The research the Human Genome Project has made is making it possible for athletes to "gene dope." This is the term for the enhancement of genes in order to increase one's athletic ability. Scientists are able to take the genes of animals and engineer them into humans' genes. Individuals have taken sides as to whether they believe this type of engineering should be illegal or not. The World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) is strongly against gene-doping while many biochemists think it could benefit the sports world. One example of gene doping is borrowing the twitch muscles of a rat in order to help a sprinter increase his or her speed. Any gene taken from an animal would make a human faster and stronger. Animals were genetically built different than humans so by taking these genes the author of this article believes athletes would be becoming "superhuman." Athletics would become a "freak-show," where it would only be possible to compete in professional sports if individuals have undergone gene doping. It would eliminate all sorts of training and practicing because the most nonathletic human in the world could get this procedure done and they suddenly have all the skills they need. It would take away the virtue of hard work and would teach children that it's possible to be successful without doing anything to earn it. "It would produce excellence without effort, challenging the spirit of the Olympics and the meaning of sports competition." This is a type of steroid however it is overlooked because it is not technically a drug that is injected into the body. There are some positive benefits to gene doping which would include quick recovery or a decrease in sports injuries. Individuals whose genes have been enhanced would not be susceptible to injury. This kind of genetic engineering would also help repair injured muscles quickly and with little effort. In March of 2004, gene doping was tested on mice to observe and determine these benefits or detriments. The mice were injected with a gene that promotes growth and the mice underwent an unbelievable transformation. The scientists recorded up to a fifty percent muscle growth after the gene doping. When they exercised, the mice's muscle strength increased by thirty-five percent. Although gene doping evidently results in positive affects today, it is unknown what the future will hold. Since this is the first generation of this kind of genetic engineering, who knows what the long-term effects will be. Right now athletes see improvement in their skills so their desire for gene doping is high. It would be a revolution in the sports world. John Hoberman from the University of Texas at Austin said, "inevitably it's going to turn [sports] into a kind of circus--freak show."

Gregory M. Lamb. "Genetic Enhancement of Athletes Might Harm Sports." Contemporary Issues Companion: Genetic Engineering. Ed. Sylvia Engdahl. Detroit: Greenhaven Press, 2006. Opposing Viewpoints Resource Center. Gale. Deerfield High School. 7 Feb. 2010. http://find.galegroup.com..

Designer Babies Maybe?

A few years ago on January 11th, in Oregon, the first genetically engineered primate was born. This experiment took place on a monkey which was named ANDi (to symbolize DNA backwards), in order to get one step closer to altering humans' genes. Above, the monkey with blue eyes and spikey hair looks no different then any other. However, his genetic makeup was made by "splicing a gene from a jellyfish into a rhesus monkey embryo, which was then fertilized and implanted into a surrogate mother." ANDi then carried the new gene due to this procedure. He is mankind's closest relative which means that this process will shortly be available to humans. This article was written a few years ago so I believe that some technology is capable of this procedure on humans today. Many individuals are excited about this and see numerous benefits from this. By altering genes they will be able to choose their children's' appearance, athletic ability, and even mental ability. It also increases disease resistance. Supporters claim that they will treat their children like they are human and born naturally. They say that if God is supposed to look after everyone why did he create humans with such awful medical diseases and disorders? On the contrary, non-supporters of genetic engineering have numerous arguments as well as to why this new technology is wrong and unethical. They say that by parents altering their unborn child's genes they are playing the role of God. They feel that God made everyone individual for a reason and it is not our duty to alter that. It takes away the meaning of a human being. They also argue that these babies will appear as products or consumer goods the way they were basically "ordered." Enhancing genes will not necessarily bring happiness. Many intelligent individuals are unhappy while there are individuals with Downs syndrome who live extremely happy lives even though they suffer from a disorder. Another valid point is that this kind of technology would only be affordable to the wealthy. The already present gap in society would increase because unfortunate families would be unable to get this genetic engineering done for their children. Jobs would only be available to the genetically engineered in the future because they would be the best candidates for any work. The article states how a great debate about this topic is necessary because as it becomes evident, there are many strong points on both sides.

Masci, D. (2001, May 18). Designer humans. CQ Researcher, 11, 425-440. 7 Feb. 2010. http://library.cqpress.com/cqresearcher/.

"Bloodchild" Journal Entry

"Bloodchild" by Octavia E. Butler is one of the most outrageous stories I have ever read. It is a science fiction story that takes place in an outside universe. There are two species of creatures that lived there: Tarans and Tlics. The Tarans are humans while the Tlics are the insect, alien-like creatures that dominate the society. The Tlics way of reproducing is by implanting their eggs into a male Taran. The Tlics can not reproduce their own children because their bodies will poison the offspring. They have discovered a new way of having children, (a new "technology" per say) and have adopted it into their society. It became a social norm for a Tlic to adopt a Taran family and build strong relationships with them so one day a male can carry her eggs. This reminded me of the new phenomenon called "designer babies" where doctors are almost able manipulate an unborn child's genes due to the research the Human Genome Project has made. They will use this new technology instead of reproducing naturally. The Tlics way of reproducing symbolizes this idea of altering nature for ones benefit. It is not natural to manipulate the way reproduction was intended to be and in both real life and in "Bloodchild" this is done. The reproduction process in the short story "Bloodchild" is terrorizing and painful. In order to get the eggs out the Tlic must cut open the Taran's body through a bloody procedure. Gan, the main Taran character, witnesses the another Taran having "birth" and is forever scarred by this event. He was previously unaware that the process was so disgusting because his entire life he was taught that bearing Tlics' children was the beautiful way of life. Similarly, "designer babies" seem like a fantastic invention. To be able to pick your child's genes and determine what they will look like so they can live successful, healthy, and easy lives seems like a miracle to some people. However, analyzing the idea it becomes obvious that this phenomenon is completely unethical. To change the way a child looks in order to make it look better is a superficial and selfish act. This selfishness that many are discovering is parallel to the horror and pain Gan encounters when he finds out more about the reproduction process in his world. Although science can be a beautiful thing, it is important to keep in mind that humans were put here for a reason. We need to make sure that any new technology benefits the common good and not just individuals looking for an easy way out.

Butler, Octavia E. "Bloodchild." The Years Best Science Fiction. Ed. Gardner Dozois. New York, 1985. 64-81. Print.

Primary Document: Personal Medicine

This article was found in the Chicago Tribune just a couple months ago. It is written about one of the affects that the Human Genome Project of 2003 currently has on society. The main goal of the Human Genome Project was to improve health care in the United States and around the world through its research. Six years later, scientists and doctors are teaming up to create personal medicine for patients based on their genetic make up. This concept would have been impossible if the scientists did not discover the "genetic instruction book for life" just a few short years ago. This incredible scientific advancement is now being used to help save patients lives. Many times sick patients will be given medicine that they experience horrible side effects from. This is because all people are built differently and not one medicine works for everyone's needs. Doctors are calling this new phenomenon "personalized medicine" where "the goal is to deliver the right drug at the right time in the right dose to the right person." This way patients will be suffering less and healing at a faster rate. One example they spoke of in the article was about treatment they gave a woman who had breast cancer. Instead of giving her the standard therapy, they were able to personalize the therapy to better fit her genetic makeup. The Food and Drug Administration estimated about 319,741 serious illnesses and 49,958 deaths within the last year related to reactions to certain drugs. By using this type of personalized medicine the death rates in this area will significantly decrease. Personalized medicine is not entirely finalized, for there is much more research that needs to be done. However, America's advancement of technology has seen a great increase since 2003 when the first genome was decoded. It cost $300 million to do all the research and now the current cost is about $20,000. Technology is advancing which means we are as well. I believe that this article overall was somewhat bias because it showed only the positive affects the Human Genome Project is having on the health care field. It would be interesting to read about the ethics behind this kind of research and why some individuals are not in agreement with it. At the same time, I found this article intriguing to read. This idea of personalized medicine could really go in a long way in the future. Below is a video that shows why there is a great need for personalized medicine. Often times doctors will use the trial-and-error method to prescribe patients medicine. This is not how it should be especially with all the advancements the science field has made so far.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lbb8OHQNeXo

Boyd, Robert S. "Genome clues point to personal medicine; Care tailored to genetic makeup advances steadily."Chicago Tribune. Chicago, Ill.: Nov 25. 2009. pg. 32.

Obama's State of the Union Address

Although, Barack Obama's State of the Union Address was nearly a week ago, it is still heavily talked about. Obama has great hopes for the future of our nation, although many of his goals seem unattainable. Having watched the speech, the main thing I noticed was Obama's speaking ability. I have watched many political representatives speak before but never have a seen someone which such charisma, energy and power in his voice. Even when there were times I could not comprehend what he saying, I still was listening. Another aspect that I found both interesting and upsetting was the way the audience reacted to what he had to say. The Democrats obviously were in support of all of his ideas, but on the other hand the Republicans seemed resistant to applaud to almost anything he said. This opposition is evident in politics outside of just this speech. Obama has great ideas that will improve our country if they are able to be put in act. However, the Republicans fail to agree with any of Obama's plans and since they do have a say in what becomes law, little is getting accomplished. Currently, Obama's health care plan is not being passed in Congress because of this Republican resistance. It truly bothers me that this is occurring. Some can argue that these citizens of the United States are more in favor of supporting their political party than their own country. The goal of the decisions that are made is to try to benefit everyone in the United States despite a political affiliation's desires. Also, since my topic is Science and Technology I was interested in what Obama had to say regarding that field. He talked a lot about using cleaner energy that will lead the global economy.  He is offering to give raises to Americans that work for cleaner environments. Evidently, there will be much scientific research that goes into discovering what energy sources to use and so on. I feel that since Obama dedicated some time to talk about this issue in his speech it must truly be something that we fix. I was in agreement with basically all of Obama's ideas, just all that is needed now is support.

Where I'm At Now

After reading several articles regarding the topic science and technology as a whole, I have a pretty good idea of the advancements America has made in this field throughout history. Personally, I find the recent topics most interesting to read about. Specifically, the Cold War and all the science behind it caught my attention. The United States and Russia fought in an arms race and space race using all the scientific power they could attain to come out ahead. Another subtopic I find extremely interesting is the Human Genome Project. Researchers worked to decode an entire human genetic code which can be very beneficial in the future. For example, it can determine what genes produce cancer and warn individuals if they are susceptible to that gene. Although this seems only beneficial to the public, the ethics behind it are being questioned. Companies are learning that their employees have a high probability of getting cancer and therefore will not hire them because their health insurance would be expensive. Is this a type of discrimination? There have been other advances in the science field that allow parents to see if their baby will have the gene for a certain type of cancer and get it removed if they wish. Is this really ethical? The argument comes about that science and God should not be interfering with one another. Some believe that God made everybody a certain way for a reason and science should not be altering that authenticity. These kinds of issues are what I hope to be able to study more about for this project. Not only  am I very interested in science and technology itself, but its important to study the affects that it has on all individuals. The scientists are the ones that produce the new piece of technology but it is the everyday people that use it and either benefit or suffer from it. Having some previous knowledge about the Human Genome Project from Biology class last year, I hope to research this topic even further. The Human Genome Project is a prime example of how science and technology greatly affects the lives of all the citizens in this nation.