“It's a real public service to have debates that bring top-tier participants together and add the sizzle of prize fight competition to a discussion of issues of first-order importance.”
- The Atlantic
Stay in touch | E-News SignupProhibit Genetically Engineered Babies
- Volume 70, Presented On: February 13, 2013
- Visit Full Debate Page
From the Panel
For: Sheldon Krimsky
- Cloning and Human Genetic Manipulation
Council for Responsible GeneticsBackground materials on genetic manipulation from the Council for Responsible Genetics. Sheldon Krimsky is chair of the board of directors. - Understanding Genetics With Sheldon Krimsky
Sheldon Krimsky, The Tech MuseumKrimsky discusses the necessity of a Genetic Bill of Rights, a basic set of principles essential for creating a framework for understanding the ethical, legal, and social and environmental implications of biotechnology. - Genetic Explanations: Sense and Nonsense
Sheldon Krimsky and Jeremy Gruber, Harvard University Press, 2013In this book, Krimsky and Gruber look at the role of genes within a broad developmental context. For: Lord Robert Winston
- My Bright Idea: Robert Winston
Robert Winston interview with Robin McKie, Observer, February 27, 2010Winston tells us why it’s important to check out the dark side of inventions. - IVF Professor Warns Against Genetic Engineering
Robert Winston interview with Ali Moore, Australian Broadcasting Corporation, December 7, 2007Winston warns against the potential dangers of genetic engineering and the risks of taking technology too far. - Ethics Are Not Written in Stone
Robert Winston interview with Elissa Jobson, GlobalWinston talks to Global about a wide range of issues relating to medical ethics from the sale of organs to the use of embryonic stem cells to the value of patents and the compatibility of religion and science. - Genetic Screening of Unborn Babies 'May Be Inaccurate'
Nick Collins, Telegraph, June 7, 2012New tests for genetic screening of unborn babies will not be 100 per cent accurate and may scare parents into believing their children will be born with a disability when they are healthy, Lord Robert Winston warns. - GM Catastrophe Warning
Rin Simpson, Wales Online, May 31, 2007Genetic modification could be the greatest threat humanity faces, according to renowned fertility expert Robert Winston.
Against: Nita Farahany
- Dr. Nita Farahany—Law, Behavioral Genetics & Neuroscience
Uploaded July 17, 2010Farahany discusses the legal, philosophical and social issues arising from developments in the biosciences, particularly related to behavioral genetics and neuroscience. - Privacy and Progress in Whole Genome Sequencing
Presidential Commission for the Study of Bioethical Issues, October 2012A report from the PCSBI assessing how to reconcile expected societal benefit from advances in whole genome sequencing with privacy risks that fall to the individuals who share their genomic data. Farahany was a member of the Commission. - Discussion: Members of the Presidential Commission for the Study of Bioethical Issues
Nita Farahany, November 27, 2011Farahany discusses the work of the PCSBI. At 15 minutes in she covers the risks and benefits of synthetic biology. Against: Lee Silver
- Lee Silver
Lee Silver, Big ThinkSilver discusses biotech issues on Big Think. - On Human Cloning
Lee Silver interview with Sarah Holt, 18 Ways to Make a Baby, NOVAIn this interview, Silver argues why we should not only not fear human cloning but should embrace it for the many benefits it will bring. - The Dangers of Self-Improvement
Tim Radford, Guardian, April 16, 1998Reviewers savaged Remaking Eden, Lee Silver's warning of where genetic engineering may be leading, but the Princeton professor is unrepentant, and a number of scientific heavyweights are beginning to think along the same lines. - The Pursuit of Perfection: A Conversation on the Ethics of Genetic Engineering
Lee Silver, Michael Sandel and E.J. Dionne, Pew Forum on Religion and Public Life, March 31, 2004A Pew Forum discussion on the topic of genetic engineering and enhancement. - FrontlineAn interview on the topic of genetic engineering.
ARTICLES FOR & AGAINST
FOR
- Genetically Modified Humans? No Thanks
Richard Hayes, Washington Post, April 15, 2008New human genetic technologies have real potential to help prevent or cure many terrible diseases, but these same technologies also have the potential for real harm. - The Case Against Perfection
Michael Sandel, Atlantic, April 2004Gene therapy on somatic (that is, nonreproductive) cells, such as muscle cells and brain cells, repairs or replaces defective genes. The moral quandary arises when people use such therapy not to cure a disease but to reach beyond health, to enhance their physical or cognitive capacities, to lift themselves above the norm. - Prenatal Testing: A Double-Edged Sword Leading to Abortion
Steven Ertelt, LifeNews.com, July 27, 2012While prenatal testing offers the opportunity to correct some abnormalities or to prepare to adjust to others, it is unfortunately often utilized to screen for diseases and abort unborn children who are deemed defective. - Is Ethical Human Genetic Enhancement Possible?
Alex Knapp, Forbes, September 15, 2011When we move beyond dealing with just one gene, and into enhancing more complex systems, we enter a different world of ethical and technical issues. - Designer Genes
Bill McKibben, Orion, May/June 2003Lured by the prospect of making better babies, we stand on the threshold of changing forever what it means to be human. - Warning: Genetically Modified Humans
Zaria Gorvett, Scientific American Blogs, October 4, 2012Screening foetal genomes to eliminate genetic ‘defects’ may lead to incremental changes in the human genetic reservoir, a permanent shift in our characteristics and eventually, self-domestication.
AGAINST
- Building Baby From the Genes Up
Ronald Green, Washington Post, April 13, 2008Knowing more about our genes may actually increase our freedom by helping us understand the biological obstacles -- and opportunities -- we have to work with. - The Maverick: 'It’s Our Duty to Have Designer Babies'
Julian Savulescu, Readers Digest UKGenetic selection to determine how our children look, think and act isn’t recklessly playing God, argues Savulescu. It’s a gift to future generations - The Case for a Parental Duty to Use Preimplantation Genetic Diagnosis for Medical Benefit
Janet Malek and Judith Daar, American Journal of Bioethics, 2012This article explores the possibility that there is a parental duty to use preimplantation genetic diagnosis for the medical benefit of future children, finding support in some situations on both ethical and legal grounds. - Why Cognitive Enhancement Is in Your Future (and Your Past)
Ross Andersen, Atlantic, February 6, 2012Using technology to enhance our brains sounds terrifying, but using tools to make ourselves smarter may be part of humans' nature. - The Case for Enhancing People
Ronald Bailey, New Atlantis, April 2011We should all have the right to choose to use or not use new technologies to help us and our families flourish.
