Tags: biotech
News (208)
Apr 13, 2012
Parents can have a duty to use IVF, say bioethicists (BioEdge)
Another controversial utilitarian proposal has popped up in the April issue of the American Journal of Bioethics. Two bioethicists contend that some parents are morally obligated to use pre-implantation genetic diagnosis to create a healthy baby.
Apr 11, 2012
Advancing Health and Robotics (US News)
Center researchers are studying neural systems and their relationship to motor commands, a connection that potentially could benefit the aging, those suffering from neurological disorders, or who have lost limbs in battle or other trauma, or from diseases. . . They also are studying important related emotional, cultural, ethical and psychological issues associated with limb loss, and enlisting the input of experts, for example, Judy Illes, a neurology professor at the University of British Columbia, who specializes in neuroethics.
Apr 03, 2012
This Is Your Brain on the Department of Defense (Mother Jones)
Science and the military have historically made creepy bedfellows, with military curiosity about neuroscience leading the pack. Yet it’s no secret that since the early 1950s, the US military has had a vested interest in harnessing cutting-edge developments in neuroscience to get a leg up on national defense (a la well-publicized failures like Project MK-ULTRA).
Mar 15, 2012
111 Organizations Call for Synthetic Biology Moratorium (Science Insider)
Synthetic biology needs more oversight, and the government needs to put in place regulations specific for this field. That is the bottom line for 111 environmental, watchdog, and other organizations that released a report today with specific recommendations for managing new biological techniques for building and remaking organisms for research and commercial uses ranging from medicines to biofuels.
Mar 13, 2012
How Engineering the Human Body Could Combat Climate Change (The Atlantic)
The threat of global climate change has prompted us to redesign many of our technologies to be more energy-efficient. From lightweight hybrid cars to long-lasting LED’s, engineers have made well-known products smaller and less wasteful. But tinkering with our tools will only get us so far, because however smart our technologies become, the human body has its own ecological footprint, and there are more of them than ever before. So, some scholars are asking, what if we could engineer human beings to be more energy efficient? A new paper to be published in Ethics, Policy & Environment proposes a series of biomedical modifications that could help humans, themselves, consume less.
Mar 01, 2012
Mapping out a new era in brain research (CNN)
The Human Connectome Project is giving neuroscientists a new perspective on the connections in the brain and how they communicate with each other. #bioethics #neuroethics #neuroscience
Jun 23, 2011
Should Synthetic Biology Be Policed? (Forbes)
Lack of oversight for synthetic biology raises concerns. #bioethics
May 23, 2011
Biopunks Tinker With The Building Blocks Of Life (NPR)
Amateur scientists are "tinkering" with the building blocks of life....but to what end? #bioethics
Mar 17, 2011
Nimbus Thinks It Can Cure Obesity With Cloud Computing; Next Up, an Exercise Pill (Fast Company)
High-tech drug discovery may be the silver bullet for some cancers and the obesity epidemic. #bioethics
Dec 08, 2010
Food: A taste of things to come? (Nature News)
Forget from farm to plate. We are now going from cell culture to kitchen. Yum! #bioethics #biotech