Biotechnology and the Beginning of Human Life: An Ethical Analysis

Biotechnological advances have provided scientists with knowledge and powers to pierce into nature in order to reengineer it. The beginnings and endings of human life are almost completely under our control. Today it is possible to choose when, how, what kind of child to (re)produce and to end one's life, to purge debilitating and incurable diseases, and in the nearest future it may be possible to wire our bodies with computer chips, and to prolong life far beyond its natural bounds. However, most of these spectacular innovations require the use and destruction of nascent human beings whose dignity and moral worth should not be clouded by the promises of scientific progress. In this promising, but ominous atmosphere, is it ethically acceptable to alter human beings with the use of biotechnology? How can we ensure that science progresses without debasing some category of human beings? These are some of the questions this book attempts to provide answers to. At a time when advances in biotechnology are trascending cultures, an interdisciplinary and intercultural approach may be a more productive approach in resolving ethical issues provoked by new developments in medicine.