Category: Student Reports

I have now reached the end of my course on Human Enhancements and we have discussed many ethical positions concerning the ways that the biomedical sciences will provide people with many choices for biological enhancement. We have asked about whether or not people should be allowed to enhance themselves, or whether or not parents should […]

In reading Andy Clark’s “Natural-Born Cyborgs” and Donna Haraway’s “The Cyborg Manifesto,” I have come to realize a broader conception of what it means to be a cyborg and the implications of the cyborg concept for society at large. When imagining a cyborg, I construct a model that is part human and part machine. This […]

Who wants to live forever? Well, maybe not forever, but for a really, really long time? If one thinks about aging as a medical problem, then the problems that come along with aging seem reasonable to treat under a medical regimen. Medical symptoms that often accompany aging include heart problems, senility, and loss of muscle […]

The goal of human enhancement is immortality. Maxwell Mehlman noted in his keynote address on the first night of the Human Enhancement Symposium that immortality represents the Holy Grail of Transhumanism and human enhancement. This goal aims to extend human life expectancy indefinitely. Carl Sagan used to argue that we could probably lengthen the life-span […]

Ed.’s note: This post refers to the UT Dallas School of Arts & Humanities Colloquium at which Pamela Gossin presented. Pamela Gossin’s presentation on what she has been pursuing began to pique my interest and raise some concerns for me regarding interdisciplinary studies and the importance of dissolving the lines between specific areas of study. […]

Prosthetics are as old as human vanity.  Ancient and medieval prosthetics were, in general, provisional fixes for aesthetic problems, a device for recreating the normalcy of an unwounded body.  Few were functional, and almost none could restore the previous limb’s ability or level of performance.  The earliest makeshift prosthetics can easily be designated as treatments, […]

The first technology I want to discuss is called SixthSense. It is being developed by MIT’s media lab, and focuses on augmented reality and interactive projection screens. The two videos posted below describe the technology in detail, along with its possibilities. The second technology I want to discuss, keeping SixthSense in mind, is microchip contact […]

An athlete’s natural capabilities is usually what we would say is being measured in sports.  When teams play one another, it is the strength and ability of an individual as well as the stamina and effort of a group that allows for victory.  And MVP awards are given to individuals who perform beyond outstanding.  So […]

At the 2008 Beijing Olympics, Nike aired the previous commercial about Oscar Pistorius. It raises two key factors in the debate which surrounded his eligibility to compete against able-bodied runners. Should we allow extraordinary individuals like Pistorius to compete, and is he in fact running? The implication of the commercial is that he should compete […]

The movie Gattaca (1997) depicts a future society where genetic engineering is used to create designer babies. These children are endowed with every genetic advantage possible from the elimination of inherited diseases to an extra finger on each hand in order to reach otherwise unattainable piano performances. Parents bestow on children the best possible genetic […]