The Moral Dilemmas of Being Smart

 

Political cartoon on designer babies.
http://www1.odn.ne.jp/~cam39380/images/ep317.gif



Scientists are really smart, don’t we know that already? Yes, we do but as science progresses, we start to face new moral dilemmas in the name of smart scientists. Among many discoveries in the past few decades, “designer babies” is one of them. There are many concerns posed about designer babies having to do with what we can do with this progressing scientific knowledge but seemingly digressing human morals.

Designer baby is the term used to describe a baby whose genes have been chosen. That’s right; you can get your genetically modified albino zucchini and then get your genetically modified baby! Designer babies sound like something unethical and completely bizarre but they are a real issue that needs to be discussed. There is a slippery slope between the creation of this for the good of medicine vs. purely for vanity. We have to focus on the ethical challenges we face even if this slippery slope is avoided and designer babies are used only for medical reason because many issues will still prevail.



Designer babies genes are being chosen so the baby has a specific gentic makeup, they are literally building a baby!
http://www.scientificamerican.com/media/inline/regulate-designer-babies_1.jpg 



 The scientific process of creating a “designer baby” is called Pre-Implantation Genetic diagnosis (PGD) and it is used to determine the sex and the genes of the child. The egg is taken out of the mother and is fertilized with specific sperm, then the embryo is scanned for genetic diseases and only the embryo’s that are clear of any danger signs are implanted the womb. This is the only legal technique PGD right now but more are being studied. Some say this screening for diseased embryos is a great step forward in medicine, and some are completely opposed, expressing the idea that we are playing “God”. I have thought way too much about it and I am still split, sorry I know that’s boring, but honestly it seems better for a child to be born fully healthy and happy but who am I to say that a certain life isn’t worth living?

 

PGD is a very complicated procedure that is truly an amazing step in science.
http://a.abcnews.com/images/WNT/embryos_babies_090303_mn.jpg



Another pressing ethical subject is where the line must be drawn for designer babies being made specifically to save the life of another person.  Adam Nash was born in 2000, he was perfect. He was also specifically created through PGD with his sister’s exact blood type so that he could save her life. Molly suffered from a rare blood disease that would have killed. With a successful bone-marrow transplant that involved Adam’s tissue though, she is now living a healthy life. My problem is the moral choice of scientifically creating a child specifically just to use their body. Don’t get me wrong, if I had the choice to save my sister’s life I wouldn’t think twice, but that is my decision. An embryo doesn’t have that decision. What if these children don’t only donate once though, what if they have to do it again and again? The physical and emotional stress would be crippling but what if you are trying to save your child’s life, your brother’s, your cousin’s?  

If you could save your siblings life, wouldn't you?
http://www.babyzone.com/upload/cms/topics/20060090025001300600357120.jpg



Science has brought us this much closer to saving lives which is what we want… right? The moral dilemmas faced are troubling and who knows where these “designer babies” can lead us? As it stands though, this will continue to be a developing and very controversial topic that is oh-so-worth discussing!

I commented on http://caitlincosgrovebioblog.blogspot.com/2010/11/designer-babies.html#comments and

 http://melissasbioblog.blogspot.com/2010/11/designer-babies-are-we-taking-science.html#comments

Works Cited

"BBC News | HEALTH | 'Designer Baby' Ethics Fear." BBC News - Home. Web. 17 Nov. 2010. <http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/955644.stm>.

By. "Designer Baby - TIME." Breaking News, Analysis, Politics, Blogs, News Photos, Video, Tech Reviews - TIME.com. Web. 17 Nov. 2010. <http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,998238,00.html>.

By, Park/New York, and Thompson/Washington. "Designer Babies - TIME." Breaking News, Analysis, Politics, Blogs, News Photos, Video, Tech Reviews - TIME.com. Web. 17 Nov. 2010. <http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,989987,00.html>.

"Human Genetics Alert - The Threat of Human Genetic Engineering." Human Genetics Alert - Technologies Which May Contribute to Human Genetic Engineering and Eugenics. Web. 17 Nov. 2010. <http://www.hgalert.org/topics/hge/threat.htm>.

"What Is a Designer Baby?" Bionet - New Discoveries in Life Sciences - Explore the Science and Debate the Issues. Web. 17 Nov. 2010. <http://www.bionetonline.org/english/content/db_cont1.htm>.

World's Fastest Cats are Disappearing way too FAST...

Since I was a little kid I’ve been enthralled by Acinonyx Jubatus, with their amazing physique, speed, and appearance. People find them scary, a lot of people actually but I’ve always wanted one as a pet… I was a weird kid. Oh and by the way Acinonyx Jubatus are cheetahs (I just wanted to sound smart for a few minutes). Cheetahs are the fastest land animals in the world but they are also the fastest disappearing cat in Africa!

Cheetah cubs
http://www.cheetahkids.com/cheetahconservationfund.html

Cheetah running, showing its speed of up to 70 miles per hour!
http://naturescrusaders.wordpress.com/2009/04/08/running-cheetahs-need-high-pufas-so-do-you/running-cheetah/

 The three main issues that are causing the extinction of this species are loss of habitat, human conflict and the loss of genetic variation. Approximately in 1900, more than 100,000 cheetahs were living in the wild. In present day the species is extinct from 20 countries and only 10,000 to 12,500 cheetahs remain!

http://www.cheetahkids.com/cheetahconservationfund.html

       

The Cheetah Conservation Fund has been saving cheetahs for twenty years! They have many branches, including:

Ø      CCF Namibia

Ø      CCF United States

Ø      CCF Canada (Wohoo!)

The CCF has tons of awesome different programs, they do not only take immediate action, like creating cheetah conservatories but they do research so that they can discover long term solutions. The problem with a lot of organizations is that they set up conservations but they never deal with the root of the problem and the animals who are still living in the wild (which is how they should be!), are not protected at all. The CCF, on the other hand, they help cheetahs survive, not in a tiny, controlled habitat, but in their natural wildlife habitat. A specific program that does this is the Guard Dog Program.

Cheetah and guard dog, real picture taken in Namibia
www.cheetah.org/?nd=guarding_dog_program

An Anatolian Sheppard, the guard dogs used in the CCF program
http://www.cheetah.org/?nd=guarding_dog_program

Ø      The Guard Dog Program is used in Namibia because it has the largest population of wild cheetahs in the world.

Ø      Farmers in Namibia constantly are killing cheetahs because they see them as a threat to their livestock and being honest they are! But that’s where the program comes into play.

Ø      Anatolian Sheppard’s are natural guard dogs and the CCF is breeding these dogs and placing them in farms all over Namibia to scare away the cheetahs. I know it’s hard to believe that a dog could scare away a cheetah but cheetahs are kind of “scaredy-cats” (pun very intended).

Ø      These dogs keep the cheetahs away so the farmers don’t kill them, the livestock is protected from the hunting cheetahs and these dogs are very well taken care of. The CCF gives the family funds to take care of them, so don’t worry about the cute doggies. It’s a win-win-win situation!

Wild life activist with Cheetah in Namibia
http://azstarnet.com/lifestyles/recreation/article_0b59ad25-1e54-5d6d-bb27-7d69847047cc.html

 Cheetahs are magnificent animals that have been on this earth three to four million years and now they are disappearing fast! We need to band together and support organizations like the CCF, we need to show the world humans are not only capable of destroying our furry friends but protecting them too.

   Help me save the cheetahs!

Go to http://www.cheetah.org/?nd=donate_detail&donation_id=112 ! 

p.s. Blogs I commented on... 

http://caitlincosgrovebioblog.blogspot.com/2010/09/positive-

aspects.html#comments

 and 

http://itsalive-conn.blogspot.com/2010/09/references.html#comments

Works Cited

Cheetah Fastest Land Animal Endangered Big Cat. Web. 04 Oct. 2010. <http://www.cheetahspot.com/>.

"Cheetahs, Cheetah Pictures, Cheetah Facts - National Geographic." Animals, Animal Pictures, Wild Animal Facts - National Geographic. Web. 04 Oct. 2010. <http://animals.nationalgeographic.com/animals/mammals/cheetah/>.

"Introduction to the Cheetah." Cheetah Conservation Fund. Web. 04 Oct. 2010. <http://www.cheetah.org/?nd=intro_to_the_cheetah>.

"The Livestock Guarding Dog Program." Cheetah Conservation Fund. Web. 04 Oct. 2010. <http://www.cheetah.org/?nd=guarding_dog_program>.

"Why Are Cheetahs Endangered? | Ecological Problems." Ecological Problems. Web. 04 Oct. 2010. <http://ecological-problems.blogspot.com/2009/09/why-are-cheetahs-endangered.html>.