September 9, 2015
(The Guardian) – So what do we actually know about longevity? Who will live and who will die at a given age? Is it all in the genes or do the life choices we make trump any genetic advantage? And … Read More
September 8, 2015
The Journal of Medicine & Philosophy (vol. 40, no. 5, 2015) is available online by subscription only. Articles include: “Medicine, Morality, and Mortality: The Challenges of Moral Diversity” by Mark J. Cherry “Does Amphetamine Enhance Your Health? On the Distinction between … Read More
September 1, 2015
(Medical Xpress) – It is clear that zero-tolerance towards drugs isn’t working. It is not stopping people from cheating. It is not providing assurances to the public that good performances are clean. Even the data we have now is likely … Read More
August 24, 2015
(The Guardian) – Neil Harbisson, the world’s first certified cyborg, speaks to the media in Brisbane. Harbisson, who is completely colour blind, has an antenna with a camera at its end permanently implanted in his head that allows him to … Read More
August 21, 2015
(The Economist) – That is a Rubicon some will not want to cross. Many scientists, including one of CRISPR’s inventors, want a moratorium on editing “germ line” cells—those that give rise to subsequent generations. America’s National Academy of Sciences plans … Read More
August 19, 2015
(UPI) – Tourists looking for a little nip and tuck while earning a tax refund may have a new must-visit destination on the horizon: South Korea. Seoul’s Ministry of Strategy and Finance said in early August the country is to … Read More
August 13, 2015
(NPR) – If you thought that professional video game competitions would be the one sport immune to a doping scandal, you’d be wrong. While it’s not exactly the hill stage of the Tour de France, video games require alertness and … Read More
August 7, 2015
(Business Insider) – Tech billionaires like Peter Thiel, Larry Ellison, Sergey Brin, and Larry Page have invested hundreds of millions of dollars into research projects designed to slow or even stop aging. These projects delve into important science — the … Read More
July 28, 2015
(The Conversation) – Last month a team of doctors and scientists made the case to regulators at the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to consider approving anti-aging drugs as a new pharmaceutical class. Such a designation would treat aging as … Read More
July 23, 2015
(Wired) – Earlier this year, Baltimore joined 17 other researchers for another California conference, this one at the Carneros Inn in Napa Valley. “It was a feeling of déjà vu,” Baltimore says. There he was again, gathered with some of … Read More
July 7, 2015
(Scientific American) – But Kjaersgaard is focused on another matter: What do we risk by using substances that enhance our enjoyment and interest in certain pursuits – say, a university major or career – which we would otherwise find meaningless … Read More
June 15, 2015
The New Bioethics (vol. 21, no. 1, 2015) is now available online by subscription only. Articles include: “The subject of enhancement: Augmented capacities, extended cognition, and delicate ecologies of the mind” by Darian Meacham “‘Just a bit of fun’: How … Read More
June 12, 2015
(Medical Xpress) – Yet another big name in sport has been caught up in allegations surrounding a doping scandal. Alberto Salazar, coach to several star athletes including double Olympic gold medallist Mo Farah, denies claims in a BBC documentary he … Read More
June 10, 2015
(Nature) – But some wonder whether DARPA’s full-speed-ahead model will work as well for biology as it has for the physical sciences and hardware. Living systems are much more complex, they argue, with a multitude of variables that are either … Read More
May 27, 2015
(Discover Magazine) – Furiosa has already been hailed by many as one of the strongest female action heroines to grace the silver screen in years. But “Mad Max: Fury Road” is also drawing praise for how it depicts Furiosa as the wearer of an artificial limb without … Read More
May 26, 2015
(Science Daily) – Can the process of aging be delayed or even reversed? Research led by specially appointed Professor Jun-Ichi Hayashi from the University of Tsukuba in Japan has shown that, in human cell lines at least, it can. They … Read More
May 26, 2015
(The Telegraph) – Wealthy humans are likely become cyborgs within 200 years as they gradually merge with technology like computers and smart phones, a historian has claimed. Yuval Noah Harari, a professor at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, said the … Read More
May 22, 2015
(Washington Post) – Scientists at Caltech reported Thursday that they had developed an implantable chip that gave a tetraplegic man, Erik G. Sorto, the power to drink beer with a robot arm. This is just the beginning. Researchers are working on … Read More
May 22, 2015
(Scientific American) – The hunt for the fountain of youth is back to square one—at least for those seeking it in blood. New findings cast doubt on research that attempted to explain why the muscles of an old animal can … Read More
May 19, 2015
(Sacramento Bee) – That “if” remains problematic for professional athletes and teams that pay them millions. Several years after Nitkowski’s procedure, debate on stem cell therapy for helping rehab injuries is no closer to resolution. Blame it on a lack … Read More
May 18, 2015
(Medical Xpress) – When it comes to developing ways to enhance human beings, we are increasingly fascinated by all things neurological. If the 20th century was all about the gene, the 21st is shaping up to be the century of … Read More
May 15, 2015
Dialog (vol. 54, no. 1, 2015) is available online by subscription only. Articles include: “The boundaries of human nature” by Ted Peters “Beyond the boundaries of current human nature: Some theological and ethical reflections on transhumanism” by James M. Childs Jr. … Read More
May 14, 2015
Bioethics (vol. 29, no. 4, 2015) is available online by subscription only. Articles include: “Moral bioenhancement: Much ado about nothing?” by Immaculada de Melo-Martin and Arleen Salles “Conceptual and practical problems of moral enhancement” by Birgit Beck “The concept of … Read More
May 13, 2015
Philosophy Compass (vol. 10, no. 4, 2015) is available online by subscription only. Articles include: “The ethics of human enhancement” by Alberto Giubilini and Sagar Sanyal “The human right to health” by Nicole Hassoun
May 8, 2015
(Medical Xpress) – A lot of hard work, practice and dedication can help you sculpt a well-muscled body, but anabolic steroids will get you there a lot faster. What will it cost you, though? To help sort speculation from fact … Read More
