May 7, 2007
Op-Ed: Russia and Nanotechnology
Of the many questions that must be answered about molecular manufacturing, one of the most important is: Who will attain the technology first? (IEET)
Monthly Archives: May 2007
May 6, 2007
Dr. David Prentice Receives Bioethics Award
The American Physiological Society, founded in 1887, which describes itself as “a nonprofit devoted to fostering education, scientific research, and dissemination of information in the physiological sciences,” has awarded my friend David Prentice its 2007 Walter C. Randall Award in … Read More
May 5, 2007
When Scientists Bully Anti-ESCR/Cloning Scientists
I have mentioned before that scientists with heterodox views in the areas of cloning/ESCR (as well as in other contentious areas beyond the subjects dealt with here at SHS) are bullied, attacked, ridiculed, threatened with loss of job, or if … Read More
May 4, 2007
Genetic Test Can Warn of Risk for Heart Disease
This story demonstrates the great potential of biotechnology, but being a congenital party pooper, I am also compelled to use it as a nagging moment. From the story: Scientists have discovered a strand of DNA that dramatically raises the risk … Read More
May 4, 2007
Gene Identified as Risk Factor for Heart Ills
Two rival teams of scientists have discovered a common genetic variation that increases the risk of heart disease up to 60 percent in people of European descent. (New York Times)
May 4, 2007
Early baby sex test over the web
A test is being sold on the internet that enables parents to check the sex of their unborn baby at just six weeks. (BBC)
May 4, 2007
Many HIV patients feel healthcare prejudice
Almost 40 percent of transitional housing residents with HIV infection report that they have experienced discrimination in their dealings with the healthcare system, researchers report in the journal Public Health Reports. ( Reuters)
May 4, 2007
Rabbi takes communitarian perspective on bioethics, medical access
Hear the phrase Jewish medical ethics, and issues such as the religion’s view on organ transplants or euthanasia usually come to mind. But Rabbi Elliott Dorff wants to broaden that discussion. (Washingtion Jewish Week)
May 4, 2007
Bedside manner ‘gives women edge’
Women’s better bedside manner makes them more likely than men to pass medical exams, a study suggests. (BBC)
May 4, 2007
Op-Ed: Should the UK adopt Dutch rules on euthanasia in newborn babies?
Euthanasia for newborn babies with lethal and disabling conditions is illegal worldwide, but in reality, its acceptance and practice vary between different countries. (EurekAlert)
May 3, 2007
The New Eugenics: Sex Testing of 6-Week Embryos
The new eugenics forges ahead with a new “home” test soon to be available to determine an embryo’s gender at 6 weeks development. (Ultrasound permits gender identification at about 20 weeks.) Why the need to know the sex–this isn’t about … Read More
May 3, 2007
Where Utilitarian Bioethics Leads
The NHS in the UK uses a committee of bioethicists and others to advise it about ethical policies, known as the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence, a.k.a., NICE. Well NICE isn’t. In my view, it is dominated by … Read More
May 3, 2007
Futile Care Theory State Honor Roll
My sources tell me that the following states require life-sustaining treatment to continue pending transfer if a hospital determines that the desired treatment is “futile” or “inappropriate,” or “non-beneficial: Alabama, Florida, Kansas, Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota, New Hampshire, New York, Ohio, … Read More
May 3, 2007
Australia: Victoria passes therapeutic cloning Bill
Victoria will become the first state to allow therapeutic cloning, after a controversial Bill was passed in State Parliament tonight. (ABC News Online)
May 3, 2007
Delaware: House committee passes stem cell bill
A bill regulating embryonic stem cell research in Delaware will get a chance this year to actually do just that when it reaches the House floor for debate. (The News Journal)
May 3, 2007
Listening to a Fetus’s Heartbeat
A device the size of an iPod could give women with high-risk pregnancies a way to monitor the health of the fetus. (Technology Review)
May 3, 2007
Talk of the Nation: Volunteer Medical Testing Raises Ethical Concerns
There is a growing subculture of human lab rats — people who volunteer their bodies for testing in clinical trials. The perks — flexible hours and relatively little responsibility — are often offset by uncomfortable and potentially dangerous side effects. … Read More
May 3, 2007
Study identifies gene linked to longer lifespan
Scientists have known for seven decades that mice, dogs, fruit flies and other animals given diets bordering on starvation tended to live up to 40 percent longer than their better-fed cousins. (Reuters)
May 3, 2007
Video: Indian women surrogacy grows
A growing number of Indian women are being used as egg donors and surrogate mothers for British couples. (BBC)
May 3, 2007
Conn. Lawmakers Pass Plan B Pill
The state House on Wednesday overwhelmingly approved a bill to require all hospitals to offer rape victims emergency contraception, over objections from Catholic leaders who say it infringes on their religious rights. (AP)
May 3, 2007
Paid surrogacy driven underground in Canada: CBC report
The risk of a $500,000 fine or up to 10 years in jail has not eliminated paid surrogacy among infertile couples in Canada but has driven the practice underground, a CBC News investigation has found. (CBC News)
May 3, 2007
Op-Ed: Standing up for the most vulnerable
On these pages, University students protest all sorts of things. What students don’t protest is the work done at the University’s Stem Cell Institute. (Minnesota Daily)
May 3, 2007
Op-Ed: Morton Kondracke: Bush should yield to science, expand stem cell research
Instead of vetoing stem cell legislation again, President Bush should revise his 2001 limits on the research — and demonstrate that he’s open to new scientific evidence. (Examiner)
May 3, 2007
Op-Ed: What Healthcare and Higher Education Have in Common
Healthcare is notorious for runaway prices, which are due, in part, to this financing scheme: multiple payers. And these multiple payers have assured streams of revenue, which include: Employer-provided health insurance Health insurance purchased by the individual to comply with … Read More
May 2, 2007
More on Texas Bishops’ Embrace of Futile Care Theory
I consider the Texas fight over Futile Care Theory to be one of the most important bioethical matters of the year. This is why I was so profoundly disappointed when the Texas Catholic Bishops and the Texas Catholic Conference supported … Read More
