February 7, 2008
Philip Nitschke, as I have repeatedly written, believes essentially in death on demand. He says so again in the wake of the suicide of woman he “counseled:” Nitschke insisted that healthy people of sound mind, who were mature enough, should … Read More
February 7, 2008
Dr. Robert Jarvik is best known for the artificial heart he pioneered more than a quarter-century ago. Since then he had toiled in relative obscurity — until he began appearing in television ads two years ago for the Pfizer cholesterol … Read More
February 7, 2008
A SPINAL injury is like a permanent set of roadworks on a highway, forever ensnaring nerve signals in a traffic jam. So it makes sense to try to ease the congestion by building a bypass. ((Premium New Scientist)
February 7, 2008
Wal-Mart Stores Inc. will open its first in-store medical clinics under its own brand name after leasing space in dozens of stores to outside companies that operate the quick-service health stops. (The Associated Press)
February 7, 2008
Scientists and politicians in New Jersey thought that they had a chance to make their state a stem-cell player. Voters thought otherwise. As proponents prepare for a second attempt, Meredith Wadman investigates what went wrong in the Garden State. ((Premium) … Read More
February 6, 2008
John Roberts has been arrested for murdering his wife Virginia in Oregon. Why is this important? His brother claims that John killed Virginia as an act of compassion because she had Lou Gehrig’s disease and didn’t want to wait to … Read More
February 6, 2008
Lio thwarts an early transhumanist uploading experiment.
February 6, 2008
Old wounds are set to be reopened next week when the Greens leader Bob Brown introduces legislation in the Federal Parliament to restore the right to die in the Northern Territory. (Australian Broadcasting Corporation)
February 6, 2008
Deep brain stimulation sounds like a form of fiendish torture. You’re wide awake as your head is clamped in a metal cage and two holes are drilled into your skull. Fine wires attached to electrodes are then slid directly into … Read More
February 6, 2008
The MayaTech Corporation, a leading provider of consulting and technical services to Federal agencies, has expanded its services with the establishment of the Center for NanoSystems Technology Applications (NSTA). The center will study the legal, regulatory, ethical, and social implications … Read More
February 6, 2008
Growth hormone stimulates growth and cell reproduction. It is produced in the pituitary gland, the pea-sized “master gland” that sits at the base of the brain. It has been popular in recent years with bodybuilders and athletes because they believe … Read More
February 6, 2008
Informed consent may be the biggest misnomer in medicine: Studies show that most patients don’t read the forms they sign before undergoing surgery or medical treatment. More than half of those who do read the forms don’t understand them, and … Read More
February 6, 2008
2008 is shaping up to be the election year that we finally get to have the Great American Healthcare Debate again. Harry and Louise are back with a vengeance. Conservatives are rumbling around the talk show circuit bellowing about the … Read More
February 6, 2008
Biological determinism is the view tht biological or genetic factors are the main or even the sole cause of important behavioral differences between people, even when those behavioral differences involve complex behavior-environment interactions. However, biological determinism has a disgraceful history, … Read More
February 5, 2008
Bioethics (Vol. 22 Issue 2 Page ii-136, February 2008) is now available by subscription only. EDITORIAL “HOW NOT TO WIN AN ETHICAL ARGUMENT: EMBRYO STEM CELL RESEARCH REVISITED” by UDO SCHUKLENK, ii–iii ARTICLES “WHEN GOOD ORGANS GO TO BAD PEOPLE” … Read More
February 5, 2008
Bioethics (Vol. 22 Issue 3 Page ii-189, March 2008) is now available by subscription only. “THE UBIQUITY OF DECEPTION AND THE ETHICS OF DECEPTIVE RESEARCH” by BRYAN BENHAM, 47–156 “PROTECTING GROUPS FROM GENETIC RESEARCH” by DANIEL HAUSMAN, 157–165 “THE MORAL … Read More
February 5, 2008
I have written previously of the futile care imposition being attempted by a Winnipeg hospital against Sam Golubchuk, an elderly Orthodox Jewish man whose family wants his life support maintained for ethical and religious reasons. Apparently, he continues to improve … Read More
February 5, 2008
Nanoscopic DNA pyramids that change shape when sent different chemical signals, have been demonstrated by researchers in the UK and Germany. Such structures could act as the motors of nanoscale robots, they say. (New Scientist Tech)
February 5, 2008
End-of-life hospice care is used much less often by American blacks than whites, and certain cultural beliefs may explain why, a new survey finds. An historical mistrust of the health-care system and a strong preference for curative treatment compared to … Read More
February 5, 2008
Health experts denounced President George W. Bush’s 2009 federal budget request on Monday, calling it a disaster for the health of Americans and saying they would look to Congress to change it. (Reuters)
February 5, 2008
Preventing obesity and smoking can save lives, but it doesn’t save money, researchers reported Monday. It costs more to care for healthy people who live years longer, according to a Dutch study that counters the common perception that preventing obesity … Read More
February 5, 2008
It’s this hopeless mismatch between demand and supply that is being ruthlessly exploited by some doctors and agents. And fuelling it is a million-dollar black economy that has spread its tentacles across the country. (BBC)
February 5, 2008
There are more than three million people who were born as test tube babies, that is, with the help of biomedical reproductive technologies. (RIA Novosti)
February 5, 2008
Last summer, Alan Farsin – his name has been changed at his request – checked into a medical clinic for five days to receive a total of two injections of an anticoagulant drug. Each injection was followed by a series … Read More
February 5, 2008
Scientists believe they have made a breakthrough in IVF treatment by creating a human embryo with three separate parents. (BBC)
