#bioethics

#bioethics

Then, just over two decades ago, the Human Genome Project - the international scientific effort to decode the three billion letters of human DNA - changed everything. Critics at the time called it too expensive, too ambitious, too abstract. And they weren't wrong. It was the largest biology project ever proposed, and scientists hadn't even managed to sequence the smallest bacterial genome yet. But the organizers knew that big plans - moonshots - inspire people and attract funding.

With IVF, prospective parents already have options to screen embryos, not just for sex or severe genetic diseases, but increasingly for a full range of genetic traits. Thanks to whole genome sequencing (WGS), the choice isn't science fiction; we can now analyze all 20,000+ human genes in an embryo with better than 99.9 percent accuracy for many mutations and chromosomal problems (assuming parents are willing to forego natural conception, and instead supply their eggs and sperm to a lab for embryo creation and analysis).

Developing neurotech can transform how we monitor and improve our well-being. But lawyer and AI ethicist Nita Farahany warns this tech can supercharge data tracking and infringe on our mental privacy. Nita Farahany is the Robinson O. Everett Professor of Law and Philosophy at Duke University and founding director of the Duke Initiative for Science & Society, which works to advance the responsible use of science and technology.

Cognitive decline in the physician workforce is a problem that has come to the attention of healthcare organizations.

Gestation has traditionally relied on the female body, but emerging technologies may enable gestation in male bodies or even entirely via machines.

"I wrote 'Animal Liberation' in 1975 because I was convinced that I had stumbled onto something very important that most people were oblivious to..."