Advances in Biomedicine and the Possibility of the Manipulation of Human Existence - Assignment Example

Philosophy Advances in Biomedicine and the Possibility of the Manipulation of Human Existence Living in a modern day world, it is apparent that recent advances in science are being discovered, one of the popular fields in science that is taken into consideration by this paper is the field of biomedical technology. Biomedical technologies as stressed by Lock and Nguyen bring about transformations, resulting in newly discovered knowledge about the material world that, in turn, influences subsequent interventions into it (2). Furthermore, this means that health-related matters are routinely objectified as technical problems to be solved through the application of technology and the conduct of science and are therefore decontextualized into practice (Lock & Nguyen 2). It is apparent that the innovations in biomedical technology bring forth benefits that could aid in the improvement of the health and the life of human beings; however, it is a fact that human existence and life itself is threatened by the increased risk and probability of technological intervention and manipulation. Others may term it as the science of “playing god”. This paper deems to explore the implications of Biomedical Technology as guided by the work of Ray Kurzweil entitled, The Singularity is near: when Humans Transcend Biology and the Message of Pope John Paul II to the Pontifical Academy of Sciences on Evolution highlighting that Truth Cannot Contradict Truth. The Singularity is near in the lieu of the Message to the Pontifical Academy of Sciences Evolution has been an interesting subject matter in the field of science particularly Biomedical Technology. Kurzweil envisioned in his work entitled, The Singularity is near: when Humans Transcend Biology, a new evolutionary process that aims to integrate man and machine (1-652). It is highlighted that the knowledge and skills entrenched in our brains will be merged with the immeasurably superior capacity, speed and knowledge-sharing capability of human innovations (Kurzweil 1-652). The age of the Internet was also predicted in the aforementioned work; he even mentioned that technological innovations have emerged at accelerating rates in recent years, while information technology capabilities such as cost performance, speed, capacity and bandwidth grow at exponential rates faster than the forecast of Moore’s Law (Kurzweil 1-652). It is obvious that one of the principal goals of brain science is to produce an artificial brain. This was very controversial for many groups advocating human ethics. The author of this paper believes that such innovation could lead to tremendous and a variety of debates. It may be deemed that this is such advancement on the part of science but nonetheless, the values imbibed in the nature of human beings must be taken into consideration. It is necessary for people to give due respect to what the Divine Providence has created and provided. As what Pope John Paul II stressed in his message to the Pontifical Academy of Sciences on evolution that truth cannot contradict truth (Pope John Paul II). Conversely, it was mentioned by Pope John Paul II that the reflection on science of the third millennium commenced with the identification of the principal problems brought about by science and which affect humanity’s future though the solutions to such predicaments were also pointed out which will be beneficial to the whole human community in the aspects of life and health (Pope John Paul II). For example, in the book entitled, Stem Cell Wars: inside stories from the Frontlines written by Herold and Daley (1-256) which tackled fascinating stories of stem cell research and its benefits on mankind. It divulged how stem cell research had benefited humans in terms of developing cures to certain diseases such as muscular dystrophy (Herold and Daley 1-256). In another book entitled, The Language of Life: DNA and the Revolution in Personalized Medicine written by Collins (1-368) that explores the possibility of completing the interpretation of the human genome which is DNA known as the language of life. It was also highlighted that being able to achieve this endeavor could lead to specific innovations in treating and preventing the risk associated with conditions such as cystic fibrosis, Huntington’s disease, cancer and diabetes (Collins 1-368). In another work entitled, Sex and the Origins of Death written by Clark which discussed life at the most basic level that is at the cellular level and to give emphasis on the proposition that death is necessary to exploit to the fullest the advantages of sexual reproduction (Collins 1-368). The benefits of science specifically biomedical technology were apparently illustrated in the aforementioned books. It is fascinating that science was able to produce a variety of positive results in terms of the health of human beings. Science has truly produced many advantages to human beings like certain means of cure and prevention to disease conditions and explanations for the numerous questions that tend to astound the human mind. However, the author of this paper deems that though science had proven to be beneficial to a variety of aspects of the human life, individuals should also learn to consider the negative impacts of such innovations. A work can only be relied on if its benefits outweigh its consequences. The rights of every individual should also be considered, every experiment as we all know, entails to involve humans in their studies to better explore certain hypotheses. The nature and morality that humans are created in the image and likeness of God should be regarded highly as what also had been stressed by Pope John Paul II in his message to the Pontifical Academy of Sciences (Pope John Paul II). It is also supposed that ethical considerations should be instilled to the minds of scientists when performing their experiments. The vision of Kurzweil may really be a big leap for science; in spite of this, humans must remember to take into account that there is a supreme being that had provided us with everything that humans need. Man has been bestowed by the Divine Providence with the gift of intellect and free will that they could utilize in terms of thinking and decision-making as stressed by Pope John Paul II. Hence, if this is the case, the vision of Kurzweil will be meddling with nature into making humans fuse with machines, there is a possible threat that humans in the future might be programmed like robots on what they should think and feel. This is a very distressing fact for individuals will not have the chance to exercise the gift bestowed by God; humans will be thinking like a machine, emotions can be lost. Individuals will no longer value what others will feel since they too will no longer have feelings on their own. Moreover, it is also a threat that the ones who will be accountable for such developments to materialize will control every human being in the planet; this poses the risk of using science to achieve power and authority over every individual in the world. Finally, scientific innovations on life and evolution might be a good thing but one must remember not to play god and to know and determine the limits of such developments. Human values and ethics should be permitted to play a role in the performance of scientific experiments so that individuals might not go above what they know and boast of the knowledge that they have acquired instead, they should attribute everything to Divine Being that created man in the first place, one must not go against nature but must go in accordance with nature and remember that everything has its limitations and humans must not attempt to go beyond that especially if it is not aimed for the good of the majority in the light of the doctrines of religious faith. Works Cited Clark, William R. Sex and the Origins of Death. New York: Oxford University Press, 1996. Collins, Francis. The Language of Life: DNA and the Revolution in Personalized Medicine. London: Profile Books Ltd, 2010. Herold, Eve and George Daley. Stem Cell Wars: Inside Stories from the Frontlines. New York: Palgrave MacMillan, 2006. Kurzweil, Ray. The Singularity is near: when Humans Transcend Biology. United States of America: Penguin, 2005. Lock, Margaret and Vinh-Kim Nguyen. An Anthropology of Biomedicine. United Kingdom: John Wiley and Sons Ltd., 2010. Pope John Paul II. Truth Cannot Contradict Truth: Message to the Pontifical Academy of Sciences on Evolution. 22 October 1996. New Advent Catholic Library. 13 December 2011. . Read More