Ethics of Stem Cell Research

Last week in my Technology in Society class we were talking about the ethics of stem cell research, I learned a lot of new alternate procedures that I previously was unaware of.  What are your thoughts?  These are mine:

Ethics of anything can be a touchy subject, however when it comes to cloning and stem cell technology, I feel that the positive outcome outweighs the negative.  We are in the early stages of testing and in some cases already successfully curing cancers and saving lives with this research.   Stem cells in bone marrow are now being successfully used to treat leukemia, but the real promise of stem-cell therapies lies in the future.  There are countless other diseases, cancers, organs and limbs that could benefit from successful stem cell and cloning technology.

There are many things that can be used to aid in stem cell research to include placenta, babies that are miscarried, and even aborted fetuses, this is not too different from organ donation from a scientific perspective.  Explorable stated “Aborted fetuses are not the only source of stem cells; there are stem cells in the both placenta and blood contained in the placenta."    I take the stance that when I am dead, I don’t need any of my organs; let someone have it and live or use them for research.  I have a  grandfather who died due to an inability to receive a transplant.  The movie Seven Pounds with Will Smith took this to a whole new level.  It showed the impact that he was able to have with one body on so many people’s lives.  In the movie Will Smith played a man who researched seven people to atone for seven people that he had killed, he donated different parts of his body to save their lives.  He donated his eyes, heart, lungs, bone marrow, liver and kidney.  

The majority of positive support for stem cell research comes from leftover embryos from IVF (in-vitro fertilization) that would otherwise be discarded anyway.   A possible solution to appease both sides is ANT (altered nuclear transfer) where an embryo is never created.  Murnaghan clarified with “A derivative of somatic cell nuclear transfer (SCNT), the nucleus of the somatic cell (any body cell other than an egg) is altered, or genetically reprogrammed, prior to being transferred into the egg."  Another option is blastomere extraction, where an embryo is created but not destroyed.  This procedure is performed on a two-day old embryo, following the division of the fertilised egg into eight blastomeres or cells.   Another option is to strictly utilize adult stem cells.  Therapeutic potential rates take a dive because the cells can’t be differentiated into as many different types.   Another negative aspect of using adult stem cells, as depicted by Murnaghan, they are also more likely to have developed genetic abnormalities over time and they don't tend to replicate as efficiently. 

 

Borrowed from wikipedia.com

In case you want to read more from my sources: 

Explorable

Murnaghan

Technology vs Science

There were a couple of thought provoking discussion questions in this past week that I thought were worthy of sharing with my geek fans, and anyone else that is interested in reading about it.  Due to the use of some other sources, I will note those for anyone interested in taking a closer look.  Please feel free to add your 2 cents in to the comments.


To discuss with would be a better choice from my point of view, I first want to talk about how technology stimulates Science, and vice versa.

How does technology stimulate science?

Technology stimulates scientific discovery in many ways.  One of the ways in which it can stimulate scientific discovery is by proving or disproving scientific theories, as was the case with the steam injector.  The steam injector patented by Henri Giffard, showed that the caloric theory of heat was not as all-encompassing as previously thought.  Giffard based his injector on the Bernoulli principle of pressure and velocity.  The result was that Giffard’s steam injector was supporting proof of the then unpopular kinetic theory of heat.  The steam injector was able to show that one theory of heat was more accurate than another.   As stated by Volti, the steam injector was “an example of a technology that worked even though existing scientific principles did not completely explain its operation.”

According to Volti, “Technological development also plays a vital role in scientific advance by supplying devices and instruments that are essential for scientific inquiry.”   The 3-D printer is one of many examples of this, with its almost limitless possibilities.  NASA is currently doing testing on a 3-D printer to enable it to be used on the Space Station.   Greenemeier states that “The ability to resupply far from Earth would give such a vessel the ability to carry out longer, deep-space missions.”  If this is the case, than this particular technological device would allow for even more scientific advancements to take place.  Increased time in space, and the ability to go further, could lead to a myriad of new discoveries.  Although science is reliant upon technological creations for advancement, technology would be just as crippled without science.

Technology and science work hand in hand, in a cycle of reliability.  “Both are based on the gathering of knowledge, and they both advance through the cumulative development of that knowledge.”  Scientific advancements today are reliant upon previous technology, which was reliant upon even earlier scientific advancements, and so on.  This was shown clearly in the studying of genetics with the use of the technological tool of medical image analysis.  Without the scientific need for analysis this technology would not have been created, let alone advanced to the state that it is now.  In turn by using this advanced technology, it was able to once again affect scientific advancement.  The scientist Woo Suk Hwong claimed in 2004 that he had successfully cloned a human embryonic stem cell.  However as shown by Understanding Science, “through the close scrutiny of images in his published work that appeared to be duplicated and manipulated, this so-called breakthrough was revealed to be a fraud.”   Without technology, the scientific advancement that is this study, and resulting inventions, with regards to genetics today, would not have been possible.

Would you choose a scientific discovery or technological invention?

The answer to this question was easy for me; I would of course choose to invent a technology.  From the days of my youth, and my dream of one day becoming a marine biologist, I learned a lot about biology and science.  I also learned that it was not for me.  Science revolves around theorems…  These can change so drastically with time and be completely dis-proven after decades and even centuries of pouring one-self into the work.  The steam injector that I used in the scientific advancement discussion is one such example.  As stated by Volti, the steam injector was “an example of a technology that worked even though existing scientific principles did not completely explain its operation.”  The steam injector laughed in the face of the caloric theory and brought the kinetic theory of heat out as the winner that we still rely on today. 

Discovering something doesn’t mean that it will be useful now or ever.  Just the simple act of discovery is not enough.  Without a complimentary technology that can utilize the scientific discovery and make it work, it will never be able to reach its potential as a successful discovery.  Many scientific discoveries take so long to be realized as useful, that the person that discovered them cannot be a part of reveling in the glory of its impact on the world.  Volti declares “Whereas science is directed at the discovery of knowledge for its own sake, technology develops and employs knowledge in order to get something done.”  Therefore, an invention has the opportunity to bring a use to the world, and add more than just a resource. 

Technology can be accomplished on at least some sort of a schedule.  A technological project can be laid out on paper and in worksheets and plan for the end of a beta version of the technology.   These steps can be broken down and in turn show a final project and allow for plans to improve upon the technology.  However when it comes to scientific discovery, as affirmed by Volti, “Scientific research, especially when directed at the discovery of basic principles, is an uncertain endeavor that cannot be guided by schedules and routinized procedures.”  As an analytical thinker, I would much prefer being able to intimately know the project I was working on and be able to create something useful to add to the world, this is why I choose a technological invention. 

Does Technology Stimulate Science?

I also utilized the book Society and Technological Change (7th ed.) by Rudi Volti. 

How Do You Define Technology & Culture?

You don't think about how hard it is to define such seemingly easy terms until you have to do it.  This week my class discussion posts were about defining these two words, here is what I had to say.  What is your definition?  I am genuinely interested in your responses as I had a lot of people disagree with me.

Culture

To me culture can have as many definitions as there are people.  It seems to be one of those revolving words that people interpret differently based on their own experiences that they bring to the table.  For me, culture can be defined as a definition of a group of people.  That is to include the individual heritage, history, beliefs, dress, and way of life, diet, as well as, customs and courtesies.

 As a native Montanan, I grew up around many different tribes of Native Americans.  There are also many different reservations located throughout the state.  I first remember being introduced to cultural differences as a student participating in sports.  This was when I had my first real exposure to other people who resided on a reservation.  I have always been intrigued by those different than I am and love learning more about them and what forms their beliefs and thought processes.  It was also eye opening to me to see how they would protect one another against outsiders.  They were always so close knit and familial. 

 As a military member in the Air National Guard I was again faced with the close-knit community in the Guard, only this time I was a part of it.  This was always referred to as the “Guard Family Culture.”  It was a very rude awakening to me when I had to do extensive training with the active duty Air Force.  Instead of the now “family” community culture that I had become accustomed to, I was instead faced with a culture of feeling of being more cut throat, and competitive with selfishness abounding.  I was appalled at the lack of camaraderie that was displayed by the airman that I can in contact with.  This exposure made my mind up that I would never want to be a part of the Active Duty Air Force culture.  This has been reinforced to me with dealing of other service cultures; most notably, the Marine Corps.  I had renewed faith in active duty camaraderie in watching how the Marines could come together as a “family” in the majority of their service members. 

This is just one example of a type of cultural behavior that can cross between races and even in occupations.  This can be further broken down in the military/civilian and even branches of service, down to what I experienced between the differences in the guard and active duty culture. 

Technology 

Initially, just thinking of a way to define technology feels like a daunting task.  For me it is something that encompasses so many concepts that just one word is not enough.  With that being said I will try to articulate how best I view the meaning of technology.   Technology is something that can be used in addition to or separate from one’s own bodily limited methods.  I mean this in terms that it can allow us to do more than we could without it. 

From as far back as caveman with the addition of fire as a technology, a person could now cook and prepare food in a different way, which could also develop into a defense or attack method.  Copper as a metal has been a great technological addition in creating tools and utensils with it.  This allows new ways for someone to work faster and more efficiently, and with the creation of new weapons, one was able to better defend themselves and also to attack others, or even for use in hunting.  

Later in history a chariot or carrier was added to a horse to be able to carry more items or to travel faster, and then even to aide in warfare.  Progress forward even further in time and we can add in the radio to further communication and business and once again warfare.  The spaceship has allowed further exploration and research and claims in space wars. 

Technology allows a human to do more than they could previously have done; if left to the limitations of their own body.  With only hands and feet we could not have hunted or fought or defended and foraged, and explored with the same effectiveness that we do now.

That is not to say that there have not been failures in technology only that even without continued success that each technology has allowed for a capability that would not have been there without it.  Technology chooses no sides, it can be used for good or evil, and like a computer it is only as effective as its operator.    

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