Synthetic+Life

//The word "science" comes from the Latin word: scio -- to know. Science is the search for knowledge, and technology is the application of that knowledge. Since the birth of modern science in the seventeenth century, natural philosophers have sought out the secrets of the natural world in order to provide humanity with power over the elements. Natural science had very pragmatic goals in these early days, and even today that utilitarian philosophy still governs the allocation of funds for future scientific research; consider the budget cuts that NASA has faced in recent years -- where's the practical application? With the human genome now mapped, scientists have a whole new array of discoveries in front of them: the irradication of disease through gene therapy, the implantation of embryos into otherwise infertile women, not to mention the potential benefits of stem cell research on improving the quality of human life. All of these benefits are matched with corresponding ethical questions... when is science going too far? Are we truly infringing upon the natural order of the world by imposing scientific theory upon natural law? Read, listen to, and view the following articles, interviews, and cartoons concerning the controversial topic of synthetically created life, and then consider whether there is, or should be, a limit to what science can do to affect the quality of human life. //
 * [[image:benson.jpg width="551" height="384" align="left"]]Why? Because We Can... **

[|"Science vs. Ethics in Creating Intelligent Primates," National Public Radio's (NPR) Alex Chadwick's Interview With University of Delaware Researcher Mark Greene Concerning 2005 Science Article on Implanting Human Brain Cells in Primate]

 [|"Scientists Reach Milestone on Way to Artificial Life," NPR Science Correspondent Joe Palca Reports on the Creation of a Synthetic Living Cell]

 [|"The Ethics of Creating Synthetic Life," NPR's Michelle Norris' Interview with David Rejeski, Director of the Science and Technology Innovation Program at the Woodrow Wilson Center, Concerning the Public Perceptions of Scientific Advances]