41–50 of 91 posts
> In my mind, to alter genes that will be passed down from generation to generation is a sacred act There is nothing sacred about it. It's just a biological process. The only problem with GM babies are ethical considerations. But given how humanity as a whole could benefit immensely if these tests are successful, I think it's worth the sacrifice. Like even today we brainwash kids into fighting pointless wars where th…
This may seem like a controversial opinion, but I think that it's a good development. Some people have lost the "genetic lottery" in ways that make them dependent on medication. And for some, it may block career options, such as color vision deficiencies. We should embrace it, instead of painting dystopian scenarios. At least, we shouldn't stop people from fixing problems that they were unfairly born with.
“I expect that human genetic engineering, both therapeutic and “vanity” applications, will become an unfathomably profitable industry in the coming decades. I am open to the possibility that germline editing could be ethically applied in narrowly defined arenas of public health. But the determination of where to draw the lines should not be left up to venture capitalists and self-centred founders, as it was to a larg…
I love to hate on tech bros as much as the next tech bro, but I've watched so many people suffer with terrible diseases that I'm totally fine if it we end up with 1000 hairloss biotech startups if that also means we get one that prevents Alzheimer's.
But what about a treatment giving unborn children +15 IQ, but affordable only to parents earning $300k/year?
It is coming, but too slowly. Everyone, including people itt, gesture vaguely towards "ethical considerations", without being able to specify what they are and how they outweigh the massive ethical benefits. >I expect that human genetic engineering, both therapeutic and “vanity” applications, will become an unfathomably profitable industry in the coming decades. The most important application, by far, dwarfing both t…
I’ve heard this argument before (and probably made this argument at some point too), and it seems to boil down to thinking that people would agree with me if they would just be a bit smarter and/or more informed.
But I don’t think this is true at all. If it was then smart people would agree, but they don’t.
There is another line of thinking (often seen in science fiction) that suggests all problems are solvable if only you are smart enough. But they are not, some problems simply don’t have a reachable satisfactory solution. There is a reason these science fiction stories often come with a ‘benevolent’ dictator to impose the smart fix on everyone, because taking away free will is the only way to solve some of the hardest problems.
I think there is a strong argument for emotional intelligence, worldliness, and empathy though.
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And at what point does "problems that they were unfairly born with" stop?
Nowhere! Why draw the line right beneath yourself, we could all be better and it sucks that we aren't
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Who defines improvement?
A dictionary, I guess? I don't see what's so hard about it. When something gets better than it used to be, that's an improvement. Better eyesight, hearing, intelligence, endurance, strength, etc etc - improvements. I won't get into any argument that "less is more". I don't believe that crap. We shouldn't stop until we find the limits of the universe.
When it comes to differences between people, there are a lot of traits that we should be careful about categorizing as better or worse. Especially if it leads to us essentially eradicating the trait via eugenics.
It is coming, but too slowly. Everyone, including people itt, gesture vaguely towards "ethical considerations", without being able to specify what they are and how they outweigh the massive ethical benefits. >I expect that human genetic engineering, both therapeutic and “vanity” applications, will become an unfathomably profitable industry in the coming decades. The most important application, by far, dwarfing both t…
Not hugely surprising to today-me, but I was still young enough that it was a bit disillusioning to see that people couldn't even see (or say out loud) that being more intelligent would help us all.
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A dictionary, I guess? I don't see what's so hard about it. When something gets better than it used to be, that's an improvement. Better eyesight, hearing, intelligence, endurance, strength, etc etc - improvements. I won't get into any argument that "less is more". I don't believe that crap. We shouldn't stop until we find the limits of the universe.
How about gay vs straight? Being gay used to be classified as a disorder. That has changed in time, many (most?) now understand it as something different but not better or worse than being straight. When it comes to differences between people, there are a lot of traits that we should be careful about categorizing as better or worse. Especially if it leads to us essentially eradicating the trait via eugenics.
Earlier quoted context omitted.
A dictionary, I guess? I don't see what's so hard about it. When something gets better than it used to be, that's an improvement. Better eyesight, hearing, intelligence, endurance, strength, etc etc - improvements. I won't get into any argument that "less is more". I don't believe that crap. We shouldn't stop until we find the limits of the universe.
How about gay vs straight? Being gay used to be classified as a disorder. That has changed in time, many (most?) now understand it as something different but not better or worse than being straight. When it comes to differences between people, there are a lot of traits that we should be careful about categorizing as better or worse. Especially if it leads to us essentially eradicating the trait via eugenics.
I don't think we're anywhere near genetic manipulation of human mind, if that's even a real thing. Perhaps we could manipulate behavior driven by hormones, but I don't think we could do too much there without breaking the whole system.