Sport and Genetic Enhancement
Mapping the Ethics Bites podcast with Michael Sandel (View 1 for links and details): In theory we can now manipulate genes to make athletes run faster, jump higher, throw further. Should we do this? And if so, what will it mean for sport?
An illustrative test map of the
Open University's Ethics Bites interview with
Michael Sandel:
"The science of genetics is advancing faster than our moral intuitions can cope. No longer are so-called ‘Designer Babies’ just a figment of the imagination, restricted to the realm of sci-fi movies. The implications are huge – and not just for babies and reproduction. We can modify our genetic make-up as adults too.
Take sport; in theory we can now manipulate genes to make athletes run faster, jump higher, throw further. Does that mean sport will evolve into a form of competition between quasi-robots? And if so, would it matter?
The distinguished and genetically unmodified Harvard philosopher, Michael Sandel, believes that we should be extremely cautious in our attempts to shape and master nature, and indeed to master our shape."Follow the links to listen to, and learn more about, the Open University's excellent
Ethics Bites series of philosophy podcasts, in which this
podcast interview with
Michael Sandel features.
And subscribe to the
other Ethics Bites podcasts here.