31 MAY 2015 by ideonexus
The Future of "Brave New World" is "The Time Machine"
Brave New World gives us a dramatic view of a future in which the technology made possible by science brings science to a halt. This future is consistent with the more remote future seen by the Time Traveler in Wells's Time Machine. After the disruptive influence of science has been permanently tamed by the triumph of bureaucracy and eugenics, it is easy to imagine human society remaining stuck in the rigidly conservative caste system of Brave New World for thousands of centuries, until the s...Folksonomies: science fiction social commentary
Folksonomies: science fiction social commentary
30 JAN 2012 by ideonexus
Who Really Needs Bioethics
Renegade scientists and totalitarian loonies are not the folks most likely to abuse genetic engineering. You and I are--not because we are bad but because we want to do good. In a world dominated by competition, parents understandably want to give their kids every advantage. ... The most likely way for eugenics to enter into our lives is through the front door as nervous parents ... will fall over one another to be first to give Junior a better set of genes.It's not scientists who need ethics when it comes to genetic engineering, it's ordinary consumers who will jump at the chance to improve their children with the technology.