Human Cloning and the Future Essay Example for Free

Human Cloning and the Future Essay In his work from 2002 â€Å"Religion and Human Cloning: An Exploratory Analysis of the First Available Opinion Data†, John Evans proudly states a few possible benefits, or advantages, of human ‘therapeutic’ cloning. While talking about embryonic stem cells, he states â€Å"these cells can eventually be used to treat diseases such as Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s, and kidney failure, to name but a few†¦Ã¢â‚¬ (748). These possibilities have mostly been confirmed since the publishing of Evans’ piece and other more incredible possibilities have come about. The benefits of both reproductive and therapeutic cloning are endless, yet many still disagree. They say that cloning is dangerous and that it would end human evolution and bring disaster to society as we know it (Mautner, 68). Do most people really think this is true? Or is modern society simply scared of the unknown and not ready for change? Many scientists and authors constantly debate the ethics and possibilities of human cloning, both for reproductive use and therapeutic use. A couple of possible risks would accompany the beginning of human cloning, however the benefits are legitimate, and we as a species should reconsider. It is common knowledge that mother and father love one another. And it’s the classic ideal for a family to begin, in the act of spousal love through sexual reproduction. Alix Magney, in his work â€Å"Cloning Me, Cloning You: Reflections on the Ethics of Cloning for Individuals, Families and Society†, argues that since human cloning would cause childbearing to lose its proper origins as an act of spousal love, it â€Å"†¦plainly poses a threat to the dignity and equality of women†¦Ã¢â‚¬  (25). I don’t think this is true at all, as adopting a child has been practiced for thousands of years and in vitro fertilization was invented in 1978. In vitro fertilization is where an egg is fertilized by sperm outside the female body and then inserted into the uterus for maturation only once the egg is fertilized. Sperm donors have been used for decades, completely negating any ‘spousal love’ from the equation that is reproduction. While people continue to fight over equality for women, which has been true since the ratification of the Nineteenth Amendment to the Constitution in 1920, other people continue to debate greater concerns about cloning. I have always heard it said ‘You’re special’, or ‘Just be yourself’, and these are sayings of encouragement to develop your own identity, not to follow others when unnecessary, and to accept that everyone is different. Giovanni Berlucchi, in his work â€Å"The Myth of the Clonable Human Brain†, states that â€Å"†¦most human values are corollaries of the concept that each person is unique and identical to himself or herself through space and time. (160) and â€Å"†¦that this kind of genetic manipulation may interfere with psychological and biological diversity, and therefore with the distinctiveness and autonomy of the individual† (160). I do think that the overuse of a single genetic identity for reproductive cloning would cause a disruption in the common value of individuality, but only in that physical aspect of things. Th e benefits of reproductive cloning and the possibilities of advancing the individual through therapeutic cloning could greatly outweigh any disruptions. Berlucchi continues, â€Å"Nature has, of course, been producing genetically identical humans from time immemorial†¦ in trifling pairs of monozygotic twins, and even less frequently in batches of monozygotic triplets†¦Ã¢â‚¬  (160). Prenatal uterine environment differences, along with other environmental differences post-conception, can significantly affect the psychological outcome of the child and is a main reason for psychological differences between monozygotic twins. The concept of environmental determinism dispels the myth that cloning humans would eliminate the core value of individuality. The controversy over abortion is one of the biggest issues for politicians and the rest of society alike. The debate over whether or not an embryo is to be considered a human being with rights is a ‘hot topic’ among the public and continues to be an important argument for almost everyone. In his aforementioned piece â€Å"Religion and Human Cloning†¦Ã¢â‚¬ , John Evans says that the Roman Catholic Church has the most clear-cut position against cloning, simply based on the status they give to a human embryo. They believe embryos are equivalent to fully grown humans: â€Å"Embryos are to be treated the same as born persons and therefore cannot be used as means toward an end. Most obviously, they cannot be destroyed to benefit others† (748). The church also opposes cloning because it â€Å"†¦severs human reproduction from sexuality† (748). If a couple is attempting to have a kid with each other, by any means, they are more than likely sexually active with one another, and therefore cloning doesn’t remove the sexuality from the overall situation, even if it is not directly involved with the contraception. Also, new technology has been developed since the writing of this article, and it is now possible to extract stem cells from embryos without destroying the embryo. You can take a single stem cell, or blastomere, and coax it to become an endlessly proliferating stem cell. Although these cells cant form embryos, they can form major types of human tissue just as any embryonic stem cells do. So, therapeutic cloning is possible without the destruction of embryos. Other people fear the end of what Charles Darwin so valiantly discovered and explained to us all over 150 years ago – human evolution. Michael Mautner, in his piece â€Å"Will Cloning End Human Evolution? †, argues that a result of human cloning would be the end of human evolution. He states â€Å"Cloning will, in contrast, reproduce the same genetic makeup of an existing individual. There is no room for new traits to arise†¦ The result: Human evolution is halted† (68). Only an insane situation where cloning was the only method for reproduction and the same genetic makeup was used over and over again would lead to the end of human evolution. This is an extreme situation and would almost definitely never happen. New science behind non-embryonic stem cell research has shown incredible potential for stem cells in general, as embryonic stem cells show significantly more potential than stem cells extracted from other parts of the human body, like the yellow bone marrow. Stem cells are beginning to be used to regrow hair, teeth and cartilage in damaged joints. Since the procedures and research are incredibly expensive, treatment is limited to those wealthy enough. Professional North-American athletes have led the way, being human guinea pigs for the non-invasive procedures in hopes of returning their bodies to their prime, pre-injury, form. Stem cell treatments are growing in popularity and legitimacy, and the use of embryonic stem cells shouldn’t be limited as it can only advance our species. Scientific tests and studies have proven limitless benefits to stem cell transplants, yet ethical concerns and moral-based laws are constraining what could be groundbreaking and life-saving science. There is possible potential for embryonic stem cells to be grown into whole, functional, organs or entire limbs of the human body. The uses could range from a ounded amputee war veteran in need of a new leg, or an elderly woman in need of a new kidney as hers is failing, and the possibilities are endless. Human fear of the unknown is instinctual, but as the realm of the previously impossible comes more into the lights of reality, we need to change our minds on the practicality and usefulness of cloning and embryonic stem cells. For our ailing parents, for our children, and our children’s children, we need to advance as a society, and take hold of the opportunities and benefits sitting right in front of us.

Symptoms and Diagnosis of Plasmodium Essay -- Biology Medical Biomedic

Symptoms and Diagnosis of Plasmodium Malaria is a disease caused by a protozoan parasite and transported by the Anopheles mosquito. Fever is the most common symptom of malaria. Other symptoms include arthralgia and vomiting. The most common diagnosis process for this disease is looking at the patient’s blood under a microscope. If microscopy is not available, antigen detection tests can be used. In a year, there can be as many as five hundred million new cases of malaria, and of those five hundred million, 2.7 million die. That means, on average, a malaria-caused death happens once every twelve seconds. Malaria â€Å"threatens more than 40 percent of the world's population.† (â€Å"NIDCD,† 2002) So what exactly is malaria? What are its symptoms and how would someone diagnose this disease? Malaria is a disease cause by a protozoan parasite. There are four species of these one-celled organisms that cause malaria in humans. They are known as Plasmodium; the most common is Plasmodium falciparum. To get inside our system, Anopheles mosquitoes are needed to transport this killer parasite. Fig. 1 (â€Å"NIDCD† 2002) Symptoms occur about ten to sixteen days after the mosquito bite. (â€Å"Malaria, 2002) Fever and classic flu symptoms begin. Symptoms sometimes follow a pattern of days where the attacks vanish and reoccur again. The period of time when the symptoms come and goes depends on the species of protozoa. For the parasites P. vivax and P. ovale, symptoms come and go for two days, and P. malariae has a three day period. Shivering occurs as well as head and muscle aches. The person infected becomes lethargic. Arthralgia and vomiting are other common symptoms of malaria. Because the parasite is invading and killing red blood cells, malaria can res... ...Malaria. Retrieved July 26, 2006, from CDC Web site: http://www.cdc.gov/malaria/faq.htm#symptoms (2005, November 11). Malaria. Retrieved July 26, 2006, from Microbiology @ Leicester Web site: http://www-micro.msb.le.ac.uk/224/Malaria.html (2006). Malaria. Retrieved July 28, 2006, from institute for OneWorld Health Web site: http://www.oneworldhealth.org/diseases/malaria.php (2002, September). Malaria. Retrieved July 30, 2006, from US Department of Health and Human Services Web site: http://www.nlm.nih.gov/cgi/medlineplus/leavemedplus.pl?theORG=%4E%49%41%49%44&theURL=http%3A%2F%2Fwww%2Eniai d%2Enih%2Egov%2Fpublications%2Fmalaria%2Fpdf%2Fmalaria%2Epdf (2002). NIDCD. Retrieved July 30, 2006, from Fooling Anopheles: Scientists Aim to Wipe Out Malaria by Outsmarting a Mosquito's Sense of Smell Web site: http://www.nidcd.nih.gov/staticresources/images/malaria.jpg

Discuss the character of Holmes Essay

Discuss the character of Holmes, the construction  of the stories and why the stories were and are so popular  Sherlock Holmes is one of the greatest and renowned detectives ever to exist, except for the fact that he is fictional, created by Sir Conan Doyle. Doyle began writing Sherlock Holmes from 1822. The character Sherlock Holmes, he devised was intensely influenced by one of his university professor encountered during a lecture. His works fascinated Doyle and we can see how it reflects to some of the things Sherlock Holmes does for e.g. his extraordinary deductive skills. Doyle has successfully prevailed upon the hearts of readers with his marvellous masterpieces. A famous museum has been dedicated on Holmes behalf for his outstanding temperament. One quite intriguing fact that proves just how phenomenal Sherlock Holmes is that Conan Doyle decided to withdraw Holmes in the year 1893, as he wanted to focus more on his other desires; however, he was unsuccessful as many readers protested upon this matter, while some even sent him death threats. Therefore, he was compelled to carry on and he did this by making the unstoppable detective Sherlock Holmes’ cheat a narrow death. So in this essay I will be analysing 3 stories: ‘A Scandal in Bohemia’, ‘The Speckled Band’ and ‘The Man with the Twisted Lip’ in which I will be marking out the distinct characteristics of Holmes that seems to attract everyone and Conan Doyle’s brilliant techniques used to captivate vast number of people.  First, I shall discuss about Sherlock Holmes himself in detail. He enjoys his work and is incredibly determined. Motivated by the actual work and not wealth, he devotes all his time and effort into solving mysteries as Watson notifies at the start of the ‘The Speckled Band’, ‘†¦for, working as he did rather for the love of his art than for the acquirement of wealth.’ Shortly afterwards Holmes declares this himself when his client Helen Stoner admits she can only reward him in a few months time; â€Å"As to reward, my profession is its own reward.† Although he does require Helen to pay for any expense occurred during the case; â€Å"but you are at liberty to defray whatever expenses I may be put to, at the time which suits you best.† I believe since Holmes does not accept (mostly) money as a payment to his practice, he does not have any money to pay for the expenses. I presume because of Holmes’ obsession towards his work, he will take any desperate measures he has to adopt in order to comprehend the truth as Watson encouragingly notifies in ‘The Man with the Twisted Lip’, â€Å"Sherlock Holmes was a man, however, who when he had an unsolved problem upon his mind would go for days, and even for week, without rest†¦Ã¢â‚¬  Due to this extreme dedication, he completes his objectives effectively and efficiently. Hence, the immortal figure and the eagerness for his position, awards Holmes a very positive effect on the reader. We learn about Holmes’ particular self-esteem, which to some extent can be very annoying and arrogant. For example, Sherlock Holmes cannot prevent himself from producing a soft amusement expression whenever someone fails to match his intelligence for e.g. in ‘A Scandal in Bohemia’ Watson baffled, says, ‘He chuckled to himself and rubbed his long nervous hands together,’ subsequent to Holmes’ brilliantly mastered deduction. It illustrates Holmes as quite an egotistical arrogant person and takes Watson for granted since the mild vague snigger may have been a trifle mock. It was not that Watson was just some ordinary person. He had achieved the title Doctor but even his attributes was nowhere near identical to the wit of Holmes. Holmes is only passionate about cases containing strange and abnormities; in ‘The Speckled Band’, Watson comments, â€Å"he refused to associate himself with any investigation which did not tend towards the unusual, and even the fantastic.† No wonder why all the cases seem to be of the most remarkable quality and from the fact that he worked in cases the official police discarded, â€Å"and clearing up those mysteries, which had been abandoned as hopeless by the official police,† mainly because of too much intricacy. Thus, the extraordinary power he acquires makes him a valuable utility for the police force. This however also presents him as an arrogant person who believes he is too good for the cases he assumes low skilled.

Societies Destructive Behavior around ‘Normal’ - 1776 Words

Society places value on a person based either on who they are, what they believe, or how much money they make. What happens when society places value on how â€Å"normal† a person is? Using the texts of â€Å"Merchant of Venice† and â€Å"Taming of the Shrew† I will argue that in dealing with difference, society often unintentionally annihilates it; but what remains in its wake is often far more disturbing. Religion is one of the most dividing forces in a society. At the time of â€Å"Merchant of Venice† Jews were seen as everything that was an external threat to England’s national welfare. They were known as the enemy within the English culture. The feudalist Christians viewed them as dirty, obsessed with money, and willing to do anything, legal or illegal, to gain monetarily. Christians projected an image of themselves as holding value in people, rather than profit. One of the first places we see a divide between the two religions is in a conversa tion between Bassanio and Shylock in which the differences in the values that Christians versus Jews hold are brought to light: Oh, no, no, no, no: my meaning in saying he is a good man is to have you understand me that he is sufficient. Yet his means are in supposition: he hath an argosy bound to Tripolis, another to the Indies; I understand moreover, upon the Rialto, he hath a third at Mexico, a fourth for England, and other ventures he hath, squandered abroad. But ships are but boards, sailors but men: there be land-rats andShow MoreRelatedOur Regular Routines : A Bridge Between Our Thoughts And People Around Us797 Words   |  4 PagesIn our regular routines, we constantly communicate in many forms with people. Words, gestures, looks, clothes, skin color, -among other factors- act as a bridge between our thoughts and people around us. 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