Prompt: For Blog post 5, synthesize your thinking about ethics and enhancement. This can take the form of a story, a small experiment, or just a normal short essay-like post.
A common theme when discussing biological enhancements to human beings is the morality of such a thing. Where do we draw the line? In our age of revolutionary technology, it’s hard to determine what even the next ten years will bring. Could little to nothing change? Sure, it is reasonable to assume that biological enhancements will not progress exponentially within the next ten years. On the other hand, everything could indeed change. When discussing this topic, we must recognize that the things we articulate as hypothetical may indeed become realities. As technology develops, so will enhancements.
Taking a step back, it’s crucial to acknowledge that humans already use enhancements. For example, the glasses that the author is currently wearing aid in improving eyesight. Something that is outside of himself is being applied to him to improve a natural biological function. To further exemplify the point, our bodies have natural healing capabilities of their own, yet we take medicine to enhance that process. Furthermore, human skin can vasoconstrict to preserve heat in the body, yet we use clothes to preserve more heat. Whether we like it or not, enhancements are a part of our everyday lives. Certainly, there is a difference in degree, and the nature of the enhancement must be taken into account, but the point remains.
Should we utilize enhancements on human beings? As is commonly noted, to hold the negative position and support things such as dentists, surgeons, and pharmacists would be inconsistent. If we permit enhancements of one kind, why not support the enhancements that have the potential to be far more efficient, cost-effective, and less painful—emotionally and physically? Before I continue, I must define what I mean by an enhancement. An enhancement is an improvement or restoration of a pre-existing biological function that the human body has the natural capacity for. In other words, I am not proposing that we develop enhancements that would fundamentally alter the human being at its core. Rather, the suggestion is that we use enhancements to give human beings an optimal state of body and mind within the boundaries of their natural capabilities.
Such a claim does not entail uniformity among the human race, nor does it mean that some individuals will not be better than others at a particular thing. Through enhancements, we can ensure that the individual’s natural capabilities are not hindered. For example, take two male children who are in the womb of their mother; the first will be born blind, and the second will be a few inches shorter than average. Unsurprisingly, an enhancement should be given to the first, as eyesight is a natural function of the human body that is not being realized by this individual. However, the second should not be given an enhancement because there is no evidence that being slightly shorter than average is hindering the natural capabilities of an individual. Even if one’s height falls within their natural capabilities, it is not something like blindness that can be stripped away. Each person has a degree of height; if there is no evidence of a condition that would affect the natural height of that individual, no intervention should be taken. In sum, conditions, diseases, or genetics that would limit the capabilities of a normal human should be eliminated via enhancements. Anything that falls outside of these boundaries should not warrant an enhancement.