Descripciones mejoradas de Syndetics:

Human cloning raises the most profound questions about human nature, our faith in ourselves, and our ability to make decisions that could significantly alter the character of humanity. In this exciting and accessible book, Gregory Pence offers a candid and sometimes humorous look at the arguments for and against human cloning. Originating a human being by cloning, Pence boldly argues, should not strike fear in our hearts but should be examined as a reasonable reproductive option for couples. Pence considers how popular culture has influenced the way we think about cloning, and he presents a lucid and non-technical examination of the scientific research and relevant moral issues in the cloning debate. This book is a must-read for anyone who is concerned about the impact of technology on human life and for those with interests in medical ethics, sociology, and public policy.

Tabla de contenidos provista por Syndetics

• Preface(p. xi)
• Acknowledgments(p. xiii)
• Poem: Mary Had a Little Lamb(p. xv)
• 1 From Dolly to Humans?(p. 1)
• 2 Dolly's Importance and Promise(p. 9)
• What Ian Wilmut Did and Why It Was Important(p. 9)
• Background on Cloning(p. 11)
• What Cloning Can and Cannot Physically Reproduce(p. 13)
• The New Genetic Age(p. 15)
• Genetic Contributions of the Host Egg(p. 17)
• The Mistake of Genetic Determinism(p. 21)
• 3 The False Seers of Assisted Human Reproduction(p. 25)
• Beware False Prophets of Doom(p. 25)
• Clone Furor: First Wave(p. 29)
• Clone Furor: Second Wave(p. 30)
• Clone Furor: Third Wave(p. 31)
• The National Bioethics Advisory Commission (NBAC)(p. 34)
• 4 Misconceptions(p. 39)
• Our Legacy from Science Fiction(p. 39)
• Making Women Visible(p. 44)
• They Would Be People(p. 45)
• You Can't Reproduce Yourself(p. 49)
• Lack of Informed Consent Doesn't Matter(p. 52)
• Scientists Aren't Frankensteins and Strangeloves(p. 52)
• Reproductive Freedom Doesn't Lead to Coercive State Eugenics(p. 56)
• 5 Four Questions about Ethics(p. 59)
• Case #1--Sarah and Abe Shapiro(p. 59)
• Does the Rule Intrude Too Much on Personal Liberty?(p. 61)
• What Is the Point of the Moral Rule?(p. 62)
• Why Assume the Worst Motives?(p. 64)
• Why Fear Slippery Slopes?(p. 66)
• 6 Cloning and Sex(p. 73)
• Making Babies without Sex: Morally Repugnant?(p. 74)
• Plain Sex(p. 78)
• Meilaender's Testimony(p. 79)
• 7 Twinning Human Embryos(p. 85)
• Overview of the Embryo Controversy(p. 85)
• Why Embryos Are Not Persons(p. 87)
• Controversies about Embryos(p. 89)
• The Futility of the Human Embryo Research Panel(p. 89)
• Embryo Research Today: The Craziness of the Hughes Incident(p. 91)
• The Importance of Wilmut's Discoveries for Understanding Humans(p. 95)
• New Calls for Banning Research on Embryos(p. 95)
• What Is Lost in Research(p. 96)
• Recommendations of NBAC(p. 97)
• 8 Arguments for Allowing Human Asexual Reproduction(p. 99)
• Case #2--John and Elsie Kennedy(p. 99)
• Personal Liberty and the Right to Self-Reproduce(p. 100)
• Benefit to Children--Improving Genetic Inheritance(p. 101)
• Case #3--Richard Dunaway(p. 102)
• Case #4--Robert Atworthy(p. 104)
• Benefit to Children--Genetic Therapy/Correcting Genetic Disease(p. 105)
• Aiding Infertile Couples(p. 106)
• Valuing the Genetic Connection(p. 108)
• Generalizing the Genetic Connection(p. 110)
• Rawls' Argument(p. 112)
• Children for Gay Men and Lesbians(p. 114)
• 9 Arguments against Human Asexual Reproduction(p. 119)
• Against the Will of God(p. 119)
• Fear of the New and Different(p. 122)
• Genetic Diversity and Evolution(p. 129)
• Risk of Harm to the Child(p. 131)
• A Point about Control(p. 140)
• Increasing Prejudice against the Disabled(p. 141)
• Fostering Sexism(p. 142)
• Class Injustice(p. 143)
• The Slippery Slope(p. 144)
• Nature versus Nurture(p. 146)
• 10 Regulating Human Cloning(p. 151)
• The John Moore Case(p. 151)
• The Case against Regulation of NST(p. 152)
• The Case for Regulation(p. 154)
• The Issue of Multiples(p. 158)
• Against Commercialization of NST(p. 159)
• 11 Conclusions(p. 163)
• The Quality of the Arguments in the NST Debate(p. 163)
• The Unreality of the Human Embryo Debate(p. 164)
• What Might a Good Religious Objection to NST Look Like?(p. 165)
• Improving Humanity(p. 167)
• Alternative Pasts and Social Control(p. 170)
• Beneficent Multiples(p. 172)
• A Final Prediction(p. 174)
• Index(p. 177)
• About the Author(p. 183)

Reseñas proporcionadas por Syndetics

Library Journal Review

With human cloning such a hot topic, there is considerable need for clear explanations of the unresolved and complex science and social and ethical issues. Bioethicist Pence (philosophy, Univ. of Alabama) tackles the subject head on, arguing for human cloning as a reproductive option. Pence's strengths include his take on the much-hyped issue of genetic (over)determinism, useful analogies to in-vitro fertilization, and coherent reasons for preferring regulation over legislative bans. Unfortunately, the flippant and dismissive tone detracts from his arguments and trivializes difficult issues. The focus on babymaking obscures the opportunity to gain insight into basic human physiology and to advance some of the most promising and jeopardized fetal cell research for applications such as cell-based therapies, gene therapy, and organ and tissue transplantation, all now prohibited from federal funding and essentially unregulated in the private sector. Not an essential purchase, but a timely reminder to examine and update library resources on cloning; librarians could perhaps start with Cloning Human Beings (National Bioethics Advisory Board, June 1997 ) and update with journal articles and books.‘Mary Chitty, Cambridge Healthtech, Newton, Mass. (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

CHOICE Review

Pence's extremely topical book, while controversial, remains thoughtfully written and persuasive. The public is now debating the moral and social issues involved with the cloning of humans; this book codifies the arguments on both sides. The author readily states that the opposition comes because of misinformation and unscientific reasoning. For better or worse, he uses the debate over the now-established in vitro fertilization to put down arguments concerning cloning. He begins with a discussion of the cloning of the now-famous sheep "Dolly" and this process's importance to future human cloning. In an entire chapter, Pence derides the opponents of human cloning, then describes in great detail the misconceptions concerning that cloning. Of all the chapters, this is the best written and most lucid. Other chapters treat ethical concerns identified along with arguments for allowing human asexual reproduction, the new term for cloning. Finally, Pence makes a strong case for regulating human cloning. Though the author is indeed in favor of cloning, his arguments are constructed with various points of view. This small book is a fine, up-to-date resource for those who need more information about this subject. Recommended for all readers, especially bioethics students. R. G. McGee Jr.; Walters State Community College

Booklist Review

Occasionally, a new book evokes a sigh of relief. Pence, a medical ethicist and professor of philosophy, wants to know how a consensus on human cloning can be said to have been reached when only one side of the argument about it has appeared. That one side is the one represented by such ethicists as Kass, Caplan, and Meilaender and the recent report of the National Bioethics Advisory Commission, all of which have thrown up their hands in horror at the mere thought of human cloning. Pence points out that many of the arguments against human cloning were used earlier against in vitro fertilization. The horrified ethicists are, Pence emphasizes, genetic fatalists who cannot entertain new ideas and scientific progress, and science fiction and misunderstandings of what cloning does have helped overwhelm logical discussion. And why, he asks, have women--presumably an interested group--been left out of the argument? The regulation of human asexual reproduction, he proposes, should be similar to the regulation of gene therapy. --William Beatty

Notas de autor provistas por Syndetics

Gregory E. Pence is professor of philosophy in the Schools of Medicine and Arts/Humanities at the University of Alabama, Birmingham, where he has taught and written about bioethics for over twenty years.