A workaround

Link: Guardian Unlimited: Scientists make human stem cells without destroying the embryo.

Comments

[Fred Ollinger]

I find this a fascinating topic. I find it interesting b/c it seems that our innate feelings on things, theology, and morality have not caught up with our current best map of reality. There are many brand new ethical dilemmas based upon a brand new tech. There are somthing like 400K frozen, fertilized embryos. Not adding and (invisible) sperm cell and they'd be the mess that comes out in a period. Fertilize with a single sperm cell (I know it takes more than one, but in the end a single sperm DNA is in there) and we have an ethical shit storm.

I think humans are having trouble realizing that we are only made of cells and little else. Sorry to ruin the party. Science can be such a wet blanket. We have looked and looked and only found cells. The big mass of cells is a human b/c we have feelings about it. If we want to create feelings for a single (invisible) cell, we can.

Much of this ethics has been argued in Christianty by the Church fathers. I think it is like 80 days and the soul has not meshed yet. Quite strange. So many more things to go into, but so little time. More later. Thanks for bringing this up, Mike.