Walt wrote:
>>Controlling rats like that seems a bit cruel to me.
Jan replied
>
>So, there is a subject. How do you do the research to relieve the
>suffering of Parkinson patients, and at the same time prevent that actions
>of rats (later maybe people) are controlled. I believe that as scientists
>we must be aware of the dangers, help each other when someone is forced to
>do something against his conscience, and make sure that the power in
>this type of research is not in the hand of companies, who are not
>answerable to anyone about what they are doing. Must the patent- laws be
>changed?
This roborat business illustrates the ying and yang of all our technology.
There is always a good and a bad use to technology of any sort. These rats
are being trained to be able to look for people under buildings which have
collapsed due to earthquakes or in cases like 911. But it brings with it
terrible potentialities. If I were trapped in a collapsed building awaiting
rescue, I wouldn't care much for the ethics of controlling the rat.
Automobiles and planes can be used to supply wonderful foods and goods to us
but they are also used to transport drugs. Oil powers those transport
vehicles but brings with it an output of CO2. Modern pharmacists have a
wonderful array of drugs to fight disease but a small percentage of people
react and even die after taking them. Computers allow us to communicate with
friends and families from across the globe but allow the rapid dissemination
of pornography. For every good, there is always a bad. We will never find a
totally good technology and if we only accept 100% untainted technology, we
would still be back in the stone age. And by the way, stone tools can be
used to provide food for one's family or be used to kill your neighbor.
glenn
see http://www.glenn.morton.btinternet.co.uk/dmd.htm
for lots of creation/evolution information
anthropology/geology/paleontology/theology\
personal stories of struggle
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