Allowing the Use of Discarded IVF Embryos for Stem Cell Research Is Essay

Allowing the Use of Discarded IVF Embryos for Stem Cell Research Is Ethical - Essay Example There are several sources of stem cells. Adult stem cells can be taken from an individual, coaxed into becoming something useful in therapy, and transplanted back into the body. However, the usefulness of adult stem cells is limited, because not all types of cells have been isolated, and they are difficult to isolate because they occur in minute quantities in adults (NIH 11). Embryonic stem cells are the most flexible and can be obtained from in vitro fertilization patients, thus avoiding the moral quagmire of the abortion debate entirely. While visions of Nazi-level experimentation dance in our heads, it’s hard to come to a moral and logical conclusion regarding stem cell research. The Center for Bioethics and Human Dignity comments, â€Å"If anything is to be gained from the cruel atrocities committed against human beings in the last century and a half, it is the lesson that the utilitarian devaluation of one group of human begins for the alleged benefit of others is a price we simply cannot afford to pay† (CBHD 53). By demonizing stem cell researchers as cold-blooded, immoral baby killers, this argument avoids actually defining the boundaries of human life and descends into rhetoric. A medical professional must put aside rhetoric and stick to the facts. The â€Å"if-then† scenarios put forth by the religious right are especially rhetorical. If they argue, we determine that a blastocyst or embryo isn’t viable because it can’t survive on its own (separate from major medical intervention or a mother’s womb), then we are only one small step away from using comatose patients in medical experiments (Sullivan 59). Again, the argument is not a scientific one; it is simply a drawing room discussion with no boundaries. Leftover embryos from IVF patients are no longer useful to those who would donate them, and their potentiality is limited.

Extremes of Body Modification in the Aztec and Maori Cultures Research Paper

Extremes of Body Modification in the Aztec and Maori Cultures - Research Paper Example In addition, while some still attribute deeper psychological meaning to the practice, others insist that body modification has become nothing more than a simple fashion accessory, or a matter of preference (Wohlrab et al., 87–88). Body modification is defined as â€Å"the semi-permanent or permanent deliberate alteration of the human body†. The practice of body modification extends all over the globe since the dawn of humankind itself. Even though types of modifications vary wildly by geography and culture, in most cases, historically, there has been a symbolic reason beyond aesthetic preference. A modification could indicate that the bearer underwent some sort of group initiation, joined a particular age bracket or social group, or it could identify personal accomplishments, social status, or religious membership and ordaination (Wohlrab et all, 87–88). In more recent times, body modification was often associated with lower classes of people, not the elite. In Europe and later, America, tattooing was common among sailors, who were not viewed kindly by polite society. The practice traveled to other members of lower classes. Biker culture, punk culture, criminal organizations, and prison culture eventually adopted the practice (Wohlrab et all, 87–88). ... Aztec culture used body modification for the purpose of distinguishing class, societal role, and gender. Gender identity was established in the early teens, when all individuals were classified within three genders: potentially reproductive male, potentially reproductive female, and celibate. Throughout these three genders, body modification would follow a set path based on life events. Astronomers and priests calculated the life calendar and fortune prediction for every individual at birth (Joyce, 475-476) Boys and girls wore their hair identically until the age of 12, in a short crop over the whole head. By 12, girls began growing their hair long. Boys shaved their heads except for one long tuft in the back. A young man was permitted to shave it upon taking his first captive in battle. Afterward, the hair was to the bottom of the ear on the right side, shaving the left. Upon capturing a 4th captive, a man recieved the privilege of wearing his hair any way he liked. After childbirth , a woman usually wore her long hair bound around her head (Joyce, 479-480). Among the Aztecs, nearly every combination of gender and societal role had its own code of dress, appearance, and body modification. Aztec adults began a child’s course of body modification by grabbing children between infancy and 4 years old by the neck, every 4th year, in the month Izcalli, on special feast day. This was believed to make the child taller. The ceremony began with piercing the ears of the children. A cotton string was put in the hole initially, and the holes were slowly stretched over time to allow the child to wear ear ornaments as an adult averaging over 2 centimeters wide Joyce, 477-478). Male noble children 15 and over were admitted to the calmecac, for the training of