New Methuselahs: The Ethics of Life Extension
Davis, John K.
- 出版商: MIT
- 出版日期: 2024-03-19
- 售價: $1,560
- 貴賓價: 9.5 折 $1,482
- 語言: 英文
- 頁數: 368
- 裝訂: Quality Paper - also called trade paper
- ISBN: 026255156X
- ISBN-13: 9780262551564
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商品描述
An examination of the ethical issues raised by the possibility of human life extension, including its desirability, unequal access, and the threat of overpopulation. Life extension--slowing or halting human aging--is now being taken seriously by many scientists. Although no techniques to slow human aging yet exist, researchers have successfully slowed aging in yeast, mice, and fruit flies, and have determined that humans share aging-related genes with these species. In New Methuselahs, John Davis offers a philosophical discussion of the ethical issues raised by the possibility of human life extension. Why consider these issues now, before human life extension is a reality? Davis points out that, even today, we are making policy and funding decisions about human life extension research that have ethical implications. With New Methuselahs, he provides a comprehensive guide to these issues, offering policy recommendations and a qualified defense of life extension. After an overview of the ethics and science of life extension, Davis considers such issues as the desirability of extended life; whether refusing extended life is a form of suicide; the Malthusian threat of overpopulation; equal access to life extension; and life extension and the right against harm. In the end, Davis sides neither with those who argue that there are no moral objections to life enhancement nor with those who argue that the moral objections are so strong that we should never develop it. Davis argues that life extension is, on balance, a good thing and that we should fund life extension research aggressively, and he proposes a feasible and just policy for preventing an overpopulation crisis.
商品描述(中文翻譯)
對人類壽命延長可能引起的倫理問題進行了探討,包括其可取性、不平等的取得機會以及人口過剩的威脅。
現在,許多科學家正認真對待壽命延長——減緩或停止人類衰老。雖然目前還沒有減緩人類衰老的技術,但研究人員已成功減緩了酵母、老鼠和果蠅的衰老,並確定人類與這些物種共享與衰老相關的基因。在《新的麥索拉》中,約翰·戴維斯對人類壽命延長的可能性引起的倫理問題進行了哲學性的討論。為什麼要在人類壽命延長成為現實之前就考慮這些問題呢?戴維斯指出,即使在今天,我們對人類壽命延長研究做出了具有倫理意義的政策和資金決策。他在《新的麥索拉》中提供了對這些問題的全面指南,提出了政策建議和對壽命延長的有限辯護。
在對壽命延長的倫理和科學進行概述之後,戴維斯考慮了以下問題:延長壽命的可取性;拒絕延長壽命是否是一種自殺形式;馬爾薩斯的人口過剩威脅;對壽命延長的平等取得機會;以及壽命延長與免受傷害的權利。最後,戴維斯既不支持那些認為對生命改善沒有道德反對意見的人,也不支持那些認為道德反對意見如此強烈以至於我們永遠不應該發展壽命延長的人。戴維斯認為,總體而言,壽命延長是一件好事,我們應該積極資助壽命延長研究,並提出了一項可行且公正的政策來防止人口過剩危機。
作者簡介
John K. Davis is Professor of Philosophy at California State University, Fullerton.
作者簡介(中文翻譯)
John K. Davis 是加州州立大學富勒頓分校的哲學教授。