Biotech Ethics BLOG
This blog is about ethical issues in the biotechnology industry. That includes all 3 main areas of that industry: health biotech, food biotech, and industrial biotech. (The last two are particularly important, and don't get enough attention.)
Unlike my Business Ethics Blog, this one will focus on aggregating information, rather than offering much commentary.
Links:
Email Chris
EthicsWeb Bookstore
The Business Ethics Blog (by Chris MacDonald)
The Research Ethics Blog (by Nancy Walton and Chris MacDonald)
Genethics.ca (by Bryn Williams-Jones)
Ethics of Complementary & Alternative MedicinePages on this Site:
Ethics for the Biotech Industry (my scholarly research)-
Recent Posts
Archives
Category Archives: Uncategorized
Disabilities & Genetic Testing
By bioethicist Arthur Caplan, writing for MSNBC: Disability-free world may not be a better place …Gene testing of parental carriers is leading to the birth of fewer and fewer children with inherited diseases in the United States. Other conditions such … Continue reading
Posted in Uncategorized
2 Comments
Genetic Tests for Determining Fetal Sex
It’s safe. It’s accurate. It predicts the sex of a fetus, at just a few weeks’ pregnancy. And it’s not being sold direct-to-consumers for at-home use. Yet. From the LA Times: A new test to reveal a baby’s gender revives … Continue reading
Posted in Uncategorized
Leave a comment
Gene Doping & the Olympics
Cutting-edge medicine is perhaps most likely to be sought out by those with desperate need. Desperately ill people might be the first group of such people to come to mind. But what about people who are desperately driven to win … Continue reading
Posted in Uncategorized
1 Comment
Mistrusting GM Foods: Is It the Product, or the Pusher?
From Australian Food News: Australians “uncomfortable” with GM food The headline might be a bit misleading. Because a big part of what the story actually says is not that Australians are uncomfortable with GM food per se, but that they’re … Continue reading
Posted in Uncategorized
2 Comments
The Environmental Promise(s) of Industrial Biotech
Here’s a useful and substantial article on the environmental promise of industrial, or “white,” biotechnology, from EurActiv.com: Greens embrace enzymes in climate change fight: Industrial biotechnology is gaining supporters among environmentalists as a way to make significant cuts in greenhouse-gas … Continue reading
Posted in Uncategorized
Leave a comment
PR 101 for Biotech: Don’t Call Your Opponents “Looney”
Does this headline strike you as a good idea? From the UK-based publication, Meat Trade News Daily: Australia – Looney Activists out in force Anti-GM activists have protested outside the opening of a genetically modified technology conference in Melbourne. They … Continue reading
Posted in Uncategorized
1 Comment
Biotech in Bangladesh: A View from Inside
There’s plenty of debate over whether or how biotechnology will help developing nations. Some people see hope in biotech’s promise to increase crop yields, to make vaccines that don’t need refrigeration, and to offer new methods of bioremediation. Others suspect … Continue reading
Posted in Uncategorized
Leave a comment
University of Akron Wants Employee DNA
Bizarre! From one of CBS News’ “Taking Liberties” blog: Want A Job In Akron? Hand Over Your DNA It’s not unusual for employers to conduct criminal background checks during the hiring process. But the University of Akron has taken this … Continue reading
Posted in Uncategorized
Leave a comment
Biotech & World Hunger: Good Debate, Wrong Question
If you want a quick overview of the main points for-and-against GM foods, you could do worse than to check out this recent debate hosted by the NY Times: Can Biotech Food Cure World Hunger? With food prices remaining high … Continue reading
Posted in Uncategorized
Leave a comment
Reminder: Survey on Personal Genomics & Ethics
This is a reminder that our research survey on Personal Genomics, Privacy & Consent is still open, and we still need input from people with a wide range of points of view. This is an innovative, interactive survey that lets … Continue reading
Posted in Uncategorized
Leave a comment