January 11th, 2008
Stem cell debate to continue regardless
Here’s an easy prediction to make. The stem cell debate will continue through 2008, and beyond, no matter where the stem cells come from.
(Picture from Advanced Cell Technology, via Scientific American.)
In a society which still debates whether evolution should be taught, and whose media likes the fireworks, science doesn’t stand much chance in avoiding controversy.
But in the end, science wins.
Pulling a single cell from an 8-cell embryo is a neat trick, but it won’t end the debate. This is partly down to the sophist nonsense of “life begins at conception,” which is powerful political mojo.
It’s true, for man, chickens and broccoli. The question is when humanity begins. Humanity begins when you have a functioning brain, and a circulatory system that can live on its own, unaided, beside its mother, as God intended. Not before.
That won’t convince anyone, so your dog will gain the benefits of stem cell research long before you do.
As certain as this is, however, it’s equally certain that stem cell research will continue to march forward in 2008 and make considerable progress.
The U.S. military just let a $224 million contract for radiation cures based on stem cells. New York state has a $600 million fund for stem cell study, and schools like Stanford are stepping up with additional funds.
The reason is that the science works. Studying cancer stem cells is vital to affecting cures for what are now incurable cancers. The promise we mentioned earlier of the movie Hope – paralysis killed with stem cell therapy — is now being tried.
Never mind the implications, like Frankenmice. The research will go on. So will the cures. Science is unstoppable.
Which is the difference between humanity and simple “life.” Humanity is always pushing the envelope. For which I thank God every day.
Dana Blankenhorn has been a business journalist since 1978, and has covered technology since 1982. He launched the Interactive Age Daily, the first daily coverage of the Internet to launch with a magazine, in September 1994. See his full profile and disclosure of his industry affiliations.
Subscribe to ZDNet Healthcare via Email alerts or RSS.
| 01/14/08
