Blogogetics » Science

Eating the Embryo

Thomas Moller — Wed, 30 Jul 2008 20:04:59 +0000

“All men by nature desire to know.” The curiosity of a child comes immediately to mind thus proving Aristotle’s statement. I would be quick to add, “Most men do not desire to know how they know.” We just “know”. We know a variety of things, both to our benefit and to our detriment. Some things we think we know but are merely a matter of opinion or preference. Other things we may think, are a matter of opinion, but may really be a matter of knowledge. How do we tell the difference? Is it even possible to tell the difference? If it is not possible to tell the difference then the only things that we truly can know are those things that experience tells us. And all other things that are not a matter of experience become opinion. The study of how we know what we know is called epistemology. The study of epistemology asks questions like where do I get my knowledge, and how is it derived? Those who have bothered to ask the question, how do we obtain knowledge, have observed that knowledge is obtained through experience, reason, and revelation. Not all have agreed on the three modes [...]

Eating the Embryo

Exemplifying the Egg

Thomas Moller — Thu, 10 Jul 2008 23:20:30 +0000

This is a follow-up to the post Of Eggs and Embryos which you may want to read first. Let’s say there is a world much like our world. This world has golden sunsets, this world has blue-green seas and luminous nights. This world has animals abundant with might and people pursuing prosperity. Due to technological advancement, food is abundant and the common cold has been cured. Poverty has been beaten back and charity is common. Welcome to Gaia. Gaia is paradise attained almost. In Gaia, as in our world, not all afflictions have been defeated; some infirmity and distress still remain. But, as Monty Python said, “cheer up old chap” things look promising. The potential promise of a fulfilled, and fulfilling, utopia, might be found in a culture dish no larger than 10cm in diameter. The elixir found in this reddish – orange liquid medium are known as stem cells and not just ordinary adult stem cells but embryonic stem cells (ESC’s). That certain type of stem cell that hasn’t yet “pipelined” down their developmental pathway. As in our world, ESC’s do come with a contentious price; they require the destruction of an embryo. The value of that embryo is [...]

Exemplifying the Egg

Of Eggs and Embryos

Thomas Moller — Sat, 21 Jun 2008 06:22:16 +0000

There is a saying that an egg is only a chicken to another chicken and to everything else it’s breakfast. This may be a humorous observation on natural selection in the animal kingdom but the assumptions behind the statement deserve reflection and investigation. There are two points being made in this aphorism: • A thing has value only in relation to another thing. • The value of that thing is relative to the other thing. The illustration provides a rationale for a post-modern anthropology. What this is saying is an object, any object, is only valuable if someone or something says it is valuable. Things may have extrinsic value but intrinsic value is an illusion. Extrinsic value statements say things like, “Life is ultimately meaningless, but my life has meaning because I give it meaning.” An intrinsic value statement exclaims, “Life has (ultimate) meaning.” The first statement makes a claim that life has no value apart from what we bring to it. The second statement says life has value even if one denies that meaning. Extrinsic value can be separated from the object without damage, intrinsic value cannot be separated without damage. If that is clear we can make an [...]

Of Eggs and Embryos