Copy Me

Ok I admit this isn't a post on racial division. After much bugging from kandace, i've decided to continue from my draft on cloning. Hardly anything was written previously and I can understand why. I felt amibivalent towards cloning. To be more precise, human cloning, maybe reproductive cloning as a whole. There's nothing wrong with cloning somatic human cells (normal body cells); the newspapers recently featured a dying skin cancer patient saved by his own cloned cells. This is the first time an patient's immune system was used to combat cancer in its late stages. Immunotherapy, the name of the technique, may eventually prove to be a substitute of standard chemotherapy and radiation in fighting cancer. There might come a day when we can see cancer patients retain their hair despite having gone through cancer therapy. Who knows?

While flipping through my GP notes related to this widely contentious issue, I saw this quote by John Stuart Mill (philosopher and economist)- "It should be forbidden from imposing its religious beliefs on a dissenting minority, even indirectly." So, I've decided that in taking my stance, I shan't use religion as an explicit reason. Religious reasons on human cloning aren't valid in this world nor are they considered rational to others.

From the animal cloning, test results have shown that in simply begetting dolly, "277 eggs were used to create 29 embryos, which only produced three lambs at birth, only one of which lived" (source: wiki). For only one experiment, 29 embryos had to be used to generate an animal clone. Maybe 29 is too small a number but if we change our mindset and look at these animal embryos as human embryo, perspectives may change. Imagine the millions of embryos, human embryos that we could possibly kill if we were to embark on a course of human cloning experiments. But of course, there are advocates of cloning who refute this argument by saying that if we don't try we won't get anything. The potential benefits of cloning will come mainly in the form of organ replacement. No more debate on organ trade HA. Yet, as a pro-life individual, it's hard to see the benefit in sacrificing millions of embryos (think babies though not quite there), in return for saving some patients. It just doesn't weigh.

But there's a flip side to this issue. What about embryos that are aborted? Do we trash them or do we allow scientists to take this as an opportunity? Perhaps it's better to utilise these resources for discovery in this arena of science than to simply discard these unwanted embryos. But if we allow unwanted embryos to be taken in, this can breed another issue somewhat similar to the organ trade debate- this could spring up sellers of embryos or this may even justify abortion as a contribution to science. The Bioethics Advisory Committee in Singapore adopted a
position on the moral status of embryo that deems it unethical to research on an embryo that had reached its 14th day limit from fertilisation. By then, it would have developed a form of "irreversible individuality". This position is shared by many countries. Knowing that women are mostly unaware of their pregnancies till like weeks after, most aborted embryos won't be taken in after all. So this worrying issue is set aside and I wouldn't want to delve or drag into abortion. Shall save that for another day.

There are 2 parts of human cloning to be considered- the process of cloning and the product. The process of cloning, refining and discovering it, as aforementioned, bears too much cost in the form of life. And even if there is a breakthrough at the least cost, there would be much repercussions involved in reproductive cloning.

To think of a replica of you may send shivers down your spine. It would for me. Some responses may come saying- no worries, clones won't have the exact personality as you, since personalities are crafted by experience. It may be a social stigma and might take some time getting used to clones. Actually, my shivers come from imagining the life the clone would lead. Discrimination may ensue. That's highly plausible. It'd feel awful to lead a life that is engineered and to know that your existence is not entirely original. You're made to be a copy of someone. A clone is still human after all and the emotional turmoil he'd have to undergo knowing this would be horrid. My GP class watched "The Island" a few months back. I admit it's an extreme scenario for clones but to exist to provide organs for people is cruel.

Alright, I'm getting tired of this argument already. Somehow I get this feeling that Man will never reach the stage of developing human clones. I think i shall write on creativity next... not racial division haha. Been reading this book called "Weird Ideas That Work", I realised that I unknowingly practise some of the 11 and half practices for promoting, managing and sustaining innovation written in it. So it shall be creativity next time.

Dead Hungry

Was reading the Straits Times yesterday and I couldn't ignore the huge page of statistics on hunger. It startled me that hunger and malnutrition are the number 1 risk to health worldwide- greater than AIDS, malaria and tuberculosis combined! Ok the following are some of the intriguing stats:
Every 5 Seconds, a child dies because he is hungry

10.9 children under 5 die in developing countries each year. Malnutrition & hunger-related diseases cause 60% of the deaths

684,000 child deaths worldwide can be prevented by giving children vitamin A & zinc
sources: The straits times-> from WFP, WHO, UNICEF

The causes of this pandemic in starvation and malnutrition are poverty, natural disasters, war, agricultural and infrastructural related. Without doubt, poverty is greatest cause of all of this, rendering the victims with no ability and access to food. The sight of the article made me think of Jeffrey Sach's- The end of poverty.

One of the millenium development goals of the UN is to halve poverty in the world by 2015. I can still vividly recall researching evidence for my essay on "How would I solve poverty if I were the President of the World". From the UN site (if I'm not mistaken), projects and progress in the sub-saharan region are behind time and likewise for east asia. The possibility of attaining the goal looks bleak to me at the moment, nevertheless, in this cause optimism is imperative.

It frightens me to know that there are people dying on this planet as I continue to live my life oblivious to their pain and sufferring. As I'm typing this, I just feel this urge to go... stop everything I'm doing with my life and go out there to help these people. But I know it's not possible or maybe inappropriate. The least I can do as a responsible human being would be to share this message with others through my blog here :)

If you notice on the right hand column, there's an advert which flashes "Free Rice; Play and feed a hungry person". Go on right ahead and hone your vocab skills while donating rice to the poor. The sponsors to the website will provide 20 grains of rice to the needy with every correct answer!

AND if you have facebook, join the group "Feed a child with just a click!", there are tons of links to discussions, statistics, facts to do with hunger in this world.

Connecting the world

I'd really really like to recommend this website to everyone! It's ted.com. This website is full of amazing ideas from leading thinkers in the world in their various professions. Watch it and I guarantee that your horizons will expand when you're exposed to the different advancements in all kinds of fields and disciplines.

Other things worth watching (linked to ted.com) are the short films in pangeaday.org. Just to let you know, pangea day was yesterday morning (singapore time) at approx 3am. It was a day to celebrate film as a medium of connecting the world. The short films (max 5 minutes for each one) really evoke different emotions as they say and there's a huge range of cultures showcased. So you're in for a feast of videos when you go to that website!

(Btw, pangea was the period during the paleozoic and mesozoic age when all the lands of the earth were connected in one piece (a supercontinent they call it), hence, the symbolic meaning behind that day)