,
Spring 2015
Assignment 1
Due:
Thursday, Jan. 29, 2015
(beginning of class)
Submit with
Turnitin (Blackboard => Assignments => HW1
€“
Ethics)
This assignment can be done in groups of up to two students. One assignment should be
turned in per group.
Choose one of the situations
listed below
relating to an ethical issue in biomedical engineering
.
Search for articles on the topic to gain a bet
ter understanding of both sides of the ethical issue.
Write a summary of the issue and the current state of medicine/technology in relation to the issue
(is this happening now and where?). Include a bibliography of sources used (must have at
least
3
) and
cite sources within the text.
Write two arguments, one for and one against a particular action. Your reasoning should be clear
and concise for each argument. If you do the assignment correctly, the reader should not be able
to determine your personal p
reference after reading the two arguments. You will be graded on
the cohesiveness and logic of each argument, as well as your demonstration of the ability to
understand and argue both sides of an issue. Write at least one page, but no more than two pages
(not including the bibliography).
Your final paper should have 3 paragraphs:
1.
Background and current state of
the technology
2.
Ethical arguments for or against an action
3.
The converse argument
Stem cells/Animal testing:
You work in a genetic disease resear
ch lab. You have just received a delivery of test
subjects (choose one: embryonic stem cells or live animal test subjects) for experimentation of a new vaccine, which
has
promise
to be a
potential cure for E
bola
.
Is it
ethically
permissible to perform
experiments
on
them
,
which will
result in their destruction/death?
Genetic
sampling
of embryos (designer babies):
You are hired to work for a company that
performs in vitro
fertilization
for couples wanting to conceive a child. Multiple embryos are creat
ed and when enough cell division
has occurred, genetic material can be sampled and the parents can choose which embryo to keep based on genetic
markers (sex, height, hair color, etc.). Is it
ethically
permissible to
selectively
choose which embryos to
keep
and to
destroy the unwanted embryos
?
Artificial Implants
:
You work for a medical device comp
any and your team is developing a new design for
a
shoulder
replacement.
During
clinical trials, the shoulde
r replacement has been shown in some cases to
enhan
ce
human capabilities beyond normal levels
. Is it
ethically
permissible to continue with the clinical trials and to market
the device?
Neural engineering
and neuroethics
:
You are developing a deep brain stimulator to treat neurological diseases.
The brain stimulator is effective in treating the disease; however, you notice that one of the side effects is that the
treatment
alters some of the patients’ personalities in various ways
.
Is it
ethically
permissible to continue using t
his
device to tr
eat the disease?