Washington and Lee University Library
    • Login
    View Item 
    •   Digital Archive Home
    • W&L University Student Scholarship
    • W&L Shepherd Program for the Interdisciplinary Study of Poverty and Human Capability
    • View Item
    •   Digital Archive Home
    • W&L University Student Scholarship
    • W&L Shepherd Program for the Interdisciplinary Study of Poverty and Human Capability
    • View Item
    JavaScript is disabled for your browser. Some features of this site may not work without it.

    The Ethics of CRISPR: What We Can Do vs. What We Should Do

    Thumbnail
    View/Open
    Capstone paper (180.4Kb)
    Author
    Sullivan, Michael D.
    Subject
    Washington and Lee University, Shepherd Poverty Program
    Genetic engineering -- Moral and ethical aspects
    Bioethics
    Theory of justice (Rawls, John)
    Clustered Regularly Interspaced Short Palindromic Repeats (CRISPR)
    Metadata
    Show full item record
    Description
    Capstone; [FULL-TEXT FREELY AVAILABLE ONLINE]
     
    Michael D. Sullivan is a member of the Class of 2018 of Washington and Lee University.
     
    This research has two components. First, an extensive review of the primary and secondary literature on CRISPR [Clustered Regularly Interspaced Short Palindromic Repeats] takes place. To begin speculating on the normative questions surrounding this technology, it is important to understand how the system works and what kind of applications are likely to become available. Afterwards, an ethical argument on the morally responsible usage of CRISPR is made, specifically with respect to human germline genome editing. This includes comparisons to current situations in the medical field that may provide a foundation for thinking about this novel technology—in particular, the ethical framework of pre-implantation genetic diagnosis. Furthermore, it is necessary to think about how unequal access to this technology could consolidate disadvantage and marginalize certain groups. Principles of Rawlsian justice will be applied to ethical issues associated with CRISPR to give a framework for thinking about risks to social justice stemming from this research. The potential eugenic threat that this technology represents will be discussed as well. [From introductory section]
     
    Michael Sullivan
     
    URI
    http://hdl.handle.net/11021/33966
    Collections
    • W&L Shepherd Program for the Interdisciplinary Study of Poverty and Human Capability

    DSpace software copyright © 2002-2016  DuraSpace
    Contact Us | Send Feedback
    Theme by 
    Atmire NV
     

     

    Browse

    All of the Digital ArchiveCommunities & CollectionsBy Issue DateAuthorsTitlesSubjectsThis CollectionBy Issue DateAuthorsTitlesSubjects

    My Account

    LoginRegister

    DSpace software copyright © 2002-2016  DuraSpace
    Contact Us | Send Feedback
    Theme by 
    Atmire NV