As we advance as a society and as a race, the question of ethics arises. From the time we were cave dwellers to bustling city builders we have been ever changing. Now that we have advanced to the point of remarkable technology and gene manipulation, it’s time we finally discuss how far we should go in actually using and manipulating ourselves with what we have learned. It’s truly inspiring how far we’ve come and the things that we have discovered, but we must be extremely careful not to cross the line of right and wrong. Animal testing and even gene manipulation is ethical up to a point. However, when we start killing without reason or a goal, changing things to fit selfish needs, or being so nitpicky that we completely alter the way people …show more content…
Our bodies are flawed physically and genetically, causing us to have to fix problems within reasonable bounds. While animals are useful to help us develop ways to live longer and save lives, we shouldn’t fool with them like toys with no respect. While animal testing is generally a controversial topic, there is a definite line to where it is and is not ethical. Using animals to advance and improve living chances is extremely important. For example, developing the artificial womb for preemies. Most premature babies are just around “22 to 23 weeks old- typically weigh about a pound and have less than a 50 percent chance of survival” (Engelhaupt). This specific development would be very important to families and successful birth rates. By using sheep who’s “lungs develop similarly to humans” (Engelhaupt), we are able to safely test the effectiveness of the womb. Even though they are using animals to test it, it’s still ethical because they have plausible and effective reasoning behind what they’re trying to accomplish. By respectfully using the sheep’s lives we are giving those premature lambs a chance at life, and even the lives of future human preemies. However, despite the beneficial things that come out of testing there are also awful, unethical types of testing that go on. When some of the first “human-animal chimeras were successfully created” (Mott) then allowed to “develop several days in a laboratory dish before scientist destroyed them” (Mott). These actions are extremely unethical because there is no real substance or purpose behind making these creatures. No respect was shown for the animal’s life that was spliced and forged with a human, then killed outright. Even in similar cases some scientist have even tried giving animals human qualities without care for the amount of sacrifices it would require. Weissman, a scientist, would try to give mice one-hundred percent human