A panoramic overview of biotechnologies that can endlessly boost human capabilities and the drastic changes these “superhuman” traits could trigger Biotechnology is moving fast. In the coming decades, advanced pharmaceuticals, bioelectronics, and genetic interventions will be used not only to heal the sick but to boost human physical and mental performance to unprecedented levels. People will have access to pills that make them stronger and faster, informatic devices will interface seamlessly with the human brain, and epigenetic modification may allow people to reshape their own physical and mental identities at will. Until recently, such major technological watersheds—like the development of metal tools or the industrialization of manufacturing—came about incrementally over centuries or longer. People and social systems had time to adapt: they gradually developed new values, norms, and habits to accommodate the transformed material conditions. But contemporary society is dangerously unprepared for the dramatic changes it is about to experience down this road on which it is already advancing at an accelerating pace. The results will no doubt be mixed. People will live longer, healthier lives, will fine-tune their own thought processes, and will generate staggeringly complex and subtle forms of knowledge and insight. But these technologies also threaten to widen the rift between rich and poor, to generate new forms of social and economic division, and to force people to engage in constant cycles of upgrades and boosts merely to keep up. Individuals who boost their traits beyond a certain threshold may acquire such extreme capabilities that they will no longer be recognized as unambiguously human. In this important and timely book, prize-winning historian Michael Bess provides a clear, nontechnical overview of cutting-edge biotechnology and paints a vivid portrait of a near-future society in which bioenhancement has become a part of everyday life. He surveys the ethical questions raised by the enhancement enterprise and explores the space for human agency in dealing with the challenges that these technologies will present. Headed your way over the coming decades: new biotechnologies that can powerfully alter your body and mind. The possibilities are tantalizing: • Rejuvenation therapies offering much longer lives (160 and even beyond) in full vigor and mental acuity • Cognitive enhancement through chemical or bioelectronic means (the rough equivalent of doubling or tripling IQ scores) • Epigenetic tools for altering some of your genetically influenced traits at any point in your lifetime (body shape, athletic ability, intelligence, personality) • Bioelectronic devices for modulating your own brain processes, including your “pleasure centers” (a potentially non-stop high) • Direct control of machines by thought, and perhaps direct communication with other people, brain-to-brain (a new dimension of sharing and intimacy) But some of the potential consequences are also alarming: • A growing rift between the biologically enhanced and those who can’t afford such modifications • A constant cycle of upgrades and boosts as the bar of “normal” rises ever higher—“Humans 95, Humans XP, Humans 8” • The fragmentation of humankind into rival “bioenhancement clusters” • A gradually blurring boundary between “person” and “product” • Extreme forms of self-modification, with some individuals no longer recognized as unambiguously human

In this book, Dr Quintyn considers whether genetic engineering will exacerbate social injustices and/or lead to public safety issues. As designer babies mature, will they feel a sense of superiority or pass on mutations that negatively affect future generations? Should we ignore the risk of zoonotic (animal) diseases because they offer potential benefits for reducing organ shortages? Scientific advancement, if not guided responsibly and with public input, can be detrimental to public safety.This book is unique as it encompasses many biotechnologies within the definition of biotechnology. It gives a balanced view of biotechnology: its promise as evidenced in repairing mutations (i.e., genetic editing) and its dangers evidenced in creating (unintentionally) dangerous microbes or unregulated germline editing and cloning. Additionally, this book includes animals in biotechnological research because the success, advances, techniques, and science of genetic engineering could not have occurred without using animals (and microorganisms, insects, plants) as model organisms. A comprehensive description of the CRISPR system in bacteria and the exploitation of this knowledge in creating the CRISPR/Cas9 technology is also incorporated in this read.The author's overall goal is to discuss other biotechnology that is being used to improve and put at risk the health, environment, and safety of humans, giving the book a competitive edge. Furthermore, the book provides a provocative side in challenging scientists to consider the current belief governing research and development, which is that scientific advancement and public safety create a false dichotomy.

The specter of early twentieth-century eugenics—with its goal of preventing the “unfit” from reproducing through forced sterilization—still haunts us in this era of genetic engineering. Conrad B. Quintyn, an associate professor of biological anthropology at Bloomsburg University, Bloomsburg, Pennsylvania, calls this the new eugenics era because geneticists have begun to explore ways to prevent and repair defective genes in all humans. In this book, he considers whether genetic engineering will exacerbate social injustices and/or lead to a public safety issue. For instance, in 2012, virologists in the U.S. and the Netherlands genetically engineered avian (bird) flu to be more transmissible between mammals. These scientists argued that virus transmission between mammals enables us to make vaccines to prevent pandemics. They never considered what would happen if the virus accidentally escaped the laboratory. Meanwhile, some scientists are experimenting with “designer babies,” altering genes to remove diseases and even programming certain traits. Join the author as he considers whether scientists are playing God as well as the risks we face by altering genetics in The New Eugenics.

In How to Be Childless: A History and Philosophy of Life Without Children, Rachel Chrastil explores the long and fascinating history of childlessness, putting this often-overlooked legacy in conversation with the issues that childless women and men face in the twenty-first century. Eschewing two dominant narratives, that the childless are either barren and alone, or that they are carefree and selfish, How to Be Childless instead argues that the lives of childless individuals from the past can help all of us expand our range of possibilities for the good life. In uncovering the voices and experiences of childless women from the past five hundred years, Chrastil demonstrates that the pathways to childlessness, so often simplified as "choice" and "circumstance," are far more complex and interweaving. Balanced, deeply researched, and richly realized, How to be Childless will empower readers, parents and childless alike, to navigate their lives with purpose.

"Late twentieth-century culture is saturated with images. As home photographs shift from the print format to digital technology and as video moves from the television screen to multimedia, it is crucial to develop new strategies of interpreting and analyzing these images."--Jacket.

Each no. includes a Directory of railway officials.

In this important book Chris Maser covers the ecological characteristics of forests and asks -- what makes up a forest? He discusses the science and technology of forestry and the uncertainties we face in our attempts to manage forests throughout the world.Sustainable Forestry also deals with current management problems within the forestry profession, beginning with university training and ending with dysfunction in land management agencies. Important topics such as forest planning, establishing an environmental vision and resolving conflicts are also discussed.-- Provides a characterization of a forest as a dynamic living organism which is far more complex than just its trees-- Examines the fundamental issues concerning biological sustainability-- Suggests a new role for governmental forestry services as agents for change-- Discusses the importance of sustainability to critical natural resources such as water supply-- Discusses forest planning as the bridge between environmental conflict and a workable environmental/social vision of the future

This sourcebook provides information to help the elderly, soon-to-be elderly, & others understand the aging process & the choices that must be made & pursued to maintain health. A glossary, suggested reading list, references, & resource directory are also provided.