8/8/18 Bionics: The development of a bionic person and it's use in the military

8/8/18

Supporting Bionics for Humans?

My first feeling about this topic is that I would support the option of bionics for humans in need of limbs, in place of old prosthetic limbs that have previously existed. I have not had to worry about this personally for myself or any of my family members, but I imagine that for someone who does, advances in science in this field are really important for having a more functional, happy life. I had a childhood friend who didn’t need a prosthetic limb, but was disabled and needed braces from the waist down as a child to assist with walking. These things were heavy, stiff, ugly and just archaic! It sounds like newer developments are moving toward more sophisticated options that are more accessible for average people. The UK based tech company mentioned in our readings is using 3-D printing technology to create prosthetic limbs which are more affordable. This sounds like a good thing. Especially for a child, being mobile and being able to do the things other kids do is really important.

I would definitely think again about supporting the “development of a bionic person” though. What does this mean? A non-human completely robotic bionic being? I wonder about this and what the implications of this would be years down the line. And it has me wondering about the companies that create this type of technology. What are the regulations around this sort of thing? Does anyone oversee these types of technologies? I think that just because we have the technology to do certain things, it doesn’t mean that we should. We need to slow things down a little bit. Traditional cultures would look seven generations ahead to what the consequences would be on future generations. And I know the mindset of any military leader would be bigger, stronger, faster and so the development of a bionic person for these purposes is enticing. I would not support this. My view is the opposite, my biggest hope is that we would begin dismantling military technology worldwide and while I don’t think we could ever eliminate conflict altogether, we would ultimately vow to solve conflict without killing.

I am a big believer in the precautionary principle! These are guidelines that arose in the environmental realm, but I think could be applied for all advances having serious implications for our world.

“The precautionary principle, proposed as a new guideline in environmental decision making, has four central components: taking preventive action in the face of uncertainty; shifting the burden of proof to the proponents of an activity; exploring a wide range of alternatives to possibly harmful actions; and increasing public participation in decision making.”