Event Description

Should we use biotechnology to make humans “better?” Gene editing, pharmaceuticals, and computer tissue implants, among other interventions, will soon be used not just to treat problems, but to enhance human abilities. Everything from our physical capacities to our emotions, intelligence, and personalities could soon be enhanced or altered according to our wants—or the wants of others.

How might biomedical enhancement reshape humans and society? Should we support and prioritize this research? What are the ethical questions that we as individuals and a society need to answer? Join Bill Kabasenche, professor of philosophy, for a discussion on what defines humanity, and how technology could change that forever.

Bill Kabasenche (he/him) is a professor of philosophy at Washington State University’s School of Politics, Philosophy, and Public Affairs. He is also the ethics thread director for the WSU College of Medicine and a fellow in the Center for Reproductive Biology. He has written about the use of pharmaceutical and genetic interventions to enhance human capacities for memory, moral behavior, and athletic performance.

Kabasenche lives in Pullman.

This talk is presented in partnership with The Thomas S. Foley Institute for Public Policy and Public Service, which educates citizens across the state about democratic institutions and public affairs, and is based at Washington State University. For more information, visit The Foley Institute’s website.