Advances in biomedical technology have led to new and troubling issues at the beginning and end of life. This talk will briefly review how developments in reproductive technology, prenatal screening, embryology and neonatal intensive care have changed our attitudes to parenthood and brought new urgency to long-standing debates about the value and significance of developing human life.
Similarly at the end of life the rise of interest in euthanasia and physician assisted suicide is driven in part by technological and interventionist medical care. A central issue in contemporary ethical debates is the nature of personhood and the talk will contrast contemporary naturalistic and Christian perspectives and draw out the practical implications of these differing perspectives for medical and social care.
John Wyatt
Jose Manuel Gimenez-Amaya is Professor of Anatomy and Embryology. MD and PhD in biomedical research at the Autonomous University of Madrid; he is also PhD in Philosophy at the University of Navarre. He has published 2 books and more of 150 contributions in specialized journals and books. He has given around 100 conferences in research institutions of Europe, United States and Canada. He has been visiting Professor at MIT (Cambridge, Massachusetts), Rochester Medical School (Rochester, New York), University of California at San Diego (San Diego, California), Aarhus University (Denmark) and Heidelberg University (Germany). At present, he is the Director of the Research Group in Science, Reason and Faith of the University of Navarre.
