Saturday, February 4, 2012

Another ethics question


For comparison, chimps share about 99% of our DNA.  Mice share about 85%.  Pumpkins share about 70%.  There is a lot of junk DNA in our genome that we don’t even need.

So imagine someone is developing a cyborg.  Because of all the electronics, not much human genetic information would be necessary.  They can skip the breathing, circulation, immune system, and more.  But they do include the genes that make the cyborg look, sound, and behave like a real human.  Perhaps it shares 50% of human DNA to achieve this.  Less than a pumpkin.  But by choosing specific genes, it is almost impossible to tell apart the cyborg from a real person. 

Does the cyborg get human rights?  It has less DNA in common with a human than a pumpkin does and we don’t give rights to pumpkins.  But it looks and acts like a human.  What defines a human - actual biology or the perceptual things like appearance and behavior?  What kinds of entities merit individual rights? Responsibilities and obligations?  Do you put the cyborg in jail if it commits a crime?  Or do you put the programmer in jail?  

Just a curiosity for the day.

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