Promises and rules: The implications of rethinking the 14‐day rule for research on human embryos |
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Authors: | Tsutomu Sawai Go Okui Kyoko Akatsuka Tomohiro Minakawa |
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Affiliation: | 1. Bioethics and Philosophy Group, Institute for the Advanced Study of Human Biology (WPI‐ASHBi), Kyoto University, Kyoto Japan ; 2. Uehiro Research Division for iPS Cell Ethics, Center for iPS Cell Research and Application, Kyoto University, Kyoto Japan ; 3. Department of Cell Growth and Differentiation, Center for iPS Cell Research and Application, Kyoto University, Kyoto Japan |
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Abstract: | Removing the 14‐day limit for research on human embryos without public deliberation could jeopardize public trust in and support of research on human development. Subject Categories: Development & Differentiation, S&S: Economics & Business, Molecular Biology of DiseaseIn On Revolution, Hannah Arendt, one of the great political thinkers of the 20th century, stated that “promises and agreements deal with the future and provide stability in the ocean of future uncertainty where the unpredictable may break in from all sides” (Arendt, 1963). She cited the Mayflower Compact, which was “drawn up on the ship and signed upon landing” on the uncharted territory of the American continent, as such an example of promise in Western history. Human beings are born with the capacity to act freely amid the vast ocean of uncertainty, but this capacity also creates unpredictable and irreversible consequences. Thus, in society and in politics, moral virtues can only persist through “making promises and keeping them” (Arendt, 1959). |
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