On The Function of Music

“The function of music is to release us from the tyranny of conscious thought.”

– Thomas Beecham

Conversations: Stem-cell Research

Helena
Qualms about embryonic stem-cell research are obscene. Stem-cell research has been one of the most promising developments in the last century of medicine. It could offer therapeutic breakthroughs for every disease or injury process that human beings suffer—for the simple reason that embryonic stem cells can become any tissue in the human body.

Sappho
And this research may also be essential for our understanding of cancer, along with a wide variety of developmental disorders. Now, given these facts, it is almost impossible to exaggerate the promise of stem-cell research.

Galene
That’s all very well and good, but research on embryonic stem cells entails the destruction of three-day-old human embryos. This should give us pause.

Sappho
Of course! There are major ethical issues at play here, and we should consider those carefully. Let’s look at the details: