Undergraduate - UnitATS1263 - Bioethics: Current controversies

This unit entry is for students who completed this unit in 2014 only. For students planning to study the unit, please refer to the unit indexes in the the current edition of the Handbook. If you have any queries contact the managing faculty for your course or area of study.

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6 points, SCA Band 1, 0.125 EFTSL

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Level	Undergraduate
Faculty	Faculty of Arts
Organisational Unit	Centre for Human Bioethics
Offered	Caulfield First semester 2014 (Day) Clayton First semester 2014 (Day)
Coordinator(s)	Professor Michael Selgelid

Notes

Previously coded CHB1010

Synopsis

This unit investigates ethical issues raised by current and likely future developments in biotechnology and genetics. The unit examines ethical controversy surrounding the following topics, outlining the latest research in each case: genetic engineering and 'enhancement' of human traits; preimplantation and prenatal genetic diagnosis and selection; therapeutic and reproductive cloning; stem cell research; genetic modification of organisms; synthetic biology; and biological weapons.

Outcomes

On successfully completing this unit, students will have: a familiarity with contemporary and historical debates about new technologies in bioethics; skills that enable them to think critically about some key ethical issues raised by current and future developments in biotechnology and genetics; and the ability to make informed judgements about those ethical issues.