Ethics-Governance: Article: eMJA: Savulescu, Reproductive technology, efficiency and equality

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eMJA: Savulescu, Reproductive technology, efficiency and equality Sex, Science & Society Reproductive technology, efficiency and equality Our challenge is to ensure everyone can share the benefits of reproductive technologies Julian Savulescu MJA 1999; 171: 668-670 As epitomised by the Clinton sex scandal, "having sex" can be an elusive concept to define. For this article, I will define "having sex" broadly as any intentional physical touching between at least two persons which results in sexual feelings in at least one of them. What I will argue is that one possibility -- the Radical Possibility -- is that many people may not be having sex in 2099. The interesting question is not "Will we be having sex in the year 2099?" but "Who will be having sex in 2099?". Having sex has two primary purposes: pleasure and reproduction. Some would add intimacy and expression of love. There are also secondary purposes, such as providing employment, or to obtain physical protection. The radical possibility Sex for pleasure and Nozick's Experience Machine In 1974, the philosopher Robert Nozick asked us to imagine what life would be like in the "Experience Machine", a machine with electrodes that can be implanted into our brains to provide any set of experiences which we dial up, including "writing a great novel, or making a friend, or reading an interesting book. All the time you would be floating in a tank, with electrodes attached to your brain". Nozick is sceptical that we would plug in to such a machine. What does matter to us in addition to our experiences? First, we want to do certain things, it is only because we want to do the actions that we want the experiences of doing them or thinking that we've done them . Full Article: http://www.mja.com.au/public/issues/171_11_061299/savulescu/savulescu.html


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