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Ethics of Lifespan Extension

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Encyclopedia of Gerontology and Population Aging

Synonyms

Ethics of longevity; Moral debate over life extension

Definition

Debate around the appropriate moral principles that should govern the use and application of antiaging science where it may be used to radically extend Homo sapiens lifespan.

Introduction to the Debate

Radical life extension is an example of a human enhancement technology, one designed to grant a new, or augment an existing, capacity to Homo sapiens. Life extension is subject to fierce debate within certain sections of global bioethics (broadly conceived), and it is a topic that will likely never be agreed upon. A vast proportion of literature concerning human enhancement of any type is to some extent morally partisan, arguing from solidified pro- or anti-enhancement positions. Well-reasoned discourse in the field is not rare; however, while the debate broadly concentrates on the virtues of pursuing the technologies, it is likely to remain at an academic stalemate. Those in favor promote the potentialities with...

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Newcastle University School of Law, Newcastle-upon-Tyne, UK

    David R. Lawrence

Authors
  1. David R. Lawrence
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to David R. Lawrence .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Population Division, UN Dept of Economic Social Affairs Population Division, New York, NY, USA

    Danan Gu

  2. Department of Population Health Sciences, Duke University School of Medicine, Durham, NC, USA

    Matthew E. Dupre

Section Editor information

  1. Science, Technology and Society, Bar Ilan University, Ramat Gan, Israel

    Ilia Stambler

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Lawrence, D.R. (2019). Ethics of Lifespan Extension. In: Gu, D., Dupre, M. (eds) Encyclopedia of Gerontology and Population Aging. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-69892-2_392-1

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-69892-2_392-1

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  • Publisher Name: Springer, Cham

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-319-69892-2

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-319-69892-2

  • eBook Packages: Springer Reference Biomedicine and Life SciencesReference Module Biomedical and Life Sciences

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