Ancient mythology tells the story of Prometheus, a Greek God condemned to eternal punishment after providing the human population with fire. Prometheus was fettered to boulders atop the Caucasus Mountains and day by day, a ravenous Eagle would attack and devour pieces of his liver. However, each night the organ would regenerate, becoming healthy and operative once again. Although Prometheus’ instantaneous recovery is not yet attainable with modern medicine, the myth parallels contemporary scientific efforts to restore damaged tissue caused by idiopathic illness or trauma. Researchers believe that with continual study, human embryonic stem cell research will eradicate the promises of research, transforming them into reality.1 Stem cells are undifferentiated cells found throughout various organs and tissues of the body, capable of specializing into distinctive cell types. While stem cells may renew …show more content…
Many people debate over the morality of embryonic research, due to the destruction of the embryo. Discourse stems from the argument of “when does life begin” and “what is the appropriate moral status of the embryo,” reinforcing that any eradication of life is barbaric. When an embryo is destroyed for stem cell research, the potential that the life may have had is also ruined. Additionally, stem cell research is a futile threat that can be seen as playing God. Since the beginning of time, evolutionary trends and patterns have modified Earth’s ecosystems. However, as technology advances, humans begin to modify animals, food, and disease, genetically interfering with the natural course of life. This argument usually arises when researchers artificially generate human embryos, quickly research them, and discard the remains. Morally, people will argue the equivalency to murder, as in both cases, a helpless life is