1. Bringing a Neanderthal to Life (Practice Problem)*

Appendix 1Four Fractious Problems

1. Bringing a Neanderthal to Life (Practice Problem)*

Examining a fully analyzed Neanderthal genome might illuminate some of the genetic differences between Neanderthals and modern humans and their significance. But what if scientific curiosity extended to attempts—potentially successful—to bring a Neanderthal to life?

You are staffers for a senator in the state legislature who has heard that bringing a Neanderthal to life might be possible and that there are researchers within the state who are contemplating joining a research team to attempt the feat. These attempts, and, if the attempts were successful, the birth of a Neanderthal might occur within the state. The senator has asked you to prepare a presentation for her and fellow members of the state senate’s committee on scientific research and innovation.

She asks you to include in your presentation your findings about the current status of research on the Neanderthal genome and on the possibility of bringing a Neanderthal to life; the ethical and policy issues that attempts, including successful and unsuccessful attempts, would present; and your assessment of how these issues ought to be resolved.

* This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License. To view a copy of this license, visit or send a letter to Creative Commons, 444 Castro Street, Suite 900, Mountain View, California, 94041, USA.

Primary contact author: Edward L. Queen II

Alternative contact author: Roberta M. Berry

2. Neuroimaging and Violence in the Educational Setting**

Neuroimaging is the generic term given to a variety of techniques used to study and evaluate the structure of the brain and its functioning. These techniques have been developed only recently, but research and innovation in the field has seen explosive growth in the last decade. The use of neuroimaging techniques is rapidly expanding in both clinical and research settings.

You are members of a joint task force on violence in education created by your state’s Board of Regents (the agency that administers the state’s public higher education system) and your state’s Department of Education (the agency that administers the state’s public kindergarten through 12th grade education system). These agencies are concerned about incidents of violence on campuses and of bullying and aggression in schools. The agencies are considering whether they should recommend to the state legislature enactment of a law permitting or requiring the use of neuroimaging tests as an aid to predicting the likely future dangerousness of students identified as “at-risk” by campus or school health, educational, or administrative personnel. The purpose of the tests would be to help determine whether these students (1) should be required to undergo therapy as a condition of their continuing enrollment, both for the sake of their own well being as well as the safety of others, or (2) if all of the evidence indicates a very high level of potentialdangerousness, should be expelled from colleges and universities or, in the case of school children, diverted to alternative school settings tailored to the needs of at-risk children.

The joint task force is charged with presenting these two agencies with findings regarding the current scientific status of neuroimaging techniques and their potential value in making these determinations and regarding the ethical and policy issues associated with their use in making these determinations. The joint task force is also charged with making recommendations about whether a law regarding the use of these tests should be enacted and, if so, what the law should provide.

** This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License. To view a copy of this license, visit send a letter to Creative Commons, 444 Castro Street, Suite 900, Mountain View, California, 94041, USA.

Primary contact author: Gillian Hue Beckford

Alternative contact author: Roberta M. Berry

3. Forensic DNA Identification***

As genomic technologies improve, there has been increased demand for the collection, storage, and use of DNA samples. DNA samples have been collected for a number of purposes, both by government agencies and private entities, including to identify rare but harmful genetic conditions in newborns, for research purposes, and to exculpate or exonerate persons who are currently suspected of committing crimes or who have been convicted of committing crimes previously.

In addition, both the federal and state governments have authorized the collection of DNA samples from persons who have been arrested or convicted of certain crimes for the purpose of creating DNA databases that can be used to help identify persons who commit future crimes. Some have argued that these DNA databases should be expanded in various ways, perhaps even to include information from DNA samples taken from everyone who is born in or who enters the U.S. There are many unsolved crimes and these databases might help bring more perpetrators to justice for their crimes as well as prevent future crimes. These expanded databases might be used for other important purposes as well, such as identifying missing persons, fatalities from natural disasters, or victims of terrorist attacks. Others have expressed concerns about constitutional, ethical, policy, scientific, and technological issues associated with current and potential practices in creating and using DNA databases for forensic identification.

Prepare findings, analysis, and recommendations regarding current State of Georgia and federal practices regarding the creation and use of DNA databases for forensic identification and whether these current practices should be restricted or expanded or otherwise revised.

*** This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License. To view a copy of this license, visit send a letter to Creative Commons, 444 Castro Street, Suite 900, Mountain View, California, 94041, USA.

Primary contact author: Leslie E. Wolf

Alternative contact author: Roberta M. Berry

4. Sports Enhancement in U.S. Professional Sports Leagues****

Many accomplishments in sports have been made possible by advances in biomedicine and biotechnology, from restoring the pitching arms of baseball players with “Tommy John surgery” to enabling amputees to compete in track events using high-tech prosthetic legs. Other reported accomplishments in sports have been attributed, in part, to the use of performance-enhancing drugs (PEDs), some of which are banned. Many additional biomedical and biotechnological means of improving performance in sports may be possible, including additional surgical interventions, prostheses, and PEDs as well as “gene doping” and computer implants. Eventually, genetic engineering of human embryos for traits that contribute to sports performance may also be possible. Contentious ethical and policy debate surrounds both current and prospective biomedical and biotechnological means of sports enhancement. Sports enhancement has already drawn the attention of sports organizations as well as the U.S. Congress.

You are staff members for a U.S. Senator, Senator Sportzfan, who is concerned about the ethical and policy issues raised by current and prospective biomedical and biotechnological means of sports enhancement. Senator Sportzfan is considering introducing a bill to address sports enhancement in the following U.S. major professional sports leagues: Major League Baseball (MLB), the National Basketball Association (NBA), the National Football League (NFL), and the National Hockey League (NHL).

Senator Sportzfan requests your assistance in determining whether such a bill should be introduced and, if so, what the bill should provide. To help the Senator make that determination, you have been asked to prepare a slide presentation and a report that (1) analyze the ethical and policy issues associated with current and prospective biomedical and biotechnological means of sports enhancement in these four U.S. professional sports leagues, and (2) propose and justify appropriate policy resolutions for these issues. For purposes of this presentation and report, assume that the U.S. Congress has the authority to enact legislation to regulate sports enhancement in these professional leagues.

**** This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License. To view a copy of this license, visit send a letter to Creative Commons, 444 Castro Street, Suite 900, Mountain View, California, 94041, USA.

Contact authors: Roberta M. Berry ;Ruchir N. Karmali ; Jason L. Wang

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