For two and a half centuries, philosophers have been asking, “What is humankind?” Yet for several decades now, scientists and doctors have been working to recreate humankind with unprecedented drive.
The philosopher and journalist Jürgen Wiebicke poses the urgent question of how far we want to follow them. Organ transplants, gerontology, euthanasia, brain doping, robot ethics, genetic engineering: the renovation of “Project Humankind” is advancing at a rapid pace. Bioengineers, nano-researchers, computer scientists and neuroscientists are trying everything to optimize Adam and Eve. Will we soon stop speaking about humans as humans because we will already be post-human creatures in the not too distant future?
What is certain is that our old system of moral convictions no longer works, and that we must decide: Is man still something special or just an animal among animals? Do we need to make technological improvements on ourselves so we can be smarter, more beautiful, happier? Or can we remain as we are?
Jürgen Wiebicke visits the most important major ethical construction sites of our time, where people are grappling to determine whether human dignity still serves us well as a foundation. For the time has come to give new thought to the idea of the good life. An intelligent, informative and brilliantly written book that, in times of profound uncertainty, helps us find our own answers to the question, “How do I want to live?”
