Download Call for papers Interdisciplinary postgraduate workshop In co

Call for papers
Interdisciplinary postgraduate workshop
In co-operation with the Forum Scientiarum, University Tübingen
Human Enhancement: toward a new kind of human being?
Anthropological and ethical perspectives on biological and technical possibilities
January the 15th and 16th 2016 at the Eberhard-Karls University Tübingen
Topic
As a being of nature and culture ('Natur-Kulturwesen'), man has always been changing itself and its environment
('Umwelt') and constantly strives for the improvement of its skills and characteristics. As a consequence of the
vast increase in biotechnological possibilities for direct intervention in the organism, classic forms of selfformation are now exceeded widely, posing new challenges for ethics and anthropology. Biotechnological
interventions which are either already possible or at least anticipated, aim extensively at invasive potentiation of
basic physical and psychological dispositions. These practices of human enhancement have understandably
been the subject of heated professional, as well as public, debate, whereas the Austrian philosopher Konrad Paul
Liessmann in this context states that “being human can only be designated as an open project.”
Based on the sites and scopes of these interventions, neuro-enhancements particularly evoke large
uneasiness. All the more, as they seem to challenge our opinions on personal integrity and thereby the ways in
which we conceive of ourselves in a particularly poignant way. The ethical recommendations meant to guide the
praxis of human enhancement, have for a long time been based largely on legal, medical and social
considerations. Mindful of moral pluralism and in order to meet the heavily disputed issues connected with human
enhancement in all their complexities, it is necessary though, to take into consideration a broad scope of
anthropological and moral-philosophical theories. Moreover, many of those who in their practical or scientific work
are confronted with issues concerning human enhancement, wish for recommendations, marked not only by the
conventions of our society, legal agreements or empirical results, but taking into account and explicating our
moral convictions and our conceptions of human nature ('Menschenbilder') as well. The increasing control we
have over human life, should therefore be taken as an opportunity to reconsider our basic moral convictions and
their links to anthropological theory.
With their far-reaching consequences for our self-understanding as persons and for what we, as such,
consider to be important, invasive neuro-enhancement techniques can serve here as concrete examples, up for
interdisciplinary reflection. They concretely confront us with the fundamental question, of how in the future we
want to see ourselves as human beings. A question which extends further into discussions on such topics as
personhood and autonomous, self-responsible action.
Keynote Speakers
* Prof Dr Jens Clausen
* Prof Dr Marcus Düwell
* Dr Reinoud de Jongh
* Prof Dr Karl-Siegbert Rehberg
* Prof Dr Stephan Schleim
Applying for a talk
Places are available for talks (max. 30 min. + 15 min. discussion, in German or English) on empirical, anthropological and/or
ethical aspects of human enhancement, preferably in connection with the challenges outlined above.
We invite interested researchers (primary focus is at the doctoral level, but predoctoral and postdoctoral researchers
are also welcome) to apply, by sending in an abstract (max. 500 words; including title, your name and address) until
(incl.) December the 1st 2015 to: [email protected]. Notifications of acceptance will be
sent out December the 15th the latest. Because of limited seating capacity, we ask those interested in attending only to register
by December the 15th 2015. For all speakers the costs of both the joint dinner on the evening of Friday January the 15th 2015,
as well as accommodation will be covered by the organisation. Others are welcome to join for dinner at own expense: please
inform us when registering.
__________________________________________________________________________________________
Organisation
Katrin E. Lörch-Merkle
Albert H. van der Veer
Institute for Ethics and History in Medicine,
Max Planck Institute for Biological
Eberhard-Karls-University Tübingen
Cybernetics, Tübingen
[email protected]
[email protected]
Sponsors
This workshop is made possible by generous sponsoring from the Graduate Academy of the University of Tübingen
(Excellence initiative, DFG) (pending approval). The venue has been kindly made available by the Forum Scientiarum at the
University of Tübingen.