Bertolt Meyer, the academic known as "the bionic man", said yesterday that scientists and engineers should not be allowed to launch some technological advances on the open market without a prior ethical debate. Meyer, a key speaker at the first FutureFest event last weekend, has had a cutting-edge £40,000 artificial lower arm and hand since 2009. He queried whether the public ought to let the laws of supply and demand decide how the human race moves towards a probable "bionic" future; a time where the bodies of those with access and money can be enhanced and augmented. "We are reaching the point where people with artificial limbs may have an advantage. It they start to appeal to everyone, a mass market will develop," he said. Engineers on the frontline of research are not always prepared to think through the impact of their work and the ethical dilemmas involved, he argued.

Pray: for a considered international debate about the ethics and availability of developments in human bionics. (1Cor.6:19-20)

More: http://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2013/sep/29/bionic-man-ethical-debate-futurefest