Registration: 9 am
Panel 1: The Science of the Genome (9.30 am – 11 am)
Paul Griffiths, Guy Brown
Does the spectre of genetic engineering raised by Habermas and Sandel have any foundation in scientific fact? Do genes control development to the extent that they might allow us to “manufacture” human beings according to a blueprint?
Panel 2: The Ethics of Enhancement (11.30 am – 1 pm)
Michael Hauskeller, Guy Kahane
Do the arguments put forwards by Habermas and Sandel have any generally validity? Or do they tacitly presuppose a specific religious outlook?
Panel 3: Autonomy and Creatureliness (2 pm – 3.30 pm)
Robert Song, Anja Karnein/Mattias Iser
Are the liberal eugenics really liberal? Or do they threaten to divide society into two castes: the designers and the designed?
Round-Table: Theology in Public Arena (4 pm – 5.30 pm)
Nigel Biggar, Stephen Clarke, David Jones, John Harris
Is it permissible to introduce theological ideas into public discourse, even in “translated” form? Or should public discourse remain secular?
