Our Greeter today was Ray Stock and he did a marvelous job.
President –Elect Mike Gschwendtner rang the bell at 7:30 A.M. to open the meeting.
Pastor Jean Masiko gave a very nice invocation noting that today is Flag Day.
The assembled then said the pledge of Allegiance.
P-E Mike G. says the word from the country is “A man without ethics is a wild beast loosed upon this world.” Said Albert Camus.
GUESTS:
Wilmer Schultz, Emmaus RC.
And Honorary Member Dave Dries, Spring Township RC, was with us today.
P-E Mike showed many slides of photographs from our last meeting about our finances, and then Herb Klotz passing around Pizza slices at the Thursday Evening Mixer meeting. We saw Ihor Fedoriw having breakfast with Arch Klumph. We saw the $16,000 check presentation for Sierra Leone from the Parkland HS seniors. And there were pictures of the Klotz’ and the Webers at the RI Convention in Atlanta.
SCHEDULE:
President Dan continues to e-mail us and provide hard copies of an updated list of volunteer opportunities and future events.
Our next Thursday Evening meeting will be June 22nd at the Pub at the Holiday Inn starting at 5:30 P.M.
Today and tomorrow we volunteer at the Lowhill Food Pantry.
Camp Neidig (RYLA) is this weekend with the BBQ and closing ceremony on Monday evening the 19th.
Saturday, June 17th we volunteer at the LV Zoo.
Jun 28th -- AWRC Changeover meeting at Luther Crest.
Jun 30th is DINING OUT at Nostos Greek Restaurant at 701 N. 19th Street in Allentown, 6 PM start; free glass of wine, or BYOB. This may be rescheduled.
PARTY FOR Marti:
There is a party for this year’s Youth Exchange Student, Marti, starting at 4:00 PM on July 9th at the Earl Adams Memorial Park at 8935 Breinigsville Rd. Please bring beverages and a food item for your group to share around. There is a pavilion reserved. Wendy Weaver has a sign-up sheet going around.
SHELTERBOX:
Mike read to us a thank you note we received from ShelterBox USA for our support.
OUR NEWEST RC:
Bill palmer gave a report on the Charter Dinner celebration for the new Upper Perkiomen RC. See separate article.
AND, of course, you always can have your breakfast at our meetings sitting with Arch Klumph for a donation of $26.50 --- or more --- to the Rotary Foundation. Over half of our members have done this.
NEXT WEEK our Greeter will be Jerry Frank and the program will be three Attendees of Camp Neidig -- Talking About Their Experiences.
LUCK of the DRAW:
S-a-A Don Davis conducted the drawings.
The door prize, donated by Ray Stock was won by Marlene Ritter.
The $90 of the 50:50 pot was not won by Ron Coleman’s ticket being drawn.
HAPPY DOLLARS:
We each contributed a dollar for Flag Day, AND the 242nd birthday of the U.S. Army.
Wendy Weaver reports that her niece was able to walk up a step and then down, mostly on her own. Her hands still are not usable. There always is hope.
Geoff Legg’s granddaughter is heading to Point Pleasant, NJ, for two-person beach Volley Ball.
Mitch Huston told a funny joke about President Dan’s experience in a bar.
PROGRAM:
P-E Mike introduced our speaker for today, Dr.Theodore W. Schick, Jr., PhD from Muhlenberg College whose topic is Neuroethics: The Ethical & Legal Challenges of the New Brain Science. Dr. Schick is a Professor of Philosophy and Director, Muhlenberg Scholars Program. He has a B.A., from Harvard University and a Ph.D., from Brown University, and has published 3 textbooks, among many accomplishments.
There is an assumption that humans think with their brains. Dualism is the belief that there are two kinds of reality: material (physical) and immaterial (spiritual). IDualism is the position that mind and body are in some categorical way separate from each other, and that mental phenomena are, in some respects, non-physical in nature.
Dr. Schick’s PowerPoint presentation is partially copied as text that follows.
Neuroethics is the branch of bioethics that seeks to develop an ethical framework for regulating the conduct and application of neuroscientific research.
Biblical Scholars on the Soul --
“There appears to be a rare unanimity among biblical scholars that the biblical picture of the person is non-dualist, and that the Bible gives little or no support to the idea that a person is essentially a soul or that the soul is separable from the body.” -- Adrian Thatcher, University of Exeter.
“Biblical scholarship has established quite conclusively that there is no dichotomous concept of man in the Bible, such as is found in Greek and Hindu thought. The biblical view of man is holistic, not dualistic.”-- Lynn de Silva, 1919-1982.
“What is the meaning of the Christian hope in this life?... A tiny soul which, like a butterfly, flutters above the grave and is still preserved somewhere, in order to live on immortally? That is how the heathen looked on life after death. But that is not the Christian hope…. ‘I believe in the resurrection of the body.”
“And ye, in putting them [the departed souls] in heaven, hell, and purgatory, destroy the arguments wherewith Christ and Paul prove the resurrection.... And again, if the souls be in heaven, tell me why they be not in as good case as the angels be? And then what cause is there of the resurrection?” -- William Tyndale, 1494-1536.
The Brain is the Organ of Thought --
The brain is not a relay station for the soul.
You think (feel, sense) with your brain.
When your brain dies, you cease to exist.
Whole brain vs. higher brain death –
You can lose the ability to think long before the whole brain dies. Over 10,000 people are in a permanent vegetative state in the U.S. at a cost of $500,000 - $1 million each per year.
What Neuroscience has Revealed:
-that criminals’ brains are different from normal brains.
-that through brain scans we can tell not only whether you’re lying, but also what you’re thinking and what you’re planning to do.
-that through drugs and implants we can not only erase memories, but also change your personality, character, and mental abilities.
Ethical Questions Raised by Neuroscience –
If criminals’ actions are due to faulty brains, should we hold them responsible? Should we force them to get their brains fixed?
If brain scans can tell whether someone is lying, should we force him or her to be scanned? Can employers force employees to get brain scans?
If we can erase memories, alter personalities, or enhance mental abilities, should we?
Metaphysical Questions Raised by Neuroscience –
If all of our thoughts and actions are the result of neurons firing in our brains in accordance with the laws of physics, do we have free will?
If our desires, personality, and character are the result of a constantly changing network of neurons, do we have a continuing self that retains its identity over time?
Consider Alex, a normal person turned pedophile pp
At 40, he developed an interest in child pornography and was found guilty of sexual molestation.
While in rehab, neurosurgeons discovered a massive tumor in his orbitofrontal cortex.
After it was removed, his pedophilia went away.
Ethical Questions:
Should Alex have to serve time for behavior caused by a brain tumor?
What if we found out that Jerry Sandusky had a brain tumor?
Consider Bradley Waldroup, carrier of the warrior gene ==
In 2006, he slashed his wife repeatedly with a machete and shot her girlfriend to death.
Psychiatrists found that he had a history of child abuse and the warrior gene, a shortened version of the MAOA gene, which increases the chance for violent crime by 400%.
Instead of first degree murder, the jury found him guilty of voluntary manslaughter and attempted second degree murder.
Ethical questions –
Suppose we can fix the warrior gene through genetic engineering. Should we force them to get the fixed variant?
Should we DNA type every baby at birth, and have those with the bad variant treated?
Alternatively, should we assign them a social worker to check their progress?
Drug Vaccination –
Scientists have developed a cocaine vaccine by binding a cocaine molecule to a cold virus.
Subsequently, whenever cocaine is introduced, the immune system neutralizes it before it reaches the brain.
Should we inoculate our children against drug abuse like we do measles?
The Brain-based Lie Detector: No Lie MRI
Brain Fingerprinting --
Dr. Lawrence Farwell’s brain fingerprinting device detects p300 waves which are emitted when someone recognizes an image.
It has been used to exonerate people convicted of a crime by indicating they weren’t present at the scene of a crime.
Ethical Questions:
Suppose we have a reliable brain scanning lie detector:
Should we force those accused of a crime or those testifying in court to be scanned by it?
Would that be like forcing people to give physical evidence or like testifying against themselves?
Should employers use it in place of traditional lie detectors?
Memory Erasure --
Because of stress hormones, traumatic memories are stored differently from normal memories.
Neuroscientists believe they can blunt or erase these memories by triggering them and then administering drugs.
Proponolol and Memory Damping ==
Propranolol is a beta-blocker that weakens emotions associated with a memory.
Would taking proponolol after a violent act make violence seem more tolerable?
Is there a social obligation to remember with vivid intensity horrible acts like the holocaust?
PMK zeta, ZIP and Memory Erasure –
ZIP (Zeta Inhibitor Protein) blocks the activity of PKM zeta which is necessary to form a memory or store it after recalled.
It could be used to cure chronic pain, OCD, addiction.
Should we give it to victims of violent crime or trauma?
Ethical Questions:
Many believe your identity resides in your memory.
Is erasing your memories like erasing your identity?
Scientists are already in the business of memory erasure: electroshock therapy.
Could complete memory erasure be offered as an alternative to the death penalty?
Cognitive Enhancement –
“40 potential cognitive enhancers are currently in clinical development.”
--NeuroInvestment
These cannot only improve memory, but IQ and moral decision making.
Ethical Question –
Should cognitive enhancers be available to those with normal brain function?
Will this increase inequality?
Will people be pressured to use them to keep up?
Can employers require you to take them?
A Brave New World --------
No one owns his own personality…You had no say about what kind of personality you acquired, and there is no reason to believe you should have the right to refuse to acquire a new personality if your old one is antisocial….Today’s neuroscientists are the architects and engineers of the Brave New World.”
--James McConnell
CLOSING:
We closed the meeting by reciting the saying “One profits most who serves best.”
