In this blog post, we take an in-depth look at whether we can accept another “me” created by science now that human cloning technology is becoming a reality.
On May 16, 2017, Korea’s first unmanned smart convenience store equipped with biometric technology opened on the 31st floor of Lotte World Tower in Jamsil, Seoul. The core technology behind this store is the HandPay system. It is a type of BioPay that enables payment using specific parts of the human body, and it is a technology that distinguishes individuals by using the unique patterns of veins in each person’s hands, enabling identity verification and payment with just a palm scan. This biometric recognition technology is attracting attention as a technology that can optimize the shopping environment for consumers and enhance security and stability. However, in a society where such technology is implemented, what would happen if there were people with the same genes as me, who not only look the same but also have the same vein patterns? With the passage of time and the advancement of science and technology, it has become possible to ask such questions, and the debate on human cloning has entered a new phase. First, let’s look at the historical background of this debate.
On February 24, 1997, news that Ian Wilmut and his fellow scientists had created a cloned sheep named Dolly caused a sensation around the world. Five months after Dolly’s existence was revealed to the world, Wilmut’s team succeeded in inserting human genes into sheep cells, developing a method for handling the genes and cells of all mammals, including humans. With the rapid advancement of biotechnology, scientific theories and possibilities regarding human cloning began to emerge, along with various controversies. As the possibility of human cloning became a reality in the not-too-distant future, various biotechnological and medical benefits were proposed. However, not only numerous scientists and theologians, but also ordinary citizens were overwhelmed by ethical confusion and disgust toward human cloning, and public opinion began to form that human cloning must be prevented. Accordingly, considering the importance of respecting bioethics, countries around the world strictly prohibited human cloning and research on it through various treaties and laws before the turn of the millennium. Since then, rapid advances in science, technology, and industry have continued, and now we find ourselves in the midst of the Fourth Industrial Revolution. Reading books on human cloning and focusing on the ongoing development of science, philosophy, and ethics in this era has led me to new insights on the debate surrounding human cloning. Looking at it from this new perspective, I came to believe that human cloning is likely to pose greater risks, and therefore, this technology must be viewed critically on a personal, social, and national level. In this article, I will examine human cloning in light of two representative topics of the Fourth Industrial Revolution: the hyperconnected society and 3D printing technology. We will examine how much the discussion has deepened compared to the classic debates, whether there are new issues that need to be highlighted, and what problems human cloning poses.
First, let us look at human cloning in a hyper-connected society. A hyper-connected society refers to a future society that will provide a new paradigm based on highly developed IT and smart technologies, in which humans, objects, and data are connected to each other to form a single network that is as if it has intelligence. Following the digital revolution, which made it possible to communicate with people far away through the invention of the telephone and the Internet, the recent development of the Internet of Things (IoT) has enabled objects to connect with each other and with people, bringing about a more connected society in which not only digital devices but also analog devices and even organisms such as humans, which were previously disconnected, can find meaning in the information they exchange and interact with each other. The biometric recognition technology mentioned in the first paragraph is one example of a system that makes up this society. As machines begin to distinguish between people when they use cash or cards to purchase goods, the connection between machines and people is maximizing convenience. Currently, this technology is being implemented through the recognition of parts of the human body, such as irises, fingerprints, and veins, but with the advancement of technology, it is speculated that we will eventually reach a stage where people will be distinguished through genetic information, such as DNA, as depicted in science fiction movies like Gattaca. A society will emerge in which each person is defined by their genes, and genes become the medium for connecting objects, data, and other people. In such an era, cloning humans would pose great risks and problems. The moment a human being with the same genes as you is born, you can no longer be defined as an independent entity, and your unique meaning is divided. The controversy over the possibility of losing this uniqueness has been around since the classic debate on human cloning. The National Bioethics Advisory Commission (NBAC) in the United States investigated the ethical issues of human cloning and submitted a report to the government. This report categorizes the classic arguments against human cloning that were presented at the time, including a section on “cloning and individuality.” Here, we can see that many people at the time were concerned that human cloning would undermine their individuality and identity. Humans form their identity through the union of body and mind, so it is intuitive to expect that the same person would have the same body, which is why fear of cloned humans arose. In addition to this fear, human cloning violates the right to a unique unrepeated genome and is likely to infringe on the rights of cloned humans to an open future. The issue becomes even more complicated when the agenda of human cloning, which has sparked numerous debates simply because of outward similarities, is brought into modern society, where genes are considered to be the essence of human identity. Of course, one could argue that cloned humans are not 100% identical to their originals. Differences in the development process and in the experiences and environment after birth will cause physical and mental differences from the original. However, the fact that the genes and various physical and mental structures will be very similar to the original remains unchanged. Therefore, in a society where the genetic information of all citizens is registered nationally and used to communicate with various data and objects for security and maintenance, cloned humans would become a perfect variable and cause social chaos. Social concerns about this issue are intensifying, as evidenced by the recent broadcast of a drama series about a serial killer who is a cloned human.
Second, let’s look at the debate surrounding human cloning, which has intensified with the advancement of 3D printers. Unlike traditional printers that print on paper using ink or lasers, 3D printers print three-dimensional objects in three-dimensional space. A revolution in manufacturing is coming, where objects will no longer be mass-produced in factories, but rather printed by individuals using 3D printers to create objects according to their own desires. In the last four to five years, 3D printers have become widely available, and related education and platform creation are actively taking place not only in Korea but around the world. There are various forms of objects that can be printed using 3D printers. As the materials used for printing are diversifying, a society is approaching where we will be able to transform and print objects around us, from general plastic items to metals, furniture, food, and even chocolate, as we wish. What we should pay attention to here is “Bio-3D Printing.” This is a fusion of bio-nanotechnology and 3D printing technology, which involves printing “bio ink” such as stem cells in layers to match human tissue and then incubating it to grow tissue. An amazing society is approaching where various tissues and organs in the body, such as blood vessels, eyeballs, livers, and hearts, can be freely printed. In fact, a company called Levotec in Sichuan Province, China, has successfully printed blood vessels using monkey stem cells and transplanted them back into monkeys, demonstrating the potential of this technology. Currently, this technology is being used in the medical field for organ transplants by printing tissues and organs, but with the rapid advancement of technology, the idea has progressed to the stage of replicating and printing humans themselves through 3D printing. This will present a completely new paradigm for human cloning. Until now, cloning humans did not mean creating identical humans. The nucleus containing genetic information was extracted from the somatic cells of the human being, and this was transplanted into an egg from which the nucleus had been removed using nuclear transfer technology. The egg was then implanted into a surrogate mother’s womb and developed to give birth to a child with the same genes as the original human being. However, human cloning using bio-3D printing is like producing clones in science fiction movies, in that it can produce new individuals that not only have the same genes as the original human, but also have the same form. Although this is still a distant possibility in terms of technology, the fact remains that discussions on human cloning must be completely reexamined. First, the issues of egg donation and surrogacy, which have been raised as ethical concerns, will disappear altogether. In the original classical debate, opposition was primarily based on the potential physical harm of human cloning. In fact, the cloned sheep Dolly was born after 277 attempts. Of course, technology has become more sophisticated since then, but there are still clear risks to the mother’s life and to the development of the child born through this process. However, in the era of the Fourth Industrial Revolution, the possibility of such physical harm will be greatly reduced with the new concept of printing and cloning humans identical to ourselves. However, as mentioned above, issues surrounding individuality and identity will become extremely serious. The idea of cloning a human being with the same genes as oneself has been the subject of much debate, and the possibility of producing not just one but many individuals with the same form as oneself, as if in a factory, will shock and repulse many people.
So far, we have looked at the hyperconnected society and 3D printing technology, which have been hot topics in the Fourth Industrial Revolution, in light of human cloning, and examined what issues have been deepened or newly raised compared to classic discussions. Arthur Eddington, a British genius physicist who pioneered astrophysics, said the following. “Science and wisdom are separate. Science is a sharp tool that can be played with like a child and cut one’s fingers.” The advancement of science and technology has brought countless benefits to humanity and has clearly contributed to the creation of a brilliant civilization. However, it must always be kept in check because it comes with responsibility and risks. The same is true for the discussion on human cloning. Now that we are facing numerous new technologies in the midst of a new industrial revolution, humanity must establish accurate standards and continue relevant research using the right methods. In particular, this issue is closely related to the identity and existence of humanity, so it must be viewed with caution and a critical eye.
