Hugo Simbert, The Wounded Angel, 1903
1,435 words
Hugo Simbert, The Wounded Angel, 1903
Once I saw an interview with a woman whose child had cystic fibrosis. The child was forced to endure long medical treatments every day just to stay alive. Tests showed early in the pregnancy that her baby would be afflicted with cystic fibrosis, but the woman decided not to abort because, she said, “I figured that I’d rather have a life with health problems than no life at all.” (more…)
1,007 words
One useful thing to come out of social psychology is the discovery that spouses who are very similar get along much better, and are far less likely to divorce, and it’s fairly easy to measure these traits (like introversion-extroversion) and make predictions. (more…)
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1. Lately, the issue of over-population has pretty much gotten drowned out by other problems in the world. But wouldn’t well-educated people be more likely to know about it, and take it seriously, than poorly-educated people? (more…)
Frederick Childe-Hassam, The Sonata
Frederick Childe-Hassam, The Sonata
968 words
It seems like there’s a total “disconnect” on this issue [eugenics] between science on the one hand, and popular opinion, on the other.
You’re absolutely right. There are two arenas in which the Nature-Nurture debate is taking place – the scientific one, and the public one – and the outcomes are exactly opposite. (more…)
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Editor’s Note:
Robert K. Graham (1906–1997) was co-founder and director of The Repository for Germinal Choice, a California-based sperm bank which stored and distributed the sperm of Nobel Prize winners and other men of exceptional ability. He invented and manufactured the plastic used for shatter-proof eye glasses and was author of The Future of Man
3,413 words
Editor’s Note:
The following interview with Raymond Cattell (1905–1998) was originally published in The Eugenics Bulletin, Spring–Summer 1984.
Raymond B. Cattell obtained his Ph.D. and D.Sc. at London University, where he worked with Charles Spearman developing the theory of intelligence measurement. (more…)
Charles West Cope, A Life Well Spent
Charles West Cope, A Life Well Spent
675 words
Even though I believe in eugenics, I really have no idea how it should be implemented. It seems so complicated, and it could be abused. What would a model eugenics program even look like?
When we envision launching a new eugenics program in the West, we need to consider what is effective, what is morally right, and what will be accepted by the public. We can make great strides towards helping future generations with no Draconian measures whatsoever, just a combination of incentives and disincentives. (more…)
Joseph Wright, A Philosopher Lecturing with a Mechanical Planetary, 1766
Joseph Wright, A Philosopher Lecturing with a Mechanical Planetary, 1766
1,002 words
Whatever happened to the Repository for Germinal Choice? I read that it closed in 1999, but were the children born from this program ever studied?
All prospective parents signed statements promising that they would take part in surveys in the future, (more…)
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1. What is intelligence?
One simple, straightforward definition of intelligence is is “problem-solving ability.” Another definition is “that which IQ tests measure.” (more…)
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In the British Medical Journal (# 7108, September 6, 1997, p. 563) there’s an article entitled “Thousands of women sterilized in Sweden without consent.” The Swedish government is investigating why thousands of women were forcibly sterilized on eugenic grounds from the 1930s to the 1970s. (more…)
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Editor’s Note
Because of the very positive responses to Marian Van Court’s recent essays on eugenics, we are running a multi-part series called “Ask a Eugenicist.” If you have other questions for Marian, please post them as comments below or email me at [email protected]. (more…)
Abbot Handerson Thayer, 1849–1921, Experience
Abbot Handerson Thayer, 1849–1921, Experience
4,593 words
The Encyclopedia Britannica defines eugenics as “the organic betterment of the race through wise application of the laws of heredity.” Yet most people draw a blank when they hear the word, or else it conjures up images of swastikas and jack‑booted Nazis. Contrary to this warped image, eugenics has had a long history, extending back to ancient Rome and beyond.
Eugenics is concerned with the current direction of human evolution. (more…)
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This famous scene from the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel has recently been interpreted in a startling new way. After it was cleaned and restored, the original details were revealed. The vehicle in which God is traveling, along with God himself, all the angels, the sashes, etc., conform remarkably well to the structures of a human brain (turned sideways, facing Adam). (more…)