Peter Singer

About the author: Peter Singer, an ethics scholar and supporter of animal rights, is the author of Animal Liberation, Practical Ethics, How Are We to Live", and Rethinking Life and Death. He is DeCamp Professor of Bioethics at the University Center for Human Values at Princeton University.

The undifferentiated cells of a human embryo—often referred to as "stem cells"—hold limitless promise for medical research. Theoretically, such cells could cure leukemia, treat diseases such as Parkinson's and Alzheimer's, and repair the nerve systems of quadriplegics. Abortion opponents, however, are attempting to ban stem cell research on the grounds that it is unethical. This is untrue. There is no reason to object to research conducted on a being that has no brain, consciousness, preferences of any kind, or capacity for...