Biohappiness, or bio-happiness, is the elevation of wellbeing in humans through biological methods, including germline engineering through screening embryos with genes associated with a high level of happiness, or the use of drugs intended to raise baseline levels of happiness. The object is to facilitate the achievement of a state of "better than well." Proponents of biohappiness include the

transhumanist Transhumanism is a philosophical and intellectual movement which advocates the enhancement of the human condition by developing and making widely available sophisticated technologies that can greatly enhance longevity and cognition. Transhuma ...

philosopher David Pearce, whose goal is to end the suffering of all

sentient Sentience is the capacity to experience feelings and sensations. The word was first coined by philosophers in the 1630s for the concept of an ability to feel, derived from Latin '' sentientem'' (a feeling), to distinguish it from the ability to ...

beings and the Canadian ethicist Mark Alan Walker. Walker has sought to defend biohappiness on the grounds that happiness ought to be of interest to a wide range of moral theorists; and that

hyperthymia Hyperthymic temperament, or hyperthymia, from Ancient Greek ''ὑπέρ'' ("over", meaning here ''excessive'') + '' θυμός'' ("spirited"), is a proposed personality type characterized by an exceptionally, or in some cases, abnormally positive ...

, a state of high baseline happiness, is associated with better outcomes in health and human achievement. The concept of biohappiness also has its high-profile critics, including

Leon Kass Leon Richard Kass (born February 12, 1939) is an American physician, scientist, educator, and public intellectual. Kass is best known as a proponent of liberal arts education via the "Great Books," as a critic of human cloning, life extension, eut ...

, who served on the

President's Council on Bioethics The President's Council on Bioethics (PCBE) was a group of individuals appointed by United States President George W. Bush to advise his administration on bioethics. Established on November 28, 2001, by Executive Order 13237, the council was dire ...

during the presidency of

George W. Bush George Walker Bush (born July 6, 1946) is an American politician who served as the 43rd president of the United States from 2001 to 2009. A member of the Republican Party, Bush family, and son of the 41st president George H. W. Bush, he ...

References

External links

The Biohappiness Revolution
(video)

(The President's Council on Bioethics, Washington, D.C., October 2003). {{Transhumanism footer Bioethics Biotechnology Hedonism Neuropharmacology Transhumanism Utilitarianism

See also

References

External links