are no other sources of humility in ourlives. Even talented individuals must learnto deal with failure and the demands ofdeveloping their talents. Even talentedindividuals will fall victim to bad luck andwill have to learn humility in the face ofwhat cannot be controlled.

In a world of inequality, the mostlikely outcome of the availability ofgenetic enhancement will be increasedinequality. Just as affluent parents canprovide better education, health care,and opportunities to their children today,unless there is a revolution, they will bethe ones who can avail themselves ofgenetic enhancements for their children.But the children who benefit from it arenot responsible for their talents any more

than those born without it. Why shouldthey not feel a sense of solidarity withthose who did not have the good fortune tohave parents who could afford geneticenhancement? In both cases, the childrendid not choose who they are and are thebeneficiaries of a lottery.

Sandel is right in noting that we can-not escape the burden of choice whengenetic technologies are available. Thehistory of technology shows that inopen societies like ours, when newtechnologies are adopted, the variousthreads of social life have to be rewovento accommodate them. In contrast, theOld Order Amish know that some tech-nologies must be excluded because theywill undermine important social values.

Parents who are seeking egg donorshave exactly the kind of new and diffi-cult responsibilities Sandel writesabout. What qualities or combination ofqualities should we seek in the donor?The more possibilities there are, thegreater the burden of responsibility.

Finally, Sandel’s book sets out theunease that genetic enhancement createsin a religious sensibility. It is also valua-ble for clarifying similar sources ofunease in changes in sports and forms ofparenting that are associated with exces-sive concern over mastery. Geneticenhancement of children is here and willget bigger. The only sure thing is the ironrule of new technologies: ‘‘We got whatwe wanted, but we lost what we had.’’

‘‘Fellowships for Graduate StudentsStudying Medical Applications

of Electromagnetics’’

The IEEE Microwave Theory and Techniques Society (MTT-S) has initiated two graduate fellowshipawards to support the application of electromagnetic concepts to medical problems. The awards willencourage students with a background in electromagnetics to become familiar with medical techni-ques and apply their experience to the solution of medical problems. The range of problems is limitedonly by the imagination of the student and advisor. It is expected that the student would interact witha medical institution to ensure that the information is shared between those trained in the medicalprofession and the electromagnetic disciplines. The award provides US$6,000 for the sole use of thestudent. Awards will be presented at the International Microwave Symposium to be held inAtlanta, GA, in June 2008 (www.ims2008.org).

Key eligibility conditions for the award are:

1. The student must be enrolled in an M.S., Ph.D, or M.D. program.2. The student must be engaged in research.3. The student must be supervised by a full-time faculty member.4. The student must be a member of MTT-S (student membership is US$7 annually).5. Applications for the award are due by November 30, 2007.

Full details of the award’s conditions and eligibility are available at http://mtt.org/index.html and withselect students. An application form is also available at this Web site.

Digital Object Identifier 10.1109/MEMB.2007.911011

IEEE ENGINEERING IN MEDICINE AND BIOLOGY MAGAZINE NOVEMBER/DECEMBER 200744

Issues in Ethics (continued)