ABSTRACT
The contemporary origin of the notion of “enhancement” with respect to humans and, subsequently, to animals can be found in the idea of the so-called nanotechnology, biotechnology, information technology, and cognitive science convergence. This convergence is supposed to open up radically new opportunities, the focus of which, in that report, is on “improving human performance”. The notion of “animal enhancement” was seemingly transferred from the idea of human enhancement, to the field of animal enhancement for the benefit of humans and human use, aiming at improving the usefulness of animals for human purposes. This chapter describes some of the key directions of research that are currently in progress in this field. It then inquires about the semantics of animal enhancement in part in preparation for considerations of human enhancement. The chapter analyses emerging ethical challenges followed by reflections on responsibility for animal enhancement.
