Oscar Pistorius is a sprinter seeking to qualify for the 2008 Olympics. If he does he’ll be the first amputee to do so, but The International Association of Athletic Federations(IAAF) is trying to decide if his prosthetics provide an unfair advantage. Some folks feel that this is inherently discriminatory but I believe there is a real issue to explore although we may learn more from studying his mind than the prosthetics. An IAAF representative said
“We need to separate emotion from the science,” Davies said. “We all wish him well. The point here is what’s going to happen in 10 years? What happens if it continues to evolve?”
SI.com – More Sports – IAAF: Pistorius’ prosthetics may be advantage
Separation isn’t really the answer in my view, but we do need to understand it better. Previously, here in the MJ it was said that
People involved in the Open Prosthetics community see the convergence of biological and non-biological life as a necessity born of disabling disease or war, Transhumanists, see it as destiny, the natural evolution of intelligence, while various religious groups see it as a sign of the end times. Regardless of one’s perspective, an awareness of the issues involved in meshing with things will help the difficult dialog ahead. It’s much closer than most people think – are you ready move beyond a strictly biological physical existence?
The idea here that what the mind perceives as real is parallel to the Animatrix short story World Record. Oh yeah, TVIR time again 
Related Links
Wired March 2007 – Blade Runner(there’s a nice short video here)
csven said
I read earlier that they are now saying he has an aerodynamic advantage.
Cripe. If they have to reach that deep to find a reason to disqualify him, then maybe the athletes need to run naked.
Not saying he might not have some kind of advantage, but that one takes the cake, afaic.