“‘Enhancement’ of physical and mental abilities is becoming more and more sophisticated, at least for those who can afford it. Golfer Tiger Woods improved his vision to 20/15 with laser eye surgery, and American footballer Terrell Owens sped his recovery from injuries by sleeping in a high-pressure chamber. Medicine has made great advances also in the use of cognition-enhancing drugs, which doctors prescribe to treat cognitive disabilities and improve quality of life for patients with neuropsychiatric disorders and brain injury. These prescription drugs are now being used more widely, including for shift workers and for jet-lag. Technology will soon offer even more extreme and tantalising possibilities for enhancement. Scientists, using ‘gene therapy’ to increase the levels of a single enzyme, recently created a strain of mice with increased physical abilities.” (05/08/08)