Saved on this device

Follow your curiosity

What discovery has been shared with you?

FACTREE gives you something interesting to discover every day — and something worth talking about together.

Start with one fact. Explore it, go deeper, then follow whichever branch catches your imagination.

Choose subjects for a surprise

Exploring any topic

Begin your discovery

Your next discovery is one click away.

Choose one or more subjects above, or leave Any Topic selected and let curiosity decide.

Philosophy

The Ethics of Organ Donation and the Definition of Death

Quick fact

Before the 1960s, death was defined by the cessation of heartbeat and breathing. The advent of ventilators and organ transplantation led to the 1968 Harvard criteria that redefined death as 'irreversible coma' or brain death, a shift that made vital organ donation possible and sparked enduring ethical debates.

Why this is interesting

Every day, thousands of organs are transplanted, but the ethical foundation of this practice rests on a surprisingly fragile definition—when exactly are we dead? The answer has evolved dramatically, and with it, the moral rules for who can become a donor.