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Times are changing, and
now, looking back at Aldous Huxley’s Brave
New World, we have a right to ask ourselves how
‘science-fiction-like’ his science-fiction novel is; the society he portrayed back
in 1932 as operating on the
principles of mass production and Pavlovian conditioning must have been overlooked
at the time because of the social and political unrest looming large in Europe:
a radical revision of the world order was under way, which culminated with the
global conflict we now know as WWII.
Human
Beings: how surprising an adventure to understand them, or, rather, to try to
find the essence of their be-have-do patterns (see The haves and have-nots around us I). But
let’s not jump to conclusions yet; for the time being you’ll agree that we can
affirm at least this: once an idea is born inside a person’s mind there’s nothing
to stop it from developing. How else could we grasp the meaning of genetic
engineering if not by considering the attempts on behalf of generations of
scientists at discovering the secret of life?
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So,
why look into the DNA structure? Well, because it’s there!
The
article you’ve read in the previous post speaks about exactly that: the
adventure of looking into things. Surely, it’s not new anymore, for it was
written some time before 1993, and what was then considered as theoretically possible (see article in A Walk in Utopia I) has developed into fact (history) and (still) [science-]fiction.
Whether
the manipulation of human genes is meant for healing wounds (1j), treating
pancreas dysfunction (2e), bone disease (4a), or preventing heart
attack (5l), the underlying concept is the same: medical magic
bullets directed to specific targets with a view to helping the
organism against strokes (6h), lung cancer (7k), or diabetes
(8d). But there’s no denying that prevention is better than cure, and this may
well be the turning point in scientific research: the future is now, for the
proceedings of biotechnology are supposed to advise on genetic therapy which,
in turn, may give us super-babies (9b), bring about a Revolution
(10i) in body information storage, correct inherited defects by means of drugs
(11g) – all in all, lead to a complete understanding of disease (12c).
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It’s
high time we listened to the expert: here’s Craig Venter, the one scientist
under whose supervision the human genome was decoded, and his programme ‘A
Voyage of DNA, genes, and the sea':
Now
after watching Craig Venter’s film, and in the light of the advances of biotechnology
mentioned in the article, the question arises: what advantages and disadvantages
do you see to genetic engineering? Give examples of its uses, and try to draw
the line between fiction and non-fiction yourself. Your comments will be,
as always, welcome!
I totally in favor of genetic engineering, and I don't understand why there are people who are against it. A wonderful door has been opened in modern medicine and we must take that chance. In the future a lot of diseases will be cured or prevented thank to it, and now there are lots of examples of couples who have decided have a child in order to cure his/her sick eldest brother/sister. However, ethics of scientists and doctors will be needed in order to avoid that genetic engineering will be used for medical purposes and non economic.
ReplyDeleteI completely agree with you but I would like to add some points that are quite important for me.
DeleteOne one hand is what you said about healing people that otherwise would die because there is no cure for them apart from the one provided by the human genome. Cancer or any genetically inherited diseases are terrible diseases with which we have to deal more often than we would like.
On the other hand is the concept of the 'super-babies'... We also could use this knowledge to improve ourselves or our children in any possible way and, since genetic engineering is an expensive technique, only a few people could afford that. This will only lead to our elites enlarging the gap between them and the rest of the people. Ethics are not fashionable anymore and in this way I find genetic engineering quite dangerous.
In conclusion, science-fiction is just non-proved science. Every discovery that has been put forward since the origin of humanity started in the imagination of someone. Isaac Asimov or Julius Verne are good examples of this, although they weren't the ones to prove the ideas that came up from their minds.
Just in my opinion, genetic Engeneering could be a very useful tool to solve some injuries, like as it was stated by Merche, if for example a couple have a little baby who needs a bone marrow transplant. Using the genetic engeneering to have a new baby, the couple can have some guarantees which ensure a succesful tranplant. But on the other hand, we need to consider as well, the fact that through this potent tool (Genetic engeneering) It could be designed not only a person It could be designed a chain of persons with a perfect physical appearance and with an special mental characteristics (this is the problem showed in the Aldous huxley's novel and this fact can cause a lot of moral or etical problems. We should not forget that the diversity of people is precisely the fact that enriches a society and also is the fact by which we can compare, and based on this comparison we have the ability to choose and show our tastes.
ReplyDeleteYes,that`s the problem. I think in Spain, after a group of scientists managed to decode the human genome, human cloning is not allowed in order to avoid that some because -or maybe scientists- are tempted to do this sort of things...
ReplyDeleteThe human genome has already been decoded; there were two teams whose projects both carried out and then published a human genome sequence.
DeleteNow, the problem with research is somehow different: competition leads scientists to work round the clock in order to be the first...Although completion of the whole sequence was announced in Dec. 2008 (Korean Seong-Jin Kim), the map represented only one set of chromosomes, which actually proved to be based on Korean donors (quite obvious), and therefore suitable for Koreans mainly.
Other breakthroughs: Dan Stoicescu, Jan.2008; Yang Huanming (China, Nov. 2008)
Craig Venter (2007) and James Watson (April 2008): their maps are diploid, that is, it represents both sets of chromosomes, albeit from different donors.
As you can see, it's been already mapped. What laws don't yet accept is to analyse personal genomes and so lead to personalized medical treatment based on individual genotypes.
I did a very good essay about genetic engineering at the High School. I am going to recover it. Here is a short summary:
ReplyDeleteGenetic enginnering is the biological science consisting of the manipulation of genes applying technology in its procedures. This new science, whose purpose is producing improvements in the humanity, has created a big debate in our society between those who are in favour of these advances and those who are against.
On the one hand, religious people think that genetic engineering attacks the integrity of persons and the human dignity. Moreover, they believe that this science goes against the basic rules of ethic.
Other people, like environmentalists, believe that genetic engineering destroys nature, so they are against its use in agriculture (GM foods) and in animal husbandry (animal cloning).
On the other hand, many other people consider the advances of the genetic engineering a big improvement for our society. This science allows detect and cure many diseases, can prevent hereditary diseases, permits create human organs for transplant without a donor, permits that infertile couples have children, improves agricultural productivity, etc.
Therefore, I am in favour of genetic engineering because its virtues are much higher than its defects. This science provides many beneficts to our health and our quality of life and will have an important role in the future.
You really did a good job, congratulations!
DeleteIt's almost faultless, and the contents is just about what anyone (like me) would expect to receive in terms of scientific skills development.
Keep it up!