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The world has seen many changes and technological advances over the last century, but possibly none that hold as many possibilities as genetic engineering. Just as computers and plastics have changed most aspects of modern life since they were invented, biological engineering has the potential to do the same in the future. While the recent technology of genetically enhanced crops, plants, and animals has the potential to greatly benefit humanity, the long-term economic, environmental and social implications of genetic engineering are uncertain and need to be examined further.Genetic technology now allows scientist, corporations and governments to manipulate the natural world at the most fundamental level – the genetic one. Strictly speaking, genetic engineering is defined as “the manipulation of an organism’s genetic endowment by introducing or eliminating genes through modern biology techniques” (Hagedorn). Changing specific characteristics of organisms is based on changing their DNA (deoxyribonucleic acid; the acid which carries genetic information in a cell). This technology is being used for modifying genes in plants, animals or microorganisms. It is also being used in food production to improve
tial of widespread threats to natural species from high-tech farming (Nash, 47). These problems and potential threats should be researched further in a controlled laboratory environment before these organisms are introduced to the environment. Genetically engineered organisms are also unpredictable – they have the potential to mutate, migrate, reproduce, etc. It has been argued that genetic pollutants are more dangerous than chemical pollutants since once a genetically engineered organism escapes a lab, it would be virtually impossible to recall. These organisms would have the potential to irreversibly damage the eco-system since their “superior” genes could out-compete their natural relatives and overpower the wild species in the same way that exotic diseases such as Dutch Elm Disease have caused changes in the ecosystem (Kline, 17). At this time the effects of genetically enhanced crops on other species in the environment is unknown. In 1999 a Cornell University entomologist John Losey performed a laboratory experiment using genetically enhanced corn pollen on plants pollinated by monarch-butterfly caterpillars. Many of the caterpillars died thus raising disturbing questions as to the poten! Humans have been exploiting “natural” genetic manipulation for centuries through the use of selective breeding and cross-pollination. “Just about everything we eat is derived from livestock, crops and micro-organisms bred specifically to provide food” (Jones, 41-42). Individual characteristics of plants, such as the height to which wheat grows or the color of petals, are determined by their genes. These characteristics, or traits, are inherited from generation to generation. Genetic modification involves copying the genes that govern a particular characteristic from one organism, and transferring them to another. While genetic engineering is somewhat similar in effect to more conventional methods, it allows for muc
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Approximate Word count = 1331
Approximate Pages = 5 (250 words per page double spaced)
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