Genetic Engineering: Brave New World

Genetic engineering is a great thing that can help our society grow in a healthier way. Genetic engineering can prevent deadly diseases in children [babies] before they are born genetic engineering can also be used on fruits and vegetables not just humans and animals.

Dan W. Brock makes a few interesting points in defending genetic engineering, while being observant of the possible downfalls and negative views of the science. Brock starts of his commentary by addressing how the limits to our genes can not "confidently predict the rate at which that understanding [of genetic engineering] will be achieved in the future nor the ultimate limits on it" (pg. 615). Also, the author states how genetic engineering could help parents ensure their children the abilities to live healthy lives, create new treatments for disease, and produce stronger immune systems.

Adam Michnik once said, “The real struggle for us is for the citizen to cease to be the property of the state.” In Brave New World, they have created a society where individuals have become property to the government. They must live within certain social classes. The highest social class has the least amount of people, yet they are the rulers of the World State. They use science and technology to create conformity within their government.

Genetic engineering is the “altering of genetic material”, typically deoxyribonucleic acid or DNA (Parker 4). Human genetic engineering could advance today’s civilization, however, too many ethical dilemmas such as human testing associate with it. The future based World State in the novel Brave New World by Aldous Huxley uses human genetic engineering as the basis of their society and issues continue to appear, causing damage to their society like it would to this one.

Huxley says that in the novel genetic modification is what makes society perfect, however, he also states that it is what could end society as a whole. As The Director is giving a tour of the Central London Hatchery and Conditioning center, Mr. Foster tells the students about how the babies become who they are. He says, “We also predestine and condition. We decant our babies as socialized human beings, as Alphas or Epsilons” (13). In saying this Mr. Foster confirms that with predestination and conditioning it makes the World State’s society more interesting. However, he is also contradicting himself saying that decanting the babies to be social will make the world more interesting, but instead makes it more complicated for them because some want their privacy.

Genetic engineering can be a good thing and a bad thing. In the movie "Gattaca", Vincent, average person, was naturally conceived. This was in a time were babies were genetically modified. Genetic engineering is the direct manipulation of organisms using a type of science called Biotechnology. He wasn't considered healthy because he wasn't genetically engineered.

It is incredible to see how far genetic engineering has come. Humans, plants, and any living organism can now be manipulated. Scientists have found ways to change humans before they are even born. They can remove, add, or alter genes in the human genome. Making things possible that humans (even thirty years ago) would have never imagined. Richard Hayes claims in SuperSize Your Child? that genetic engineering needs to have limitations. That genetic engineering should be used for medical purposes, but not for “genetic modification that could open the door to high-tech eugenic engineering” (188). There is no doubt that genetic engineering can amount to great things, but without limits it could lead the human race into a future that no one

Genetic engineering is a very beneficial thing for every human. Some advantages involve individuals health and affect society in general. The lifespan of a human is increased, the extinction of illness in children and babies and healthier foods with a cheaper production cost are all rewarding devices of genetic

Genetic Engineering is one of the current hot button topics of our world today and its also the fundamental theme in widely know novels such as Brave New World and My Sister’s Keeper. But what exactly is Genetic Engineering? What exactly does Genetic Engineering entail? Genetic Engineering in its self is a mammoth and board field, yet not many people actually know or even understand the diversity that Genetic Engineering entails.

It’s been seen in movies like Gattaca, and now reality is catching up to fictional genetic engineering. Genetic engineering is defined as the deliberate modification of an organism’s characteristics by manipulating genetic material. Rapid progression in this field has already taken place; today, over 40% of the world’s food is genetically modified and this science has begun to allow parents to select the traits they want in their children. As of right now, genetic engineering is a fresh concept not completely accepted or understood, but by 2041, it will as common practice as smartphones are commonplace because of its contribution to the quality of life.

Genetic engineering has been around for many years and is widely used all over the planet. Many people don’t realize that genetic engineering is part of their daily lives and diet. Today, almost 70 percent of processed foods from a grocery store were genetically engineered. Genetic engineering can be in plants, foods, animals, and even humans. Although debates about genetic engineering still exist, many people have accepted due to the health benefits of gene therapy. The lack of knowledge has always tricked people because they only focused on the negative perspective of genetic engineering and not the positive perspective. In this paper, I will be talking about how Genetic engineering is connected to Brave New World, how the history of

Genetic engineering is widely used today. Genetically altered bacteria are used to make human insulin, human growth hormone, and a vaccine for hepatitis B. Two vaccines against AIDS created with genetic engineering have begun clinical trials here in the United States ("The

Genetic engineering is the growing science of the world and is increasingly under the spotlight over ethical issues. Is biotechnology going to save lives, rather than destroy them? and will the benefits outweigh the risks? The main problem with such questions is that we don't know the answer until we try them out. Like all sciences it is hard to predict outcomes, so far there have been more failures being told than success stories.

Genetic modification has long been a part of the way humans adapt to their environment. From selectively breeding sheep to get the perfect wool to eliminating unsavory seeds to get the tastiest, reddest apples, people have been indirectly engineering the genes of other organisms for centuries. However, scientific advancement has produced a new breed of genetic engineering. Scientists are now able to actually insert genes from one organism into the DNA of another (Goldbas 20). While this has led to numerous beneficial medicines and foods, the modern GMOs are enveloped in controversy.

Human genetic engineering should be banned because it harms the human race since we would be reducing our genetic diversity through this radical process. Human genetic engineering simply eliminates the “undesirable” traits and encourages specific “desirable” traits. With the endless possibilities of choosing what to eliminate, inevitably the “desirable” traits are picked and chosen on whim decisions such as blonde hair, blue eyes, a slender figure, and tall height (Act For Libraries). According to the British Medical Journal, this idea of designing a baby based on cosmetics is called unrealistic and arbitrary standards of perfection (Caplan). Unrealistic and arbitrary standards of perfection will create identical genomes among humans. Obviously, there would be a tremendous drop in genetic diversity as a result of this. Moreover, when defective genes are replaced with functional genes inevitably, there is a reduction of genetic diversity and causes the human population, as a whole, to be more susceptible to disease and virus (Patra). As shown by this, the “undesirable’ traits are annihilated and “desirable” or functional genes in this instance are promoted. Although scientists for genetic engineering will promote the “eradication of genetic disorders and diseases,” once they are diminished to the best of their ability there would still be a yearn to “perfect” the human race. Instead of annihilating disease we would also be annihilating cosmetic traits we don’t want to see in