James D. Watson

Have you ever wished that there were something different about yourself? Maybe you imagined yourself taller, thinner, or stronger? Smarter? More attractive? Healthier?Or perhaps, as much as you love your children, you wished that there was something different about them. It is not that the love is missing, but it is precisely because you love them that you imagine they would be happier if they were different in some way. It is also possible that some form of genetic disease runs in your family,…

Imagine this; a world where no one has lifelong infections or medical conditions. This might be made possible soon; however, some are afraid that parents will take it too far. With enough money, they could transform their babies to be intelligent and good looking. In my opinion, genetic engineering should be allowed, but restrictions should be in place to stop parents from making super babies. Genetic engineering is the purposeful changing of an organism's DNA. It can be used in ways that…

The Genetic Modification of Human Embryos: The Negative Effects of an Unknown Process Imagine you are in the doctor’s office and you are told, “Congratulations for wanting a child! Now it is time to select your options.” You sit there with your spouse and decide the sex, hair and eye color, height, and DNA of your future child, just as you would customize a new car that you are buying. The issue is, however: what if you choose the wrong options, and when did nature disappear in the…

The idea of eugenics as a means of improving human conditions through embryo manipulation has been debated in many scientific and cultural communities for various reasons. As eugenics becomes more pertinent in being able to cure genetic diseases many people have been wondering about its effect on society, specifically the societal views of genetically improved individuals. From a social and cultural perspective, the concept of eugenics varies between different groups of people. With the results…

My Perception of Human Genetic Engineering In a world with constant technological and scientific breakthroughs, human genetic engineering is no longer a question of possibility, instead a question of when. As someone whose dream is to find a cure for cancer, I have always believed that the key to ridding the human body of diseases lies within human genetic engineering. Learning about current applications of genetic engineering in my school helped me realize how dependent we are on this…

In the world of Andrew Niccol’s film Gattaca, tinkering with human genetics has become the norm in the search for perfection of body and mind. The practice has become so widespread that those conceived naturally suffer discrimination on the basis of their DNA which in turn creates a class divide between the two groups. In the film genetics, and the imperfection drawn from them is overcome by means of raw determination by the protagonist and these concepts are explored through a variety of…

It is a scientific fact that, over time, animals and plants alike change and evolve to be better suited to their environment. Using modern scientific methods, we are now capable of similar genetic alterations, but at a significantly accelerated pace. Specifically, we can alter the genetic material of nearly anything we like, and produce a new, better, more prosperous version of the original organism. Now, this sounds all well and good, but there tends to be a certain stigma about performing such…

Eugenics is a type of genetic engineering that was intended for the improvement of the human population through artificial selection and gene editing technologies to increase the frequency of advantageous or desirable characteristics. The idea of eugenics to improve human conditions, in the form of embryo manipulation, has been debated in many scientific and cultural communities for various reasons. One of them being its effect on society, specifically the societal views of genetically improved…

This week’s articles, Bovine Abominations: Genetic Culture and Politics in the Netherlands by Karen-Sue Taussig and Bodies, Commodities, & Biotechnologies by Leslie Sharp illustrate the “tie between genetics and identity” (Taussig 2004: 309). It is in human nature to believe that we all have a personality, thoughts, and emotions that make us human. Anything that is not of human origin is considered to be a tool for dehumanization. That is why this idea of xenotransplants and biotechnologies does…

In the spring of 1953 James Watson and Francis Crick discovered the true structure of deoxyribose nucleic acid (DNA) utilizing theoretical chemistry and borrowed X-ray crystallography images. They postulated that the structure of DNA contained two helical chains that run in opposite directions of one another. They also stated, in contrast to Linus Pauling’s structure, that due to the repulsive forces between the negatively charged phosphate groups the nitrogenous bases would be located on the…