Designer Babies - Unit 5

""Designer babies" is the term being used by the media to describe the future of modifying or selecting our children's genes for desirable characteristics (medical and cosmetic). Are things getting out off hand with our research into genetic processes? In this blog investigate social and ethical implications of this research and technologies that have been developed from it."

The Science Behind It
Producing a healthy baby boy or girl is no longer a matter of trial and error for hopeful parents, it is simply a matter of science (and immense wealth, of course). using reproductive technologies — in this case, pre-implantation genetic diagnosis (PGD), doctors screen embryos before implanting them, and can identify things like genetic disorders, which they can cure. They can also control more cosemetic characteristics, such as hair or eye colour. 

You can choose any traits that you want your baby to have (hair colour, etc.). Well, just ask the doctors and they'll make sure that the genetic makeup has been artificially selected by genetic engineering combined with in vitro fertilization to ensure the presence or absence of any genes or characteristics that you desire.

Let's Talk Ethics
Now, when I first read this, I immediately thought, "anyone who thinks this is a bad idea is overreacting, and doesn't appreciate the potential of this technology." However, after giving it much more serious thought, I realized that this is not the case (although there is great potential). Before writing this blog, i looked back on  my religion ISP on artificial insemination which talked about the process and advantages and disadvantages and just getting to see what other people thought about being able to pick traits of their babies and realized that this is a very debatable topic and is usually based on opinion. 



If we allow this technology to reach its full potential, yes, we speed up evolution and create almost "super" humans, but what about those who cannot afford the extremely expensive costs to design their child? It's all related to the old "the rich get richer and the poor get poorer" concept. When the babies of the poor (who aren't genetically altered) are born, now not only are they at a disadvantage financially, but now they are also at a disadvantage in terms of physical appearance and ability. The biggest worry of mine is that this technology will create something of an "elite" race of humans, which could go so far as to enslave those that they deem to be of "lesser value". Now, assuming that you have a heart, ethics, or any sense of morals, there's no way that you would let this happen, right? I mean, if we were ever able to supply this technology to everyone in the world, then perhaps I would support it. For now, the only way that I think this technology should be used is to save the life of a baby who is at severe risk of death during birth (due to genetic defects and such).


Thanks for reading my Bio Blog and feel free to post your opinion on this matter in the comments !


Sources

• http://infoproc.blogspot.com/2009/02/designer-babies.html 
• http://www.wired.com/wiredscience/2009/03/designerdebate/ 
• http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Designer_baby 
• http://www.actionbioscience.org/biotech/agar.html 
• http://wiki.answers.com/Q/Pros_and_cons_of_designer_babies

Blogs I commented on


http://virginiabioblog.blogspot.com/2011/03/how-far-is-too-far.html?showComment=1305867612994#c6715736025061006434


http://shelbysbioblog.blogspot.com/2011/01/are-we-taking-it-too-far.html?showComment=1305868690823#c4340851607388361902

Biodiversity Intervention - Unit 2

"Many scientists consider humans as the most invasive species, as humans can greatly change an environment and impact living things that reside there. Are we being stewards of the world? take a look at an issue in which human intervention has positively or negatively affected the biodiversity of our ecosystems."



When I first looked upon this question, I immediately thought of an issue that I'd been hearing about since I was a kid - rainforest destruction. Humans always find ways to intervene in nature to improve our lives, as well as destroy the lives of countless species, and the rainforest is no exception. Clear-cutting and mining are just a couple of the ways that we have ravaged the homes, habitats and ecosystems of the local biodiversity. 


Self Destruction 

The Amazon Rainforest has been referred to as the "Lungs of our Planet" because it recycles a large portion of the world's carbon dioxide, producing more than 20 percent of the world's oxygen. Treating our rainforests this way is essentially the same as smoking - one of the worst habits in human history. If we continue to ravage the rainforests, these lungs could eventually give out, depriving the rest of the world from getting the amount of oxygen that it needs. 


Logging is the primary cause of deforestation, and when coupled with agricultural clearance results in substantial losses in rain forest area. Madagascar, for example, has lost a whopping TWO THIRDS of its original rainforest since the arrival of man 2000 years ago. Brazil has even gone so far as to declare deforestation a national emergency. According to the Brazil government's data, Amazon deforestation jumped by 69% in 2008.



Here are some rather interesting statistics: 

• The latest statistics show that rainforest land converted to cattle operations yields the land owner $60 per acre and if timber is harvested, the land is worth $400 per acre. However, if these renewable and sustainable resources are harvested, the land will yield the land owner $2,400 per acre
• Most medicine men and shamans remaining in the rainforests today are 70 years old or more. Each time a rainforest medicine man dies, it is as if a library has burned down
• When a medicine man dies without passing his arts on to the next generation, the tribe and the world loses thousands of years of irreplaceable knowledge about medicinal plants
• While rainforests once covered 14% of the earth's land surface, they currently cover a mere 6%
• Experts estimate that 137 plant, animal and insect species are lost every single day due to rainforest deforestation. That's the equivalent of 50,000 species a year

How Can You Help? 


I know that you're all saying to yourselves, "I'd love to help, but how can I make a difference?" Well, the answer to that question is easy. These days the latest trend seems to be "going green", and during this trend we've all learned different ways to help preserve the environment in our daily lives; the rainforest is no different. Anything that reduces your ecological footprint helps, from turning off lights when they're not in use to buying a new car that's more eco-friendly. If you're unsatisfied with that and want to do more, there are plenty of conservation projects to which you can donate your time or money. Lastly, the easiest way to help save the rain forest is simple - spread the word!!!

I'd like to close my first bio blog out with an interesting quote i found researching that i wanted to share with you all. The quote is from Harvard's Pulitzer Prize-winning biologist Edward O. Wilson: 


"The worst thing that can happen during the 1980s is not energy depletion, economic collapses, limited nuclear war, or conquest by a totalitarian government. As terrible as these catastrophes would be for us, they can be repaired within a few generations. The one process ongoing in the 1980s that will take millions of years to correct is the loss of genetic and species diversity by the destruction of natural habitats. This is the folly that our descendants are least likely to forgive us for."


Thanks for reading and i hope you enjoyed my bio blog!


Sources

• http://www.savetherainforest.org
• http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rainforest
• http://www.rain-tree.com/facts.htm
• http://www.ecoworld.org
• http://www.weheartworld.com 

Blogs I commented on


http://virginiabioblog.blogspot.com/2010/11/peace-for-pandas.html?showComment=1305859042680#c5709120263132870492

http://shelbysbioblog.blogspot.com/2010/10/save-our-tigers.html?showComment=1305860588790#c5266813297018227957