Should we use genetic engineering to improve the human race? (user search)
       |           

Welcome, Guest. Please login or register.
Did you miss your activation email?
March 28, 2024, 06:53:03 AM
News: Election Simulator 2.0 Released. Senate/Gubernatorial maps, proportional electoral votes, and more - Read more

  Talk Elections
  Forum Community
  Off-topic Board (Moderators: The Dowager Mod, The Mikado, YE)
  Should we use genetic engineering to improve the human race? (search mode)
Pages: [1]
Author Topic: Should we use genetic engineering to improve the human race?  (Read 9278 times)
David S
Junior Chimp
*****
Posts: 5,250


« on: September 21, 2004, 06:08:00 PM »

Should we use genetic engineering to improve the human race? Suppose that in the near future medical science is able to screen the genes of prospective parents to produce a fertilized egg with the best characteristics of both parents. Possibly we could give our offspring desireable characteristics, such as high intelligence, good health, resistance to diseases, good looks etc. If this becomes possible should we do it or would that be playing god? I'm curious what other forum members think about this.
Logged
David S
Junior Chimp
*****
Posts: 5,250


« Reply #1 on: September 21, 2004, 10:16:26 PM »
« Edited: September 21, 2004, 10:24:00 PM by David S »

I was thinking there might be two reasons for doing this.

1. It would be nice to free our kids from birth defects, inherited diseases, and other characteristics that diminish their lives.

2. While I am a Christian, I also believe in evolution. But it seems to me that maybe evolution has been stopped in humans. Evolution is dependent on survival of the fittest. Which means that the less fit are weeded out and prevented from  entering the gene pool.  In Nature survival is rare. For example among salmon only a tiny percentage survive long enough to spawn, about 1 in 1000 as I recall. So only the best of the best are able to reproduce and pass their traits on to the young. Even among Lions, the king of the beasts, survival is the exception. Less than half reach maturity. The weeding out process eliminates the weakest half.  This was also true among humans in the past.  But because of modern medicine, survival is now the rule for human children. This is undoubtedly a good thing from the perspective of giving everyone a reasonable lifetime. The disadvantage is that if everyone survives then the weeding out process cannot work. Maybe genetic engineering offers a way of preserving our desireable genes and even advancing them, without the unpleasant effects of the weeding out process.  

Its just a thought, and maybe I'm out to lunch. Smiley
Logged
David S
Junior Chimp
*****
Posts: 5,250


« Reply #2 on: September 22, 2004, 08:02:16 AM »
« Edited: September 22, 2004, 10:09:49 AM by David S »

No.  We don't know enough yet about the side effects.

Consider the gene responsible for sickle cell anemia as an easily understood example.  The same gene that acts as a recessive trait for sickle cell anemia also acts as a dominant trait for making humans more resistant to the effects of malaria.  That's why the gene is found primarily in people who live in areas where malaria has been endemic for millenia or are descended from such people.  In those area the benefit of malaria resistance outweighed the penalty of sickle cell anemia.  If genetic engineering were used to "improve" the human race, it is all too likely it will be used in a way that reduces the genetic diversity of humans and hence leave us vulnerable to some future disease.

Of course the subject should be approached with caution. And yes there is risk, but all great developments involve some risk.

Using your example of sickle cell, if someone inherits two genes for sickle cell he will develop the disease and could die from it. But, if he inherits only one gene then he will not get the disease and he will not die from it but he still gets the benefit of resistance to malaria. Maybe the screening process would involve just making sure that there are not two sickle cell genes.
Logged
David S
Junior Chimp
*****
Posts: 5,250


« Reply #3 on: September 22, 2004, 08:36:25 AM »

OK since we're talking about SCI FI another possible scenario was presented in a book I read many years ago. I can't remember the name, but the plot is that an individual from our time is transported a few hundred years into the future. After mingling with the people for a while he quickly realizes that they are all idiots. He then meets one man who is very intelligent and who explains to him how the planet came to be populated by people of low intelligence. It seems that intelligent people were limiting their family size to one or two children. People with less intelligence on the other hand were having babies left and right. The result was that the average IQ of the population began to fall until it reached a level that we might call borderline retarded. From that point the story got really far fetched. The intelligent people hatched a plot to trick the low IQ people into taking a one way trip to the moon or something like that.

Of course the conclusion is ridiculous, but the basic premise sounds somewhat like what is happening right now. In fact there was a more serious book called "The Bell Curve" which postulated a lowering of the average IQ through the same process.

Anyway a little bit of genetic manulipulation to raise the IQ seems like a much more humane solution than sending people to the moon. Smiley
Logged
Pages: [1]  
Jump to:  


Login with username, password and session length

Terms of Service - DMCA Agent and Policy - Privacy Policy and Cookies

Powered by SMF 1.1.21 | SMF © 2015, Simple Machines

Page created in 0.03 seconds with 12 queries.