Fierce, magnificent, and free. On June 20, 1782 the bald eagle was unofficially declared as the representative of the United States of America. Instead of protecting the national emblem, “on July 4, 1976, the US Fish and Wildlife Service officially listed the bald eagle as a national endangered species” (History of…). The representation of the country’s freedom, strength, and beauty lies heavily on this bird; if it were to become an extinct species, what would that say for the United States? There is a very realistic and near-future solution: cloning. The topic of cloning, which has become a part of modern-day society, is a controversial topic because it has become an unfathomable concept to those who still hold the traditional values. When cloning technology is furthered and can be perfected, it will put an end to the number of increasing endangered species.
Cloning, by dictionary definition, is defined as “the aggregate of genetically identical cells asexually produced by a single progenitor cell” as well as “an individual grown from a single somatic cell or cell nucleus and genetically identical to it” (Merriam Webster Dictionary). Simplified, a clone is an organism that is asexually reproduced from the same genetic information of another organism (Tamang). Cloning is complicated, but can’t be overlooked because of that. There are a few ways to go about cloning mammals, one of which is called “twinning.” Twinning is when one sperm cell fertilizes an egg, and that egg separates into eight cell embryos. These embryos are implanted into the uteri of eight separate mothers and eight clones will be born. The most commonly known method of cloning is the “Nuclear Transfer” method. Two cells are needed for the transfer; a donor and a...
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Eagle Information. Web. 24 Nov 2013. eagle9.html>. Stalcup, Brenda. Endangered Species. San Diego: Greenhaven Press, Inc., 1996. Print.
Tamang, Sonam. "CLONING: CONTROVERSIAL SCIENCE." Serendip Studio.
Serendip. Web. 20 Nov 2013. f00/web1/tamang.html>. "Why Clone?." Learn. Genetics.. The University of Utah. Web. 24 Nov 2013.
U.S. Department of the interior, National Park Service. (2013). Endangered Species. Retrieved from website: http://www.nature.nps.gov/biology/endangeredspecies/index.cfm
In 1782, the bald eagle was elected as the national symbol of the United States of America, yet by the early 1960’s, it was nearly extinct in the Continental United States. A combination of many dangers, with the main danger being the pesticide DDT, the bald eagle was on the verge of extinction. Yet, through conservation measure applied by the United States government the bald eagle cam back from the brink and was taken off of the endangered species list in 2007.
Farrell, Courtney. "Cloning: An Overview. By: Farrell, Courtney, Carson-Dewitt, Rosalyn, Points of View: Cloning, 2013." Ebscohost.com. Mackinvia.com, 2013. Web. 21
While driving On Rte10 through the town of Hamden what seems to be an ordinary ride can become a scenic view of our nation’s bird. On a tall skinny Birch tree over 40 ft in the air is lives a bald eagle in its natural habitat. In this nest lives a male adult and female adult with an Eaglet. The nest is located in a farming open field along a river bank. This field and river provides the eagles with a source of food. The eagles mostly eat fish, the adult eagle will swoop down to the water and grab a fish all in one motion flying the meal back to the nest to feed its family. The field is posted to prevent people from ruining the habitat, since the natural reproduction of this eagle is very important to its recovery from being endangered. I was able to view this community form the road and was able to watch the nest and occasionally watch the adult eagle fly away most likely looking for food to feed his family. The nest form my view was huge at least 3 feet in diameter perched up about 40 ft high on a birch tree. The surrounding area of the nest was clear of any branches or trees creating a clear access way for the birds to land. Below the nest was a large open field on the bank of an active river.
McGee, Glenn, (2001). Primer on Ethics and Human Cloning. ActionBioscience.org. Retrieved October 3, 2004, from: http://www.actionbioscience.org/biotech/mcgee.html
Cloning is a real process that scientists use today to reproduce an exact living copy of DNA from the DNA of another living organism. When the idea of cloning first came about in the early 1800’s people believed it to be more science fiction than actual science. People didn’t understand the concept of cloning and therefore was naturally scared of the subject. It is best understood by how the Department of Animal Sciences at Cornell University explains it, “Cloning is a method of producing two or more genetically identical organisms by asexual reproduction. This means that there is only one parent cell, from which all the genetic information will come. Thus, the DNA sequence of cloned organisms is exactly the same as that of the parent cell.” Despite the general population’s disbelief there have been major scientific advances in the cloning process in the last fifty years. After many years of trial and error the first successful clone was created.
“Cloning represents a very clear, powerful, and immediate example in which we are in danger of turning procreation into manufacture.” (Kass) The concept of cloning continues to evoke debate, raising extensive ethical and moral controversy. As humans delve into the fields of science and technology, cloning, although once considered infeasible, could now become a reality. Although many see this advancement as the perfect solution to our modern dilemmas, from offering a potential cure for cancer, AIDS, and other irremediable diseases, its effects are easily forgotten. Cloning, especially when concerning humans, is not the direction we must pursue in enhancing our lives. It is impossible for us to predict its effects, it exhausts monetary funds, and it harshly abases humanity.
Cloning is a DNA sequence, such as a gene, that is transferred from one organism to another and replicated by genetic engineering techniques. This means to reproduce or propagate asexually and some sexually. Cloning is made when you have several embryos and you try to duplicate them to produce more eggs which is called SCNT. SCNT (Somatic Cell Nuclear Transfer) is used so that they can take a piece of DNA from an egg and transfer it to another egg after the nucleus has been eliminated by an ultra violet beam. This technique is really hard to accomplish but can be done by well experienced scientists. There are many reasons why scientist would like to clone, and two of the main reasons are finding a cure to certain types of diseases and helping the endangered species come back to life like they once were.
Cloning has been in nature for thousands of years, a clone is a living thing made from another consisting of the same DNA. For example identical twins are clones because they have the same DNA but the differ because the twins begin after conception when a zygote, a totipotent stem cell, divides into two, some plants self-pollinate and produce a seed, which in turn, makes plants with the same genetic code (Hyde). According to the Human Genome Project there are three types of cloning, DNA, therapeutic and reproductive; DNA cloning involves transferring DNA from a donor to another organism, therapeutic cloning, known as embryo cloning, involves harvesting stem cells from human embryos to grow new organs for transplant, and last is reproductive cloning which creates a copy of the host (Conger). One of the earliest cloned animals was a sea urchin by Hans Dreisch in the late 1800’s. Unlike Victor Frankenstein, Dreisch’s goal was to prove that genetic material is not lost in cell division, not to create another being, (History of Cloning) stated by Frankenstein “that I might infuse a spark of being into the lifeless thing that lay at my feet.” There are many ways an animal...
Cloning is a recent innovative technique the National Institute of Health defines as a process employed to produce genetically identical copies of a biological entity. Depending on the purpose for the clone, human health or even human life can be improved or designed respectively. “Somatic cell nuclear transfer (SCNT) is the most common cloning technique. SCNT involves putting the nucleus of a body cell into an egg from which the nucleus has been removed."^1 From this technique, an embryonic cell is activated to produce an animal that is genetically identical to the donor. Today, human cloning still remains as a vision, but because of the success of Dolly, the lamb, researchers are becoming more confident in the ability to produce a genuine
First and foremost, it is important to discuss what human cloning is. It is the conception of in vitro embryos that produces “individuals that are exact genetic copies of the donor from whom the DNA was obtained” (Munson 366). In Laymen’s terms, cells are inserted from the donor host into an unfertilized egg from another host (meaning it is asexual) and the new egg is transferred into the surrogate mother where it will foster into an embryo, if effective.
Postrel, Virginia. “Should Human Cloning Be Allowed? Yes, Don’t Impede Medical Progress.” In Dynamic Argument. Ed. Robert Lamm and Justin Everett. New York: Houghton Mifflin, 2007. 420-23.
---. “Animal Cloning—How Unethical Is It?- Final Draft.” UTSA: WRC 1023, 7 Mar 2014. Print.
John A. Robertson, “Human Cloning and the Challenge of Regulation,” The New England Journal of Medicine, vol. 339, no. 2 (July 9, 1998), pp. 119-122.
Robinson, Bruce. “Human Cloning: Comments by political groups, religious authorities, and individuals.” 3 August 2001. Ontario Consultants on Religious Tolerance. 1 October 2001 <http://www.religioustolerance.org/clo_reac.htm>.