Biotechnology is a process that involves a controlled or deliberate manipulation of biological systems or life forms. With the aid of scientists, biotechnology has been used to produce genetically modified foods. The term GM foods or GMOs (genetically-modified organisms) is most commonly used to refer to crop plants created for human or animal consumption using the latest molecular biology techniques. These plants have been modified in the laboratory to enhance desired traits such as increased resistance to herbicides or improved nutritional content. (Whitman).The modification of the genetic structure of food is an old concept, one practiced by farmers for thousands of years. By cross breeding different types of crops; mainly crops with good traits, they were able to come up with new organisms that possess desired traits. The problem with that process is that cross-breeding is slow and unpredictable. Today, thanks to progress in biotechnology, scientists are able take a gene from one living organism and put it directly into another plant or animal. This resulted in more precise changes in a shorter period of time. Scientists claim that this new methods created crops that taste better (more nutritious), yield more, repel pests and grow in more difficult conditions. The outcome of this led to cheaper crops that feed billions of people all over the world. This progressive method has revolutionized the way we produce food to feed our growing population. In this paper, I will be defending the motion that biotechnology is ethical. In order to do this, the meaning of ethics must be clarified. Ethics is one branch of philosophy that asks questions about the best human life and how to live 'the good life.' Through ethics, we examine the ch... ... middle of paper ... ...w technically but unfortunately always came at a price, which Lowrance refers to as tragedy. This tragedy is what the critics of genetically modified foods fear. Even with the constant testing and the all of the strict standards genetically modified foods have to meet, people still fear the unknown. They choose to be pessimistic about these new developments even after seeing all the good it brings. However, we cannot allow the opinions of these people affect our ethics. Biotechnology has paved the way to help change the world for the better. It brings us closer to “the good life.” Nina V. Federoff and Nancy Marie Brown conclude their article by stating that whether this technology would be useful or harmful depends on how it is used, on the choices people make. (346) So far, the choices that have been made with regard to genetically modified foods have been ethical.
Monsanto employs over 20,000 employees dispersed throughout their facilities within 69 countries. John F. Queeny, founder of Monsanto, started the company in 1901, which at first manufactured saccharine. Later, John son Edward directed the companies into the agriculture industry. The company is best known producing Round up, an herbicide, and for developing genetically modified (GM) through biotechnology. “Monsanto developed G.M. seeds that would resist its own herbicide, Roundup, offering farmers a convenient way to spray fields with weed killer without affecting crops” (Barlett, D. L. & Steele, J. B, 2008). Since the start up the company has encounter several lawsuits, patent issues and critics. The company also faces many concerns about the
How many of you hear the words “genetically modified food” and immediately think “BAD”? How many of you scorn the idea that genetically modified foods are useful? How many of you have been manipulated by the media to think that all biotechnology is evil? Genetically modified organisms (GMOs) are organisms that have been genetically spliced to achieve a certain trait. As the demand for a larger food supply is increasing due to population growth, the benefits that GMO foods provide are being hailed as the only solution to the food crisis. However, many people are making inadequately informed decisions, and are pushing them to the back shelf. I will inform you on why genetically modified organisms may be the only way to a stable, safe future for the less fortunate.
Genetically modified food’s, or GMOs, goal is to feed the world's malnourished and undernourished population. Exploring the positive side to GMOs paints a wondrous picture for our planet’s future, although careful steps must be taken to ensure that destruction of our ecosystems do not occur. When GMOs were first introduced into the consumer market they claimed that they would help eliminate the world’s food crisis by providing plants that produced more and were resistant to elemental impacts like droughts and bacterial contaminants, however, production isn’t the only cause for the world’s food crisis. Which is a cause for concern because the population on the earth is growing and our land and ways of agriculture will not be enough to feed everyone sufficiently. No simple solutions can be found or applied when there are so many lives involved. Those who are hungry and those who are over fed, alike, have to consider the consequences of Genetically Modified Organisms. Food should not be treated like a commodity it is a human necessity on the most basic of levels. When egos, hidden agendas, and personal gains are folded into people's food sources no one wins. As in many things of life, there is no true right way or wrong way to handle either of the arguments and so many factors are involved that a ‘simple’ solution is simply not an option.
Genetic engineering on animals is the latest experimental practice used in the world of biomedical research. It has allowed the progression of human understanding towards the study of diseases and medicine. With the emergence of this technology, comes a wide range of ethical issues that need to be addressed, such as the welfare and the uncertainty of predisposed risk towards the animal. Furthermore, the current state of this practice in the United States is still new. Therefore, there is little regulation by the government along with the scientific community in enforcing specific guidelines to consider the welfare of the animals. The implication of the scarcity of regulating genetic engineering opens the possibilities of mistreatment of animals
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 impacts the world, how genetic engineering works, how people opinions are influenced, how the side effects can be devastating, how the genetic engineering can be beneficial for the society and also how the ethical issues affect people’s perspective.
Genetic Engineering has recently become a contentious topic within medical and social circles. Controversial topics such as Sex Selection and Designer Babies are linked to Genetic engineering. They are destructive in every circumstance. Genetic Engineering is detrimental towards the individual and all posterity.
The term GM foods or GMO (genetically-modified organisms) is most commonly used to refer to crop plants created for human or animal consumption using the latest molecular biology techniques (Whitman, 2000). These plants have been modified in the laboratory to offer desired traits such as increased resistance to herbicides or improved nutritional content. Also, genetic engineering techniques have been applied to create plants with the exact desired trait very rapidly and accurately. For example, this is done by the geneticist isolating the gene responsible for drought tolerance and inserts it into another plant. The new genetically-modified plant will now have gained drought tolerance as well.
The most wonderful activity a human being can experience is new flavors and foods. For example, the first time a person tastes a delicious juicy piece of prime rib or a delightful hamburger with cheese and ham, his world is never the same. However, since the beginning of the twentieth century, the production of food has been supplemented by science. This has triggered an angry dispute between the people who support the advances of biotechnology and people who love nature. In order to understand the controversy, we have to know the meaning of genetically modified foods. With new technological advances, scientists can modify seeds from a conventional seed to a high tech seed with shorter maturation times and resistance to dryness, cold and heat. This is possible with the implementation of new genes into the DNA of the conventional seed. Once these "transgenes" are transferred, they can create plants with better characteristics (Harris 164-165). The farmers love it not only because it guarantees a good production, but the cost is also reduced. On the other hand, organizations such as Greenpeace and Friends of Earth have campaigned against GMO (“Riesgos”) because they think that they are negatively affecting the earth (Gerdes 26). Both the advocates and the opponents of genetically modified foods have excellent arguments.
“Genetically modified foods are a "Pandora's box" of known and unknown risks to humans and the environment. They have been forced onto the American public by multinational biotech and agribusiness corporations without adequate oversight and regulation by the United States government (Driscoll, SallyMorley, David C).”Genetically Modified Food is food which has been chemically altered by scientists during the production process to give the food more nutrients, better appearance, and a longer shelf-life (Rich, Alex K.Warhol, Tom). The importance of this issue is that these GMO’s can actually have a negative effect in our society in general. It could mutate in a negative way and cause cancer or other diseases. Genetically modified food should be strictly controlled due to its various detrimental effects on the environment, human health, and potentially insect/animal effects.
As human technological innovation proceeds into the twenty-first century, society is faced with many complex issues. Genetic engineering and cloning, encryption and information security, and advanced weapons technologies are all prominent examples of technological issues that have substantial moral and ethical implications. Genetic engineering in particular is currently a very volatile subject. One important aspect of this field is GMO or Genetically Modified Organisms, which has far-reaching potential to revolutionize modern agriculture. GMO crops are already being developed by many leading biotech companies, and have come under intense scrutiny by society. This is easily understood, however, because there is not much that is more important than how people get fed. Specifically, where their food comes from, and how it is produced. Thus, it is essential that we examine the ethical dilemmas as well as the practical benefits posed by such a powerful technology.
Genetically modified (GM) foods have become omnipresent over the past decade. They are a technological breakthrough that allows humans to manipulate and add foreign genes to crops to enhance desired traits, but they have also evolved into a controversial issue, especially for Third World countries. Some people believe that GM foods not only provide larger yields to feed hungry citizens in Third World countries, but they can also be a source of great nutritional value. For example, researchers have developed a strain of golden rice containing high amounts of vitamin A and numerous other vitamins and minerals. Additionally, GM crops are laced with herbicides and pesticides, and therefore reduce the need for chemical consumption. Opponents of GM foods claim that they pose a threat to the health of consumers and that these crops could eventually cross-pollinate in an unregulated fashion or lead to the growth of superweeds and superbugs resistant to the herbicides and pesticides woven into the genetic fiber of the crops. Developed nations should promote research and monitoring from an ethical point of view and financial assistance through philanthropic ventures in order to limit environmental and health risks. They should also make sure that limited cultural displacement will result from the introduction of GM crops and that instead, a better livelihood and well-being through collaboration will emerge. Hence, GM crops should be introduced only provided that the developed nations assume the ethical and financial responsibilities for the environmental, health, and social consequences that attend this new innovation.
The Problem Genetic engineering has been around since the 1960’s, although major experiments have not been really noticed until the 1990’s. Science comes in different forms, the two major being cloning and genetic reconstruction. Cloning is the duplicating of one organism and making an exact copy. For example, in 1996 the creation of the clone sheep named Dolly, the first mammal to be cloned, which was a great achievement. The other form, genetic reconstruction, is used to replace genes within humans to help or enhance the life of an unborn child for a medical reason or just for the preference of a parent.
The term “Biotechnology” was first coined by a Hungarian agricultural engineer Károly Ereky in 1919. His scientific work laid the foundations of this new discipline and therefore he is regarded as “the father of biotechnology”. Biotechnology has been used by humans since the dawn of
Genetic engineering seems decades away, but through modern technology, it has recently entered the human realm. Some believe genetic engineering will bring forth great advancements in the human brain and body, but instead some believe one mistake creates a world where every child will be genetically engineered just to keep up with the rest of society. Many times, the media plays a very strong role in the image of this issue, and masks the true identity of this social injustice. However, what forms of genetic engineering can be done in humans today? What is in store for the future? What are the risks and what could be the possible benefits? Currently gene therapy is one of the only ways to change the genetic makeup of an animal or human. Also,
The myriad mysteries of science can be unraveled by the emerging technologies including Biotechnology. Science has always been my interest and forte thus, the choice of Biotechnology as my academic option was the ideal decision. I had prepared for the highly competitive entrance exam AIET to get admission into the integrated Masters Degree in Biotechnology and Bioinformatics at Dr. D.Y. Patil University and secured 87th all over India rank and was proud to gain admission to this venerated university. The academic curriculum has introduced me to amazing subjects like ‘Microbiology’, ‘Molecular Biology’, ‘Biochemistry’, ‘Genetics’ and ‘Industrial Biotechnology’. Although many seminal biological events have been explained in theory during the past century, the technology to harness their potential for benefiting humankind has only been possible during the past few decades. This is testament to the great improvements in biotechnologies and I am glad to be a part of this grand scientific experience.