Summary Of The Controversy Over Biotechnology

Controversy over Biotechnology
Biotechnology has been the source of lots of controversy. There are those that love Biotechnology and dream of all the great things it could bring to mankind. There are also those who see it as threat to mankind, something that could possibly overthrow our current society. James Watson, who along with Francis Crick discovered the double helix structure of DNA, exerts that this controversy is not deserved. He believes that it is pertinent for our future, that it could benefit mankind. Francis Fukuyama, a professor at John Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies and author of the influential best seller Our Posthuman Future, insists that “… our compulsion to control and manipulate natural processes, including the human genome, will ultimately undermine nature itself (Fukuyama 668).” This viewpoint is concerned with conserving mankind as it is. There must be a place in between, a stance that both sides agree on.
The double helix structure, the foundation of modern Biology, is still relatively new, only being discovered in 1953. As with any powerful new technology there is uncertainty about its potential uses. Watson shows this to hold true to biotechnology by pointing out that people are
Perhaps all we would need is time and opportunity to research and learn more about human genes. Currently we do not possess enough understanding to create any sort of “superhuman.” It would take many years to obtain that kind of understanding. Even when or if we do reach that point that kind of technology would probably only be used to prolong and better human life. So would there really be a threat to mankind? If first attempts don’t succeed it would not simply be overlooked. These scientists are not monsters and they don’t want to create monsters. An immediate halt would take place until an understanding of the problem was established. Better procedures would then be developed before further