Genetic Engineering: Introduction

Introduction

This section will bring you up-to-date with the leading edge of scientific technology and its application in the real world. Recombinant technology is here today and will probably become the growth industry of the future as more and better techniques are discovered that have both a profit and a humanitarian incentive attached. This is it, the real stuff.

Of course with every change, whether good or bad, there are opposing points of view that weigh in to confuse the issue. Genetic engineering is one of these. There are scientific issues and legal issues that are being called down on both sides. You might want to learn these … in case you need a plasmid injection one of these days. Don't know what this is? Read on.

Regardless of where you are philosophically on these issues, they are with us today and will likely be around for a while. Some futurists predict that at a point in the future, random fertilization by consenting couples will cease to occur. It would be much less surprising to select the sperm and egg that will create the ideal offspring. Hmmmm, this could be interesting!

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Excerpted from The Complete Idiot's Guide to Biology © 2004 by Glen E. Moulton, Ed.D.. All rights reserved including the right of reproduction in whole or in part in any form. Used by arrangement with Alpha Books, a member of Penguin Group (USA) Inc.

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