Biogenetics is a branch of biology concerned with altering the genomes of living organisms or we can say modifying them.
The absurd science fiction of the 1980’s has become the reality of today. So let’s jump right into the genetic engineering, where it came from, what we’re doing now and about recent breakthrough which will change the life we know.
Humans have been engineering life for many years though we did not know the significance and potential it held till we discovered the code of life, DNA. This DNA contains instructions for the actions of a being. Change the instructions and you change the being carrying it.
Through this we’ve been able to produce life-saving clotting factors, growth hormones and insulin. The first food modified in the lab went on sale in 1994: the flavr savr tomato, a tomato given a much longer shelf life where an extra gene that suppresses the build-up of a rotting enzyme.
Today there are super muscles pigs, fast growing salmon, featherless chicken and see through frogs. Initially, gene editing was very expensive and took a long time to do which has now changed with a revolutionary new technology now entering the stage- CRISPR. CRISPR allows to switch genes and target a study for a particular DNA very economically.
In 2016, an experiment was carried out where rats with HIV virus were treated with CRISPR and almost 50% of the virus was eradicated, this gives us a hope that we could fight such retroviruses. Potentially caner could also be cured with the help of such technology.
There are very high chances of having modified humans or designer babies which could alter the genome of our entire species as these traits will be passed on to generations to come.
As genetic modification will get accepted, the temptation will grow. If you can make your offspring immune to certain disease then why not enhance their metabolism. Ageing could also be slowed, modified humans could also be given a good physique, better hair, perfect eyesight and other extraordinary abilities, humans could also be engineered to be equipped for extended space travel but we must remember that it is a slippery slope.
This can be unethical to do and also there are technological issues to be resolved. We might create a world where we reject imperfect humans which was the case if you’ve seen Hobbs & Shaw. The accuracy is also a matter of concern before testing on humans.
Banning genetic modification will only lead to a place with jurisdictions and rules which is not good for the progress of scientific research. Only by participating we can make sure that further research is guided by caution, reason, oversight and transparency.
Coming to Neuralink, a company run by the vision of Elon Musk. He believes that the electronic brain- computer interface could give us unimaginable abilities. This is described as fitbit in your skull with tiny wires. Elon Musk believes that AI would one day overshadow the human race. If we have to be having an upper hand on AI era, we need to be competent with it in all ways.
If Neuralink is true in what they claim, you may download any skill in your brain directly and control different gadgets just by sending neuro signals through the brain. The technology is fascinating as well as scary but it has a long way to go.
DO YOU THINK THIS WILL BE SUCCESSFUL IN THE LONG RUN OR IS IT MORALLY CORRECT TO CHANGE THE HUMANITY LIKE THIS?.. TELL ME YOUR VIEWS IN COMMENTS.
For more information on what neuralink is, watch the following video:
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