Is Genetic Engineering the Future of Life?

Main question: ‘Is genetic engineering the future of life?’ Thesis statement: Even though genetic engineering has many benefits, it should not be the future of our lives.

This research is being conducted because I have a strong interest in it. At first when we had to choose a book to start our ideas, I picked up any book that I could find. At first nothing really interested me, but then I picked up the book ‘Genetic Engineering’. I flipped through the pages and read some pages here and there and I found it quite interesting. I like this topic because it shows me many advantages and disadvantages that it is hard to chose a side on which to support. I think that learning about something of interest that I know nothing of will educate my peers and I at the same time, and I would have fully understood the topic on my own terms. My research includes information such as, Human genetic engineering, animal genetic engineering, agricultural genetic engineering and stem cell genetic engineering. It also includes, the advantages towards the topic and how it helps many people in life and also the disadvantages in life and how it affects people drastically, like losing a life or even permanently disabling people of all ages. To support my thesis, many people say that it should not be used based on religious aspects and that God is the only one who should create and modify living things. Others also think that the long-term effects are unknown and are too dangerous to take the risk.

There has been many complaints about genetic engineering being dangerous, expensive, the methods may not be safe, it could eliminate genes that may be important and most people don’t agree with it because of the unknown effects. The book I am using ‘Genetic Engineering’ (Thomas Parmalee; Genetic Engineering; 2008; ABDO Publishing Company; Edina, Minnesota 2008; p39-40) also mentions that humans have been crossbreeding for centuries and scientists later found out that the organisms have never been able to reproduce. If GM species are let out into the wild the scientists can no longer control how the species reproduce and it will be impossible to fix and the ecosystem will be changed and go out of hand. In conclusion, I think that genetic engineering should not be used in our future lives and that we should live a natural and healthy life, instead of one filled with chemicals and toxins. There are advantages to this certain topic but in my opinion the disadvantages rank at a higher level, as they are more fatal to lives and the planet we live around us.

What would we better have; a life filled with toxins and chemicals which may save some lives but kill many in the long-term, or a life with natural and healthy elements that can let the life cycle flow as it should? In general, I think that majority and some scientists will agree to stop genetic engineering as it has gone too far and that it may cause problems that will be irreversible. The main thing that I want to prove to my audience is that genetic engineering should not be used as a daily operation by people who want to change the way nature is and that if we change everything to the way we want it in life, then what’s worth living if there’s no surprise? Because we know how everything is going to turn out, just by genetically modifying the DNA. Proof that I have gotten for my ideas are from books, articles, and videos about how genetic engineering affects us positively and how it affects us negatively.

Most people look at the positive side of things and block out the negative, which is not called being optimistic. Being optimistic means that you look at both the advantages and disadvantages from different perspectives and think about the positives while barring in mind the negative sides, but trying to make the most of it. I want my audience to rethink whether genetically modified beings, animals and crops should be allowed in our future. I will be helping them to think in ways, not only about the positive and how it could save life, but the disadvantages of the positives, and the disadvantages in general. Some disadvantages of the positives are, if we save too many lives the world will become too overpopulated, we will change the nature of life, we will ruin food chains, everything will be exactly how people want them to be, nothing will be a surprise in life anymore, life will then become quite dull and boring, and everything that we change or alter, will be irreversible.

Disadvantages are people dying, filling our foods and crops with chemicals to ‘kill’ pesticides but kill us in the long term, nothing will be organic, most nutrients will be lost and also it affects people religiously as they think that God is the only one who decides what things are and what they will look like. Overall, I think that genetic engineering is a fascinating subject to research and learn more about, but I don’t think that it should be carried out for further use in the future unless for fatal diseases, or when it is the last option to resort to. We should be living a healthy natural life, not a life filled with chemicals, which may kill us in the long term. So my project will hopefully explain the advantages and disadvantages of genetic engineering and it will explain why it should not be used further in our future.