- In Michael Specter’s paper “How the DNA Revolution is Changing Us” he talks about Phelan’s work on Black Footed Ferrets. I find it very exhilarating because with CRISPR we are now able to keep species from going extinct. If humans couldn’t edit genes to help species survive, we would have significantly less species of animals than we already do. I find it terrifying because that could be too much power for the human race. In the wrong hands, the power to change DNA in all species, they could change DNA for their own favor and change the world forever. DNA is a dangerous thing to work with and even the slightest wrong change could hurt a species and the environment.
- I think that messing with the human genome is not a good idea. I don’t think changing the DNA, even if it is to make different diseases less likely to spread, is a mistake and can end horribly. The power to change human DNA is a power no one should have. Throughout history many people, like Hitler, have used eugenics as an excuse to make better human DNA. Since gene editing has been becoming more advanced, now a power hungry person can use that technology for their own good and edit unwanted genes.