Science, Technology, Society: Assignment 4

Recommendations on limits to

scientific research and medical experiments related to GENETICS

            Genetics is the science that studies gene structures of various life forms. Gene is just a chemical structure in itself; but when various types of genes come together in different combinations, they completely define behavior and characteristics of any life form e.g. right from the reason that why a person cannot sing well to what disease he is going to die of is encoded in the genetic structure of that person. Thus, genetic structure of a person can be treated as his biological identity.

            Like any research[*], genetic research requires experiments to be carried out, observations to be made and inferences to be drawn from those observations. In case of genetic research, experiments are medical in nature. As genetics deals with life forms, its experiments are carried out on living things – most of the time animals but sometimes even humans. Such experiments are successful sometimes, the other times they are not. Several thousands of lives are lost in course of medical experiments every year and like others, genetic research also makes its contribution to that number.

            Till now I have mentioned only some general facts about genetic sciences and from this it looks like a completely normal form of science and it seems to have in it – the partly cruel and partly angelic nature of science. This is how genetics look superficially. But there is much more to it which I’ll try to present in rest of this document along with my recommendations.

            First of all, let us look into what genetic structure can mean to a person. It contains information about all the strengths and more importantly all the weaknesses that a person may have. It contains information about a person’s biological and behavioral characteristics i.e. it can tell whether a person is prone to violence or not; how a person will react to a pressure situation etc. So today, when whole of human gnome structure has been decoded and any person can be genetically profiled, all this information can be obtained within matters of days. The ongoing information and knowledge revolution has brought about many changes and one of those changes is the easy access to information. So in this scenario if genetic profile of a person comes out in open, then that person’s social life may be in jeopardy, for example knowing that a completely normal person is susceptible to commit sexual violence[†], no female may like to be friends with him; further, people may misuse this information. Use of a person’s genetic profile may lead to some form of discrimination in professional life also. A company may not be interested in employing people who have chances to die earlier and who are otherwise completely normal. So my first recommendation is to control or to completely stop the flow of personal genetic information of a person into public domain. It may only be used when it is for curing some disease or some other medical reason.

            Another important aspect of genetic sciences is cloning. Cloning is the act of creating an individual completely like another person. This is done by exactly replicating the genetic structure of a person. But important question to be asked here is that what kind of life the cloned person can expect for himself. And more importantly, how will the society react to this cloned person. Will he be treated like another normal human being or will he have to live in shadow of social life of the person he is clone of? The fact is we don’t know the right answers to these questions and in such a condition when one cannot guarantee life to a life, I don’t think that one has any right to create such life. Thus my second recommendation will be to comprehensive ban on cloning. As far as question of growing body parts goes it can be done without creating a complete human being.

            Up till now I have mentioned the consequences of application of genetic sciences in the wrong ways but to rein must be tightened in case of experiments pertaining to genetics. As mentioned earlier that each individual has his unique genetic stamp and thus obviously genetic pattern of one species will be considerably different from that of other species. So in order to carry out foolproof experiments regarding human genes, there is no other alternative than to experiment on humans itself. We must first look in to the possible nature of genetic experiments that may be carried out on humans. They can be fiddling with the structure, manipulating it or in some cases even destroying it purposefully or accidentally. The consequences of such experiments will invariably lead to distortion in the personality of the persons who are subjected to such experiments to various degrees and this cannot be allowed. Such act will not be much different from an experiment carried out by a Nazi doctor in some concentration camp. So my third recommendation will be to put a serious check on such experiments and only state run facilities to carry out such experiments if at all unlike the private companies that are more or less freely indulging in such activities today.

            Moreover if technology of manipulating genes comes out it open, it may fall into wrong hands and may be used against the good of the society, for example, someone may design special terrorists whose genes are manipulated to make their behavior instinctively more violent. More fidayeens can be created and used against society. Wonder having thousands of Hitler! Remember a single one caused so many troubles. So my fourth recommendation will be put filter on information regarding the technology involved in such genetic experiments if they are at all conducted.

            We know that most of inventions, good or bad, have come from defense research[‡] and often things like genetics research, which find it difficult to muster enough social and ethical vindication, to be carried out in open are carried out in the cloak of defense research. Now, this is also a fact that whatever it may be, from internet to nuclear technology, it has sooner or later come into the open domain. So my last recommendation will to stop states from carrying out the experiments, I suggested stopping earlier, even in name of defense, as in long term at best this is an unpredictable technology and its better not to fiddle with it.

            These were my few recommendations to limit scientific research and medical experiments related to genetics but in the end I would like to add that no science is evil in itself, it is how it is applied that makes it good or bad. So when we are not sure in what ways may the application of a particular technology turn out to be, stopping the growth of science itself can be one solution, but in the long run, it is the society that has to learn how to absorb a new science and use it in constructive manner rather than to limit growth of science itself.