As the years pass by, research is continually uncovering new methods to improve efficiency of domestic breeding programs for commercially farmed animals. Within every one of these methods there are advantages, disadvantages, limitations and ethical issues which must be investigated and addressed. Still, with the use of these realised technologies, there have been significant advances already, that indicate a more genetically focused, and technology based farming life for future years. Procedures including Embryo Transfer (ET) and Artificial Insemination (AI) are already being employed, with widespread use on commercial cattle properties. While at the same time, technologies such as Cloning, and Genetic Engineering although seemingly already developed to some degree, are just the tip of the iceburg as researchers strive to create a genetically perfect, nation wide, breeding program for cattle, pigs, sheep, goats and poultry.
Artificial Insemination and Embryo Transfer are technologies that are often used in conjuncion on Australian farms, most often in the dairy industry, but also with beef cattle and occasionally sheep. (Brown.L et al, 2001) defined Artificial Insemination as the act of using instruments to deposit semen in the female reproductive tract with the aim of acheiving pregnancy. This procedure can then be elaborated on through the use of Embryo Transfer which involves the superovulation of the donor cow through the use of hormones prior to the AI procedure being excecuted, followed by a flushing of partially developed embryos 7 days later through the use of a foley catheter. These embryos are then either frozen for storage or implanted into surrogate cows after the syncronisation of their oestrus cycles with the done...
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...though scientific in this case, is the fact that, if cloning and genetic enginering become widely used technologies, they could begin to alter the natural evolution. When an animal is cloned, the mistakes of the previous generation are repeated. It is currently under question asto whether humans have the knowledge to allow the neceserry changes to occour, even while cloning, so as to stay in touch with the environmental changes. Or whether this halting of evolution could create disaster in the future.
Every new technology has advantages and disadvantages, aims and limitations. As each new technology is released though, we ourselves weigh up the profit and productivity against the cost and ethical dilemmas. Still, as reserch continues, technological advances will undoubtedly become a huge part of the Australian commercial farming industry. The question is when.
Today, we as a society world wide have a new issue to deal with. Science has discovered the means in which to clone animals, opening a whole new discussion. Many people are inclined to say why would science even wish to peruse this method of research. Lewis Thomas says in his essay "The Hazards of Science"
Artificial insemination offers. .many advantages to farmers and takes full benefits of the estrus synchronization techniques (Cseh et al., 2012). The small ruminant industry was changed by. .the artificial insemination since it produce better control of reproduction. .and sexually transmitted
In essence, the long-term effects of cloning are completely unknown. When studying cloning, we may see its desirable effects, but we neglect its many unknown effects. At the mention of cloning, many may contemplate Mary Shelley’s famous novel Frankenstein. Although fictional, the novel does show some truth. In the novel, Shelley warns of the dangers that come as a repercussion of knowledge, with Victor Frankenstein’s dialogue “seek happiness in tranquility and avoid ambition, even if it be only the apparently innocent one of distinguishing yourself in science and discoveries.” (Shelley) Today, we find ourselves debating similar ethical issues that Mary Shelley considered long ago. With so many incredible discoveries that lie in our future, we must also consider the responsibilities that come with these discoveries. If not, we may suffer the same fate as Victor Frankenstein had in the novel
Human and animal cloning is still a debatable issue. People believe that cloning is playing God, just as Victor Frankenstein did when he created the Monster. While Victor Frankenstein’s creation ended in catastrophe, cloning’s seemly innocent side effects can still disrupt and alter the entire world.
.... Until a successful attempt of creating life emerges in upcoming history, the possibility of cloning may never reveal its truth. Matters of opinion judge the positive and negative outcomes of artificial animal reproduction, and numerous instances prove its everlasting positive outlook for world community, science, and theology.
But on the contrary, many scientists believe that cloning can be such a positive achievement, not only for medical purposes, but for fighting extinction. For example, what if they could clone many of the endangered species that exist today? There are very few hundred of many beautiful animals that if something isn’t done to save them, they will be extinct in a few years. So if scientists could successfully clone and create these endangered species, although it would still depend on the clone maturing correctly and being able to reproduce successfully, it could be a great
embryos of livestock with genes that produce "super" livestock traits; however, this is not the case. technique is not efficient because only five percent of the offspring express these "super" traits that would guarantee a more productive industry. Scientists can easily genetically alter adult cells; therefore, cloning from an adult cell would make it easier to alter the cell. genetic material. The goal of transgenic livestock1 is to produce livestock with ideal characteristics for the agricultural industry and to be able to manufacture biological products such as proteins for humans.
As explained by the above excerpt from The Mother Machine, artificial insemination is not a recent technological breakthrough. The procedure among huma...
In my opinion, In vitro fertilisation (IVF) is one of the greatest breakthroughs in Medical Biotechnology in the last 50 years. Finding out you are infertile can be heart-breaking and distressing. After trying for long periods of time, some couples are not able to conceive. Thankfully, this problem many couples have can be fixed by In Vitro Fertilization (IVF), a process that was developed and used in Britain first more than 30 years ago by Doctors Patrick Steptoe and Robert Edwards. In 1978, the world’s first IVF baby was born into the world and since thousands and thousands of babies have been born every year using this method.
In the essay, Cloning Reality: Brave New World by Wesley J. Smith, a skewed view of the effects of cloning is presented. Wesley feels that cloning will end the perception of human life as sacred and ruin the great diversity that exists today. He feels that cloning may in fact, end human society as we know it, and create a horrible place where humans are simply a resource. I disagree with Wesley because I think that the positive effects of controlled human cloning can greatly improve the quality of life for humans today, and that these benefits far outweigh the potential drawbacks that could occur if cloning was misused.
One popular method of trying to increase the numbers of endangered species is by in vitro fertilization, or test tube babies. Scientists take the sperm from a male and an egg from a female and united them in the laboratory, then place the embryo into a surrogate mother, which is usually put inside a similar animal. For instance, a Bengal tiger cub was born to a Siberian t...
According to Richard Dawkins “Cloning may be good and it may be bad. Probably it's a bit of both. The question must not be greeted with reflex hysteria but decided quietly, soberly and on its own merits. We need less emotion and more thought” (Dawkins, 2011). Cloning is a general term used to describe the replication of biological material (Cloning Fact Sheet, 2009). Throughout this paper the reasoning behind why cloning is an acceptable and potentially life changing science will be examined. Along with this we will take a close look at the arguments against cloning and exploring the flaws within the argument. This will affirm that cloning is useful because it cures diseases, passes on genes, and repopulates endangered species.
Secondly, “the most the human race has to loose by playing around with cloning is that the genetic diversity would be lost (Andrea Castro, 2005).” Reducing the genetic differences will produce clones that are grossly overlarge, many animals will be born with genetic mutations, and there will be a higher “risk of disease transfer (Saskaschools, 2003). “A review of all the world's cloned animals suggests that every one of them is genetically and physically defective (Leake, 2002).” Mutations will be passed on to the younger generation because if a cloned species has a mutation in their DNA this mutation will be passed on. Cloning has been linked with diseases of ageing, arthritis and, cancer.
The developments that arose out of the Enclosure Movement and the Industrial Revolution have shaped how we farm today. Farmers today produce large amounts of crops for great numbers of people. New tools and technologies, including genetically modified foods, are being developed to further advance these farming practices. Therefore, it can be said that the world is going through another Industrial Revolution, one that could last for many years to come.
...t too expensive for the farmers. The second step is that broader awareness is required. According to Sarah Alexander, “different farmers trust different sources, such as vendors, crop consultants, and university extension services.” Farmers are going to need to be open minded to new things, in order to feed the human race. The last step is farmers need the right incentives. Farmers want to know about the good that they are doing. Farmer’s want to know how they are saving the environment, and how they are producing more food, and feeding more people than they were before.