Everyone is familiar with the blue print, or book, of life. Deoxyribonucleic Acid, or DNA, for short. After all, every single cell of our trillion possesses a double-membraned blob (nucleus) just to house it. As with anyone who ever studied genetics, pilgrims to the Delphic oracle in ancient Greece always discovered something profound about them when they inquired of it-but rarely that which they assumed to have learned in the first place. The Greek king Croesus once asked the oracle if he should commence a war with a neighboring kingdom only to be told “You will destroy a great empire”. He did only his own. Likewise, DNA speaks in code with the occasional satirical message. Unlike Delphi, our oracle still speaks, and louder than ever. From …show more content…
I was truly ensnared by this nucleic acid and resultantly, decided to do my summative on genetics. Consequently, I began to read the book The Violinist’s Thumb by Sam Kean, a wondrous book devoted to recounting humanities story (genetically). The unique title is derived from the morbid story of Nicollo Paganini, a man so skilled at playing the violin, people were positive he struck a deal with the devil. So much so that his church refused to bury his body after his successful but traumatizing life came to an end. Anthropologists believe his success was predetermined in his DNA, as he had a genetic disorder which made the connective tissue in his hands intensely rubbery. In being so, he was able to stretch his fingers at grotesque angles and dominate the violin. Of course, this genetic blessing came at a price: disease. Paganini suffered many diseases one of which caused his left testicle to swell to the size of “a small pumpkin” he sobbed. While researching genetics I was taken aback by the sheer grandeur of this field. There’s no bolder topic in science, no field that holds such potential or promise to push our race forward to the same …show more content…
But why? What puts above other species? If there is anything I have learned from researching genetics it is that we refuse to accept our DNA. Have you ever gone swimming? That act, although it may seem innocent, is defying our genes. Take this moment to examine your body… feel free to comment if you have gills, nuptial pads, or dorsal fins. Point proven. Evolutionarily speaking, Homo sapiens have no reason to swim as we are land-based creatures. Genetically speaking, our DNA does not code for proteins allowing some of our cells to specialize into the aforementioned features. Simply put, we are not supposed to swim yet we do anyway. Another example is how an estimated 0.3% of the population is transgender. Although, a few animals exhibited gender discomfort they still adapted and began to behave such as their gender. Humans defy their biology and their physical being due to mental discomfort. This suggests that our being is centered in our thoughts. After all, shockingly, humans do not have more DNA than most animals. This suggests a significant unknown variable is responsible for our complexity: conscious. As Descartes infamously once said: “I think, therefore, I
DNA is the blueprint of life from its creation to its development and until its death. The discovery of the structure of DNA not only revolutionized science and medicine, but it also affected many other facets of existence: evolutionary, industrial, legal, and criminal justice. Its incarnation has benefitted American families and industries and spurred scientific innovation throughout the country. Aptly stated by Francis Crick, “your joys and your sorrows, your memories and your ambitions, your sense of identity and freewill, are in fact no more than the behavior of a vast assembly of nerve cells and their associated molecules. As Lewis Carroll’s Alice might have phrased it: ‘you’re nothing but a pack of neurons.’ [Watson and my] discovery illustrates how that is possible.”
The book Genome by Matt Ridley tells the story of the relationship between genome and life by examining the twenty three chromosomes of the human DNA. Each chromosome literally and metaphorically becomes a chapter in the literal and metaphorical book of DNA. In this book of DNA, Ridley examines a particular aspect of the chromosomes chapter by chapter to see how it affects life and humanity’s understanding of life, humans and genetics itself. Although each chapter dives into different aspects of DNA and gathers stories as varied as the genes’ applications, Ridley connects them with important ideas about life and humanity’s understanding of life.
Francis S. Collins is a renowned geneticist who originally became Ph.D in Physical Chemistry at Yale University and later on, a Medical Doctor at University of North Carolina. As soon as he graduated he was offered a fellowship in Human Genetics at Yale University under the guidance of Sherman Weissman, currently Sterling Professor of Genetics. In the late 1980’s Collins became known in the field of Medical Genetics for his development of positional cloning, a technique that allows to locate a hereditary disease-causing gene by studying the inheritance pattern within a family. Working with his method researchers found the genes responsible for diseases like Cystic fibrosis, Huntington’s disease, Neurofibromatosis, Multiple Endocrine Neoplasia type one, and Hutchinson-Gilford Progeria Syndrome. In 1993 Dr. Collins succeeded Dr. James D. Watson as the director of the National Human Genome Research Institute (NHGRI), overseeing the role of the United States in the mapping of the human genome. In 2009 President Obama personally recommended Collins to lead the National Institute of Health (NIH) where he works until present day. Francis S. Collins is by no means a bragging individual, bits and pieces of his accomplishments are scattered throughout the book and he makes no big deal about it; instead he j...
In today’s modern age science is moving at a rapid pace; one of those scientific fields that has taken the largest leaps is that of genetics. When genetics first comes to mind, many of us think of it as a type of science fiction, or a mystical dream. Yet genetics is here, it is real, and has numerous ethical implications.
The essential component of life can be acknowledged and is made up of a nucleic acid known as DNA. DNA is the abbreviated form for the word deoxyribonucleic acid and it is the “carrier of genetic information” (McMurry, Ballantine, Hoeger, & Peterson, 1992, pg. 775). DNA contains the genetic instructions that are needed for an organism to develop, survive, and replicate, as it plays a crucial role in living systems that makes each species unique and distinctive. The multifaceted material is stored in every cell of every living organisms and it contains information about our nature, appearance, performance, etc. With the instructions that it contains, DNA is passed from the adult organism to their offspring during reproduction. (McMurry, Ballantine, Hoeger, & Peterson, 1992, pg.777).
Masha, G. (2009). From Inherited Illness to Designer Babies, How the World and I Found
Since the completion of the Human Genome Project in 2003, University of Utah biology researcher Riddhita Chakraborty explains how scientists have been able to “read” a person’s entire genetic makeup (1). Genes are sequences of DNA that will determine characteristics like height, eye color, and hair color, just to name a few (1). Finding specific genes for each characteristic, despite the fact there are nearly 23,000 per person, seems like it would be a relatively simple process given today’s advanced technology. However, according to David Epstein, author of The Sports Gene, our genes appear to be far more complex than originally believed (24). As scientists have delved deeper into human genetics, the idea of finding one simple gene that correlates to a specific characteristic appears less and less realistic. For something even as b...
Why are we the way we are? Is it because we want to be that way or because we were made that way? The debate regarding the nature of humans is one that will never end because there is so much support for each side. It is an issue that humans have spent generations pondering. Two of those people are Thomas Hobbes and John Locke. Both have made compelling arguments regarding nature versus nurture.
From that one could conclude that western science at least functions as a more or less monolithic enterprise. However, although western science as a whole is based on a shared methodology and epistemology, distinct preoccupations of the cultures in different regions of the western world exert powerful influences over the construction of scientific discourses. In the United States, there appears to be a strong need in middle class culture to define oneself through ‘one’s biology’. This ‘biology’ however does not signify the body itself, but a metaphorical, linguistic construction of the self around which many aspects of contemporary life are becoming organized. (2) The central metaphor of one’s biology is one’s genes, and ‘one’s genes’ are seen as the essence of the person. For complex historical, political and cultural reasons, the human genome is increasingly equated with the ‘essence’ of human-ness. Coming from New Zealand, this definition of identity through a genetically oriented ‘biological’ discourse is anything but self-evident, in fact, it seems deeply culturally determined. Within the scope of this paper, I will not attempt to identify what drives the need for this view of the self, but would like to stress the importance of seeking answers to this question. It seems to me to be a central concern in any critique of the contemporary gene cult(ure) in American society. The growth of a biotechnological economy and the promotion of matching societal attitudes are obviously contributing to this phenomenon, but they alone do not explain the deep resonance a genetically defined construction of human-ness appears to invoke in people’s psyches.
In reality, many people who have not been “born” musicians or athletes have made greater accomplishments than those who were genetically endowed. In addition to that, naturally obtained genes through traditional reproduction are random, and, thus, are regarded as a gift. This randomness and the fact that even people with poor genetics can achieve success is what makes a person’s accomplishments truly authentic. Genetic modification has a potential to remove both of these factors of authenticity. In that way, Resnik and Vorhaus’s claim about authenticity of our accomplishments is not entirely
DNA (deoxyribonucleic acid) is a self-replicating molecule or material present in nearly all living organisms as the main constituent in chromosomes. It encodes the genetic instructions used in the development and functioning of all known living organisms and many viruses. Simply put, DNA contains the instructions needed for an organism to develop, survive and reproduce. The discovery and use of DNA has seen many changes and made great progress over many years. James Watson was a pioneer molecular biologist who is credited, along with Francis Crick and Maurice Wilkins, with discovering the double helix structure of the DNA molecule. The three won the Nobel Prize in Medicine in 1962 for their work (Bagley, 2013). Scientist use the term “double helix” to describe DNA’s winding, two-stranded chemical structure. This shape looks much like a twisted ladder and gives the DNA the power to pass along biological instructions with great precision.
The Double Helix tells a tale of fierce competition, perseverance, and scientific innovation as we follow James Watson and his cohort Francis Crick on their quest to discover the secret to life, the structure of deoxyribonucleic acid. Although already fascinated with DNA, Watson struggled with finding chemistry exciting enough to learn it in depth. He had studied birds in college and thereby managed to avoid any formal chemistry or physics courses. As he later pursued a PhD in biochemistry, he realized he could put it off no longer and attempted to learn organic chemistry at Indiana University. However, after a mishap in the lab, he was encouraged instead to study nucleic acid chemistry with Herman Kalckar in Copenhagen. There, his mind strayed from his work and he began doing unauthorized research in the lab of Ole Maaløe, studying phages. Herman stopped teaching Watson after going through a divorce with his wife, and sent Watson off to a scientific conference in Naples. Although he was bored by many of the lectures, Maurice Wilkins’s talk about X-ray diffraction fascinated Watson. He was struck by an X-ray diffraction picture of DNA that Maurice presented and was determined to study the acid. He later got to know more about Maurice’s colleague, Rosalind Franklin, who was proud, stubborn, and very difficult to work with. Watson greatly admired the lecture given by the renowned Linus Pauling, who had discovered the structure of the alpha-helix and was thought of as the leader in DNA research in the scientific world.
First, there’s no doubt that humans are at the top of the world. Their brains are just naturally ahead of those of other species around them. They build complex designs like towers, planes, cars, houses, and other expansions to make their everyday life easier. According to Scientific American, “Self-awareness distinguishes humans from most other species.” Humans act in a way that will only benefit them, or those around them. They do not care if the world around them is burning, as long as they benefit. Actions of kindness change to pity and despair. What makes a species human are their actions and how they’re
Height, hair color, eye color and sex are just a few examples of ways our DNA has shaped us. But could it be possible that our DNA also effects the way we behave in society. It is possible that genetics effect us is more ways that we may have imagined. Dr. Peter B. Neubaur believes that shyness, eating disorders, obsessive behavior and psychological illness can all be traced back to our genetics. Sexual orientation is also believed to be derived from genes in our body which determine what sexual preference we prefer. Violence and other types of crimes can be linked back throughout a person’s lineage to witness that other family members have been committed similar crimes without ever meeting one and other.
... drawn. What makes us human? Through the examination of human evolution, both biological adaptations and cultural adaptations which are distinct to humans can be recognized. Biologically speaking, humans are unique in that they are bipedal, they have larger brain sizes, and longer leg length. When examining the cultural evolution of humans we have a complex language system, we live in communities, engage in symbolic behavior, and act through emotional impulses. While we are often considered to be superior to all other animals, it is important to recognize that while we are animals, we have very distinct characteristics and adaptations that separate us both biologically and culturally from all other animals.