Advancements in all fields of technology are inevitable in the information age, like the invention of the New Leafs in biotechnology. These technological advances have brought society to a new improved level. It is because of this biotechnology that we have so many advantages such as improved crops and efficiency with time. Although biotechnology has many benefits, the consequences of it make one question the value of these advances.
Time is the key factor for biotechnology, being that is the most valuable thing to man and has no price. "An average single American farmer can feed up to a hundred people in an average year not including the expenses of fertilizer, pesticide, machinery etc." (Pollan 460) Biotechnology causes the plants to have an increased growth rate making it more time efficient, and apparently healthier than other plants. Plants are now capable to defend themselves against harmful insects and diseases without the use of harmful pesticides. It has created a new level of importance for the agriculture society by replacing all the expensive and toxic chemicals that were previously used to cultivate the plants. But is this the safest method to be practiced upon our agricultural industry and human health.
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But the expense for Bt is not worth taking with all the harmful additives it comes with. Uncertainty that the beetles might develop resistance to the pesticide. Do people really want to eat a plant that is leaner and tastier but contains genes from humans? Or, would individuals (like vegetarians) be able to eat certain vegetables that may contain genes from animals? Scientists should not be able to use their knowledge and social prestige in society to be able to play the role of "God" in creating new or better living things even if their justification is for the purpose of serving mankind. Uncertainty is the main issue here. The lab is an uncertain place where operations are taking place. Again, is human health worth the cost of creating biotech crops? "Any Colorado potato beetle that takes so much as a nibble of my New Leafs will supposedly kneel over and die"(459) Are killing these beetles right? They are living organisms too. It has helped us cure diseases, increase production of products, and even helped us discover that there is life outside of earth.
Today in the 21st century companies are about status and global competition. Animal testing is also a major concern especially when the "mice are not even eating the potatoes, but the Bt itself. The result could be large food shortage.
We have the right, as people of a society, to accept or reject technology. This can lead to “biological pollution. Cloning can only yield new technologies that will be beneficial to society. "There's no way of telling where in the genome the new DNA will land, and if it winds up in the wrong place, the new gene won't be expressed, or the plant may be a freak.
Approximate Word count =
892
Approximate Pages =
4 (250 words per page double spaced)
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