Hacking Darwin: Genetic Engineering and the future of humanity

[basquebromance]

if your ancestors procreated and survived, you are here. this is called Darwinian evolution. but now the principles of Darwinian evolution are themselves mutating

from this point onward, much of our mutation will not be random. it will be self-designed.

from this point onward, our selection will not be natural. it will be self-directed.

from this point onward, our species will take active control of our evolutionary process by genetically altering our future offspring into something different from what we are today. we are beginning a process of HACKING DARWIN!



it is an incredible idea with monumental implications!

 

[ABikerSailor]

You know, I have mixed feelings about this. I think it's great that we can use CRSPR to modify and change DNA that is faulty and fix some genetic diseases while the kid is still in the womb, and they can be born healthy.

But, if we can do that, how much further is it before we come up with the ability to designate eye color, muscle mass, size, etc? That is the point where I part company with the tech.

 

[basquebromance]

my friends, we are coming to realize our biology is yet another system of information tech. our heredity is not magic, but code that is increasingly readable, understandable, writable, and hackable. because of this, we will soon have many of the same expectations for ourselves as we do for other info technology. we will increasingly see ourselves in many ways as IT.

this idea frightens many people and it should. it should also excite us based on its life-affirming possibilities. regardless of how we feel, the genetic future will arrive far sooner than we are prepared for, my friends!

 

[basquebromance]

the very idea of altering our genetics calls for an enormous dose of humility, but we would be a different species if humility, not hubristic aspiration, was our guiding principle!

 

[Damaged Eagle]

Yeah. Nothing could go wrong editing genes...

*****SMILE*****

 

[Ringel05]

if your ancestors procreated and survived, you are here. this is called Darwinian evolution. but now the principles of Darwinian evolution are themselves mutating

from this point onward, much of our mutation will not be random. it will be self-designed.

from this point onward, our selection will not be natural. it will be self-directed.

from this point onward, our species will take active control of our evolutionary process by genetically altering our future offspring into something different from what we are today. we are beginning a process of HACKING DARWIN!



it is an incredible idea with monumental implications!

 

[basquebromance]

the door is open for all of us. whether you like it or not, we are all marching toward it. our future awaits!

EVERYTHING'S FINE FOLKS NOTHING TO LOSE CONFIDENCE ABOUT!

 

[basquebromance]

We all want our children to be born naturally healthy, but there's no limit on how far parents will go in defying nature to save their children from disease

 

[basquebromance]

Yeah. Nothing could go wrong editing genes...

*****SMILE*****

if it was safe and i knew i could prevent my child from significant suffering and that he would live longer, healthier, and happier, i would do it. if i need to give him special capabilities in a competitive world where everyone has superior genes, i would think very seriously about it. how about you?

 

[basquebromance]

is agriculture natural? is organic corn natural? go back 9 thousand years, add millenia of active human manipulations and you get the awesome yellow behemoth that we all love today!

 

[basquebromance]

i admit to being a little nervous about this myself. i mean, we could end up with Frankenstein. but on the whole, i think its a good thing!

 

[Third Party]

if your ancestors procreated and survived, you are here. this is called Darwinian evolution. but now the principles of Darwinian evolution are themselves mutating

from this point onward, much of our mutation will not be random. it will be self-designed.

from this point onward, our selection will not be natural. it will be self-directed.

from this point onward, our species will take active control of our evolutionary process by genetically altering our future offspring into something different from what we are today. we are beginning a process of HACKING DARWIN!



it is an incredible idea with monumental implications!

Hitler did that already.

 

[Damaged Eagle]

Yeah. Nothing could go wrong editing genes...

*****SMILE*****

if it was safe and i knew i could prevent my child from significant suffering and that he would live longer, healthier, and happier, i would do it. if i need to give him special capabilities in a competitive world where everyone has superior genes, i would think very seriously about it. how about you?

How do you determine what is safe without generations of testing and observation?

*****SMILE*****

 

[Billy_Kinetta]

Whoops ...

 

[basquebromance]

this could be either the biggest threat to humanity since the atom bomb, or something that can eradicate crime and poverty forever.

TWO PATHS, FOLKS!

 

[basquebromance]

you have 2 paths my friends: either you have a baby with down syndrome or you have a baby without DS.

those are the only 2 options available.

CLEAR CHOICE!

 

[basquebromance]

my friends, we must balance the justifiable humility about tech with our inherent Promethean hubris as each of the complex biological systems within us will be increasingly decodable, our genes foremost among them!

 

[james bond]

Do you want the red or blue pill? Red = a life of harsh knowledge, desperate freedom, and the brutal truths of reality, and the Blue = a life of luxurious security, tranquil happiness, and the blissful ignorance of the harsh realities of life, basking in an essentially dishonest illusion. It's like you're rich af and do not have to deal with peons.

 

[alang1216]

you have 2 paths my friends: either you have a baby with down syndrome or you have a baby without DS.

those are the only 2 options available.

CLEAR CHOICE!

It's a no-brainer to me, I'm very optimistic about the future. How could we not want to cure suffering. Technology is amoral and it will be a double-edged sword. Only the wealthy will get to use it initially. Also, what happens when every child is good-looking and above average? Will parents opt for horns, gills, wings, or a prehensile tail?

 

[martybegan]

Yeah. Nothing could go wrong editing genes...

*****SMILE*****

I see your TNG reference and raise you a Kirk!