How far are we willing to go with genetic engineering?

I was thinking of an old two-part episode of the 90's version of the Outer Limits and started to wonder about a few things. First let me lay out a synopsis of the two-part episode.
The first part is called "Double Helix" - March 28, 1997
A brilliant-yet-eccentric geneticist unveils his research of "introns," the mysterious genetic material which he believes holds the code for future evolution. After successful testing on animals he secretly tries the formula on himself.
Basically, the geneticist finds a space craft that he believes to have been sent to Earth by Extra-Terrestrials and is trying to gain information from it for the benifit of all humankind - with the help of his students.
The second part is called "The Origin of Species" - November 27, 1998 Dr. Ira Nodel has his body altered to communicate with aliens who have seeded Earth with their genetic material. He is joined on an alien spaceship by son Paul, Paul's girlfriend, and six students. When Dr. Nodel touches a glowing post in the ship's control room, both he and Paul are consumed by a mysterious light. Then the students start disappearing two by two.
In the last episode they are aboard the space craft which they think is taking them to another planet. Everyone goes missing of course, and towards the end they all find each other again. After they find each other the space craft makes a descent for landing (of course they think they are now on another planet). After landing, the space craft opens up a door to let them out. They walk out of the space craft and notice something, it's still earth! But this isn't the earth as they remember it. They walk up to the top of a small hill and look out over the landscape. They are in shock to see a very beaten down Golden Gate bridge and the great San Francisco, which is now very much a ruin. They need answers. Someone from the group did some exploring of their own and comes to get them to show the others what they found. They come upon a stone with some words written on it explaining most of what happened.

Basically it says humans went too far with genetic manipulation of the human species and ended destroying themselves (sterility and to many different "human" species I believe, can't remember) - in front of the stone lay the skeleton of a creature with a mostly human skeletal structure but with very different teath, and of course it had wings (somewhat of an angel appearance). Also, it said the year. I think it was 2097 or further, I can't remember. After this, everyone goes back to the ship and they find themselves being lead - by the somewhat sentient ship - to a new room. And what is in this room? Why many, many babies, that have all been incubated in a short time. So, every person was removed two at a time to take genetic material from them. As we find out, the babies are to be used in repopulating the earth. The space craft turns out to be human in origin. You can figure out the rest.
Anyways, why do I write this? Well, it made me wonder how far we are willing to go (like the subject headline). Are we willing to change ourselves so drastically at the expense of destroying ourselves? Are we just not satisfied with ourselves? I know we like to better ourselves, but why do it at the thought that we might not look human anymore? If we had the capabilities right now to give you extra limbs; eyes that allow you to see in more than just the "visible" spectrum; muscles that never need work; bones that are not made of calcium but are comprised of some harder minerl, hence you would have to ingest that "other" mineral to keep your bones strong; etc... Would you take the plunge into modifying yourself? Even if it made you sterile or somehow shortened your lifespan? Would you allow your child to be genetically modified, before birth?

I think this subject should be discussed more. It also is a good debate topic between creationist and evolutionist. Should we stay as we were created (maybe by a being called "God") or should we instill artificial evolution on ourselves, and on the things around us?

I know some of this has been discussed in other threads, but I want more detail. I want an opinion from every one. Because genetic engineering is very real, and it is happening now. I am sure someone has their own "Island of Dr. Moreau" going on in the world at this moment.

Your thoughts, please.

Ill do what im told by the NWO

Originally posted by McGotti
Ill do what im told by the NWO

Good answer

I'd go all the way baby all the way

I love your Signature!

Let's say that we can alter our DNa to have "wings" or other modifications or more subtle physiological improvements like disease resistance and longer life spans. If that were possible we would also be able to avoid sterility and everyone would be so specific there would be no mass sub-species, more like unique sub-species. If the world continues on current course, and I don't think it will, and we still have infrastructure, know-how and currency, research and modifications like this will be as common, maybe not uncontroversial, as vaccinations, transplants, plastic surgery and fertility treatments.

Well, it doesn't take humans too long to go overboard with something. Once a person starts with the basics of changing themselves, they'll probably want to do a whole lot more changing. There is one genetic engineer right now that has already shown that maximum muscle growth is possible (without ever having to work out to keep that muscle mass, or eat right) in rats. By introducing a retrovirus into the body made to attach itself to the genes and introduce new instructions. The rats are amazing in size. Something like 40-50% more mass than a regular rat, and weigh I believe 3 times as much. It was some special they had on Discovery, can't remember the exact specifics but you get the idea. The g-engineer says he can do that to humans now if he wanted to, but the law would keep him from doing it.
My point is this: modifying ourselves may not make us sterile but what if it makes us "incompatible" with each other? What if the offspring are genetic abnormalities simply because our genes aren't "normal" anymore? I suppose it doesn't really matter, but I know we'll see this stuff within our lifetime.

Well why do we genetically engineer animals? To make a better product or slave. The controllers want a better slave in humans, thus genetic engineering. Maybe it is human flaws that allow us to seek freedom and enlightenment.

Though I never saw that episode, I did catch that last part with the alien craft a long time ago.

The idea of genetic engineering is very plausible. If we do use it for anything, it would most likely be for disease immunities, and not much more. As long as our chromosome number stays the same we should be compatible and any altered genes would function normally. Why shouldn't it, it is allowed in evolution, why not our experiments.

theres nothing wrong, despite what people say, with genetic engineering. there are simply problems. the largest arise when you get a world like the one in Gattaca, the movie, where your success in life is based upon your genetic makeup, not merits. Luckily for us, the entirety of corporations, and most jobs in general, will still need people with traits that are much less (although still) infulenced by gentics, like creativity and personal skills.
More importantly, most people would chose not to change their entire selves. they would do the simple things, like thicker hair, living longer, glowing under a blacklight. I know id do all of those. but for the most part, people vaule themselves, faults included.

It will all happen like it has happened a million times before. We will go all the way, but all in due time. We have to proove our rightiousness for God before we can eat from the Tree of Life. We first have to meet him again by the Tree of Wisdom and proove we have indeed gained knowledge and that we are worthy of being gods. After the blast we will all be transformed, and a great incubation project, much like in your story, will repopulate the Earth, as is written. I have seen in dreams how this will be done. We will all be the same gender, or genderless, and chosen people will be allowed to have children. The incubators will be placed in the livingrooms of the chosen ones, like great glass tubes containing some kind of blue fluid. Sex will no longer exist other than perhaps in the animal kingdom. We will not work like we work today. Machines will do most of our work. BTW. Your story seems to be founded uppon the Book of Revelation and the Gospel mostly. It displays more or less exactly the plot outlined in the New Testament for the transition of these ages.

Blessings,
Mikromarius

imagine that technology as we know it lags 30 or 40 years of what is really being done.

Genetic engineering has already been done on humans. I know, because it has been done on me. I have been both Black & White in the same lifetime. My parents were both Black, yet I have shifted several times. This is NOT a disease, not cosmetic surgery, NOT a suntan, and NOT "hanky-panky". (NO relation to M. Jackson.)
As to the future, two MIBs told me when I was a kid, that mankind only goes just so far, then messes up and has to start all over again....as cavemen. I was about 10 yrs. old at that time.

MIB's are lizards, they are gonna lie. Mankind would likely not mess up if all the aliens and demons and satan were not in the background controlling everything. Spirits entered into the body to test free will in a physical realm and not to be slaves, or food or pets or guinea pigs to the aliens.

You trust them I do not.

watch the video for "One" by Metallica. im not a big metallica fan, but if you're crazy about (for or against) genetic engineering then i suggest it.

I am for cloneing 100%
when I get old I hope to have a cloned younger body waiting for me to get my brain transplanted in )

The MIBs come in GOOD and BAD....just like evryone else. I have also met BAD MIBs, but the ones who advise me are the "good guys". They are more like Government bodyguards. I should know; they haven't lied to me yet. They have saved my life.
I am hoping genetic engineering will be used to make people not know who-is-what-race. It only takes a few germline-engineered children to make the world unable to tell who-is-what. If they can't tell who-is-what-race, then people can't hate, can they?

We share I believe it's either 98 or 99% of our genes with primates.. but we can't mate with them, now can we. So what makes you think all these "changes" won't make us incompatable?

If you think that people won't go the distance then you haven't seen many shows featuring "Modern Primatives" some have taken both low tech and high tech routes to "becoming" something else.
www.bmezine.com...


Isn't there in fact a show on right now, a newer one at that, that outlines cases of comsmetic surgy addiction and the outcome of "overdoing it".. I think I caught it once or twice. And then I think it's an MTV show about people who have major surgery to look like their favorite stars.

So didn't this practice start as a way to treat disfigured people? (harmless enough) Then it became something of a cure for a crooked nose.. or an unfortunate starlette with an A-cup (but no one would admit they ever had it done) Then it became sort of a status symbol, if you were rich or famous you could stay young forever. Those of us not rich and famous but willing to emulate those who were jumped on the band wagon... and now .. we do it because we can and because it's accepted by most as comman. Add to that, that some do it for fun!!

So maybe a rethinking of how we might as a culture slowly accept genetic engineering and then mess our poor butts up.

UnusualMe,
I totally agree with you. The MTV show you speak of is: MTV I want a famous face.

Is the world now so shallow, artificial, and negative, that we can no longer be comfortable with who we are? Why must people constantly change themselves to "fit in?"

We are all unique for a reason.

It isn't only people wanting to fit in.. where we would get into trouble.. it would be people who wanted to be unique. Or cultures that created mini races that were unique...

If it were me...hell
Glowing cat eyes
bat wings.. large enough so that I could fly...
the added senses of sonar.. and magnetics .. so I could navigate..
Probaly a pigment change to both my hair and skin
increased brain power

.. fun huh

Yeah, the unique things people are doing are also getting pretty freaky. :-D

I'd personally want to be a bipedal Tiger/human. Feet would be regular tiger feet, but the hands would definitely have a shape similar to that of a human's and have as much mobility, or more mobiltity to that of a humans.
Since we are going into extreme genetics, I'd say the bones would be made of a light weight, but strong, metal alloy. Probably Titanium 6.6.2 (6Al/6V/2Sn).

It is composed of 86% titanium, 6% aluminum, 6% vanadium, 2% tin. This is practically the strongest titanium alloy on the market and is mainly used in the aerospace industry for its great strength and lightweight. Titanium 6.6.2 has a tensile strength of up to 180,000 psi and a Brinell hardness value of 389.

www.titaniumera.com...

So, theoretically speaking, I'd have to have a nice intake of those minerals each day to retain the strength of my new bones. But, why did I wan't to have such light, but strong material for my bones? To attach genetically engineered wings of course. They must be very large wings.

I'd also want the eyes modified so I could see beyond the visible spectrum at will. Sonar would be a very nice feature.

I'd also want to have every part of my brain attached not by neurons, and synapses, and other crap. I'd want it all to be attached together, like a freeway - using micro-threads of gold as the medium of communication. It may not make sense to you, but it is possible to allow parts of the brain that don't normally communicate with eachother, to communicate, which allows you to do things you normally wouldn't/couldn't do. A good reference is from the movie: Phenomenon. When John Travolta gets a global tumor that covers the whole top of his brain, it connects parts of the brain that aren't normally connected, and that in turn enabled him to do such "miraculous" things. Technology similar to it has been in existance for a while, but you won't be hearing about it.




[edit on 6-22-2004 by EmbryonicEssence]