Genetic Editing: Navigating Complexity and Ethics

“In terms of any sufficiently advanced technology. The question is, where should we stop? And in general, what does it mean for the human race once you start adopting these technologies?”

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On today's episode, I'm joined by two of my returning friends, Mike Taccona and Ben Kapolnek. In this particular conversation, we turned back the clock into an old school podcast. We pick a topic and discuss it broadly.

The topic for today's episode is unpacking and trying to understand genetic editing. The reason for picking this topic was from a Nova PBS documentary.

I'll share a quick intro to that documentary. The title was Human Nature, with an extraordinary new technology called CRISPR. We can now edit DNA, including human DNA, but how far should we go? Gene editing promises to eliminate certain genetic disorders like sickle cell disease, but the applications quickly raise ethical questions.

Is it wrong to engineer soldiers to feel no pain or to resurrect an extinct species? And is there harm in allowing parents to choose their child's features like eye color or height? The scientists who pioneered human genome studies and CRISPR grapple with these questions, and this premiered September 9th.

We use that documentary as a launchpad to get into this entire discussion, but we don't stay super true to the documentary. Still, if you're interested in this topic at all, I highly recommend you check that out. On top of this, I would also recommend you check out the show notes for this conversation because I will include links to other topics related to this as we speak about them in.

So with that, everyone, please enjoy this conversation on genetic editing. And I'll leave you with a few questions.

In terms of any sufficiently advanced technology. The question is, where should we stop? And in general, what does it mean for the human race once you start adopting these technologies? I'd love to hear your thoughts on genetic editing!

Show Notes

[00:05:42] PBS Nova: Human Nature Documentary

Human Nature | NOVA

[00:06:56] What is CRISPR? 

CRISPR

[00:08:48] E Genesis 

eGenesis Bio - Engineering Hope

[00:10:02] What are the ethical questions with genetic editing? 

What are the Ethical Concerns of Genome Editing?

[00:11:57] How far should we go?

[00:13:46] Necessity of struggle

Why You Need to Struggle More | Inc.com

[00:18:40] How much does resilience play a role?

Resilience

[00:19:02] Ketamine 

What is Ketamine? How it Works and Helps Severe Depression

Ketamine for major depression: New tool, new questions - Harvard Health Blog

From Mice to Men: Can Ketamine Enhance Resilience to Stress?

[00:21:23] How technology is used?

[00:24:24] Test-tube Babies of the Future

Test-Tube Babies May Face Greater Health Risks Than Naturally Conceived Children

Designer baby

Chinese scientist who produced genetically altered babies sentenced to 3 years in jail

[00:25:45] Does this limit humanity? 

[00:27:37] AI and Genetic Editing

From Gene Editing to A.I., How Will Technology Transform Humanity? (Published 2018)

[00:34:04] Would we want an AI to make decisions for us? 

[00:36:02] Cyberpunk 

Cyberpunk

[00:37:07] Genetic Editing: Good or Evil? 

[00:42:25] FOPO - Fear of Other People’s Opinions

How Not to Worry About What Others Think of You

[00:46:00] Nature and Nurture

We Could Resurrect the Woolly Mammoth. Here's How.

[00:51:24] How each of us responds is different 

[00:56:46] The curve of balls of life

[01:00:17] What is perfect?

[01:03:13] Closing thoughts 

What was your favorite quote or lesson from this episode? Please let me know in the comments.

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ScienceErich WenzelGenetic Editing, Ethics, Science, Discussions, Human Nature Nova, CRISPR, Ketamine, CyberpunkComment