Andrew Incandela Dr.

Erin Dietel-McLaughlin Multimedia Writing and Rhetoric, Section # 9 29 October 2013 In this paper I plan to investigate a technology that will be available some time in the near future. Scientists suspect that designer babies, or babies whose genetic makeup has been artificially selected by genetic engineering to ensure the presence or absence of particular genes or characteristics (Oxford English Dictionary) will be possible within the next twenty years. The technology to do this is already being used to screen for diseases in children. I think this is a good thing and I see nothing wrong with preventing diseases, but many feel that the next step for this technology is to select favorable physical characteristics in children by modifying their genetic code before they start to develop. Scientists have already been able to successfully modify the genes of several animals, and they say this will soon be possible for people as well. When it is, parents will be able to pick traits they want their children to have, such as eye color, height, intelligence, and athleticism. While some argue this will create better, happier people, it also raises many complex ethical and practical issues. The technology itself is very interesting to me because it sounds like something out of a science fiction novel, but the issues it raises are in many ways more interesting. I plan to explore these issues in order to form an argument against using this technology for the enhancement of children. This research is important because people will be forced to make a decision concerning this technology in the coming years. Is it a good idea or a bad idea? Before making this decision, people need to be educated about what exactly this would mean for our society. I know that on the surface, this technology will be very attractive for many people. All parents want their

children to succeed. Wouldnt making them smarter or more athletic help them to do so? I completely understand this mindset, but I will argue that the problems created by genetically engineered people will far outweigh the supposed benefits. To persuade people of this, I plan on talking about the ethical and social problems that this situation creates, specifically what it says about our value as individuals, our dignity as people, as well as how it would affect class structure, its high potential of being abused, and the affects it would have on children. This information will be especially important for parents because they will be the ones raising the children, but it is something that concerns all people. This technology, if made available, would deeply impact our entire society, not just the people directly involved in it. Hopefully, upon reading this paper, people will be able to make more informed decisions concerning this issue, whether it be as parents or as a voter. I have found many sources that agree and disagree with this technology for a wide range of reasons. Also, I have found transcripts of hearings before congress that discuss how we should handle these issues as a country and internationally when they arrive. These offer a political perspective, which I think can be very interesting and informative. So far I have only been able to find information about individual animal test subjects who have had their genes modified. I would like to find a study concerning a group of animals, where some are modified (or improved) and some arent, and the effects on the group are observed. This would provide more concrete evidence for or against my point, and I think my audience will expect this. To provide more of this, I plan to find such a study, or find studies that focus on human psychology in an effort to better predict how parents, children, and people will react to this new technology. There are several problems I have found with this paper. One of the problems I am encountering is how to integrate source material. I have had trouble doing so in a meaningful

way. Also, this subject is very broad, and there are many ways I could approach this paper. I want to make sure my topic is not too broad or too narrow. For example, using this technology for military or environmental purposes, or to increase our life spans are completely different discussions. I have chosen to focus on the improvement of physical and mental characteristics in children, and why this is ethically wrong and socially destructive. I could focus on just one of these reasons if the paper is too broad the way I have it now.