Like professor talked about in lecture, nature has always
been a fascination for artists. Whether, it’s in the lab working on animals and
gene mutations, to agricultural technology, or human biology inventions and
cloning, biotechnology was, and always will be, a vast area of study and
interest for artists and scientists.
This week the resource I found most interesting was the
video interview with Michael Pollan for “Food Inc.” I think that agricultural
mutations are really interesting because it is something that directly affects
every single person, yet, so little has been done about the legitimacy of
manufactured food. For example, Pollan talks about the dominance of corn in the
American food system and claims that we aren’t aware of this huge problem
because we don’t see it. It’s indisputable that technology has helped mass
create the American food system supplying food at incredible rates, but is this
mass production created at the cost of healthy, trustworthy, and natural
non-modified food?
I also found Ellen Levy’s article
on “Defining Life: Artists challenge conventional classifications,”
interesting. Given the ongoing advancement of science and technology in our
society, it is no surprise to me that artists are continuing to push the limits
and boundaries of the accepted classifications of life. I find the issue of
cloning, whether it is ethical or not, to be most interesting. Levy suggests
that cloning is particularly interesting because “nature is as much the author
as the human artist.”
In addition to raising serious
ethical issues, advances in biotechnology have had countless positive aspects
that benefit human life. Craig Venter, in his Ted Talk “Watch me unveil
synthetic life,” announces the recent scientific breakthrough of fully functioning
reproducing cell that is controlled by synthetic DNA. As controversial as
synthetic DNA can be, this amazing breakthrough could very well be the
beginnings of a new era of science, which could provide a new understand of
human life.
Works Cited
Venter, Craig. "Watch Me Unveil
"synthetic Life"" Ted Talks. TED Conferences, n.d.
Web. 09 May 2015.
"POV | Food, Inc. | Interview with Michael
Pollan | PBS." YouTube. YouTube, n.d. Web. 09 May 2015.
"Food, Inc." TakePart.
TakePart, n.d. Web. 09 May 2015.
"What Is Cloning?" What Is
Cloning? University of Utah, n.d. Web. 09 May 2015.
Levy, Ellen K. "Defining Life: Artists
Challenge Conventional Classifications." N.p., n.d. Web.
Hi Jessica,
ReplyDeleteGreat post! :) I really liked it, especially the point about agricultural mutations. I believe that regulations and legislation regarding GMO food in the United States are not sufficient in raising awareness of the dangers of GMO food, as well as assessing the detrimental consequences of consuming these mutated foods. Another author, Sandor Ellix Katz, writer of "The Revolution Will Not be Microwaved: Inside America's Underground Food Movements", mentions that GMO foods are most commonly accepted in America, as compared to other countries such as the United Kingdom. This is significant because it shows how most people in America may have grown to become too comfortable with GMO foods, and are immune to questioning the effects that these genetically-enhanced foods have on themselves or their children, which might lead to greater consequences in the future. One does need to note that although GMO foods are usually negatively portrayed, according to the World Health Organization (WHO), GM crops have not been shown to pose a greater health risk to humans than conventionally bred crops. But on the other hand, the WHO also has classified components sprayed onto GM crops in the form of herbicides or pesticides, such as glyphosate, as “probably carcinogenic to humans”. This issue concerning GMO foods definitely requires further discussion and debate, especially regarding communication between governmental agencies and the public.
Amanda Lim
UID: 204189841