We've been at GATTACA since long ago. GATTACA is about a guy trying to sneak into the space program even though he has genes that say he's got a weak heart. How is that not already part of the space program?
* Distant visual acuity: 20/100 or better uncorrected
* Height between 62 and 75 inches.
Both of those are based on your genes. Have bad genes, you don't get to be an astronaut.
There's also
* Blood pressure: 140/90 measured in a sitting position
And while I suspect most people can adjust their blood pressure through diet and exercise I'm sure some people could never get in that range. In other words they'd have the exact same problem as they guy in GATTACA, a bad heart.
Well, visual acuity could potentially be surgically corrected. I'm not sure how relevant height is, exactly, but I'd be willing to bet a larger range than that could be accommodated in the right circumstances.
Then again, if you're genetically blind or have dwarfism, that may not be the case.
I think GATTACA is less about genetics setting a bar, but that the bar is constantly getting raised until it will eventually be unreachable without artificial enhancement.
Thats a very literal & narrow interpretation of the movie. Ethan Hawk's parents weren't upset when he was born because wasn't going to be in the space program, they were upset because he had inferior genes.
Absolutely. The sooner the general public accepts that genome editing is going to happen anyway and the sooner governments create institutions which allow the benefits of genome manipulation to be available to everyone the better for social cohesion.
Comments
Banning these methods won't stop the wealthy from using them. You can't put the genie back in the bottle. GATTACA here we come.
edit: grammar
We've been at GATTACA since long ago. GATTACA is about a guy trying to sneak into the space program even though he has genes that say he's got a weak heart. How is that not already part of the space program?
Requirements to be an astronaut
http://www.nasa.gov/audience/forstudents/postsecondary/featu...
* Distant visual acuity: 20/100 or better uncorrected
* Height between 62 and 75 inches.
Both of those are based on your genes. Have bad genes, you don't get to be an astronaut.
There's also
* Blood pressure: 140/90 measured in a sitting position
And while I suspect most people can adjust their blood pressure through diet and exercise I'm sure some people could never get in that range. In other words they'd have the exact same problem as they guy in GATTACA, a bad heart.
Well, visual acuity could potentially be surgically corrected. I'm not sure how relevant height is, exactly, but I'd be willing to bet a larger range than that could be accommodated in the right circumstances.
Then again, if you're genetically blind or have dwarfism, that may not be the case.
I think GATTACA is less about genetics setting a bar, but that the bar is constantly getting raised until it will eventually be unreachable without artificial enhancement.
Thats a very literal & narrow interpretation of the movie. Ethan Hawk's parents weren't upset when he was born because wasn't going to be in the space program, they were upset because he had inferior genes.
Absolutely. The sooner the general public accepts that genome editing is going to happen anyway and the sooner governments create institutions which allow the benefits of genome manipulation to be available to everyone the better for social cohesion.