No to De Extinction
Anna Drabovskaya
Mrs. Ene
European Literature Period 4
26 February 2015
No to De-Extinction Whether it is bringing people back from the dead or resurrecting an entire extinct species, for hundreds of years, scientists everywhere have had the desire and craving to try and reverse nature’s kiss of death. Modern scientists are exploring the possibility of resurrecting species, that we and our ancestors led to extinction, through the process of de-extinction or also known as “resurrection biology”. Scientists believe that this project would not only allow us to redeem our mistakes but also provide breakthroughs in the field of genetic engineering. This concept was first presented to the public in Steven Spielberg’s 1993 film, Jurassic Park that also shows how there are much greater repercussions of this experiment than there could be scientific gains. Even though these projects have purely good intentions, similarly to Frankenstein’s experiment, good intentions of a science experiment, which tampers with life and death, often have a greater chance of going south and causing more danger than benefit. Although astounding scientific breakthroughs may come to be as the result of a successful de-extinction project, there are many greater dangers that could develop for the human race through bringing back certain extinct species. While evolution may be cruel, it is never wrong therefore there was a reason for the species to have gone extinct in the first place and the natural cycle of life and death should not be tampered with artificially. The process of de-extinction or resurrection biology is in simple words, “the process of resurrecting species that have died out, or gone extinct” (Encyclopedia Britannica). While it may sound like a simple idea, it is anything but that. Stewart Brand, a professional environmentalist and futurist who is leading one of the biggest de-extinction projects, explains that there are three semi-successful techniques to
Mrs. Ene
European Literature Period 4
26 February 2015
No to De-Extinction Whether it is bringing people back from the dead or resurrecting an entire extinct species, for hundreds of years, scientists everywhere have had the desire and craving to try and reverse nature’s kiss of death. Modern scientists are exploring the possibility of resurrecting species, that we and our ancestors led to extinction, through the process of de-extinction or also known as “resurrection biology”. Scientists believe that this project would not only allow us to redeem our mistakes but also provide breakthroughs in the field of genetic engineering. This concept was first presented to the public in Steven Spielberg’s 1993 film, Jurassic Park that also shows how there are much greater repercussions of this experiment than there could be scientific gains. Even though these projects have purely good intentions, similarly to Frankenstein’s experiment, good intentions of a science experiment, which tampers with life and death, often have a greater chance of going south and causing more danger than benefit. Although astounding scientific breakthroughs may come to be as the result of a successful de-extinction project, there are many greater dangers that could develop for the human race through bringing back certain extinct species. While evolution may be cruel, it is never wrong therefore there was a reason for the species to have gone extinct in the first place and the natural cycle of life and death should not be tampered with artificially. The process of de-extinction or resurrection biology is in simple words, “the process of resurrecting species that have died out, or gone extinct” (Encyclopedia Britannica). While it may sound like a simple idea, it is anything but that. Stewart Brand, a professional environmentalist and futurist who is leading one of the biggest de-extinction projects, explains that there are three semi-successful techniques to