Physicians and their views.

             Views of the general public.

             Discussion on the Negative Implications of the Information Derived from the Human Genome Project.

             Should man govern nature? This is a question that has been posed more often recently than ever. Human will soon know the secret to life and be able to use that secret in many different ways. This is all made possible by a nation-wide research effort called the Human Genome Project. The HGP is a scientific study and mapping of the estimated 50,000-100,000 genes in the human body. It is being hailed as one of the most important projects in the world by scientists and scholars alike. The information that these researchers uncover could be helpful for generations to come. The research will allow doctors to correct genetic disorders before children are born, eliminate the often-fatal problems associated with babies born prematurely, and to cure diseases such as AIDS. The problem with this project is not the doctors, scientists, and other researchers investigating the genes. They are out to help people and are not doing this to get rich. Large corporations, such as insurance companies, and governments are looking to save money on future policyholders through the use of genetic testing. These illustrate the negative and corruptive aspects of the HGP.

             The Human Genome Project was originally founded by the Department Of Energy (DOE) and is now jointly researched by the DOE and the National Institute of Health (NIH). Research on the project began in 1990. They used a four-letter system to decode the long strands of deoxyribonucleic acid. As understood from previous research, there are four nitrogenous base pairs that make up DNA. 'A" stands for Adenine, which is paired with 'T" for Thymine, and 'G" stands for Guanine, which is paired with 'C", Cytosine. Using this system, scientists from across the globe have properly sequenced a large part of the human genome.