Ethicist for Cloning

What a fantastic opportunity!--to be in on the ground level of a major scientific discovery that builds on the technologies already benefiting many humans worldwide, especially infertile couples who want to have children. As the geneticists have pointed out, there would be little to fear in bringing dinosaurs back from extinction--no "monsters" would evolve because genetic manipulations would carefully limit evolution. In your testimony next week, it will be important to research all of the various ways that cloning dinosaurs could be beneficial to humans. Could the cloned dinos help to develop new drugs to fight human diseases or be used for organ transplants, tissue regeneration in burn victims, or bone grafts? Could technological advances stemming from research on cloned dinosaurs also potentially improve food production around the world with genetically engineered plants that could save the thousands of people who die each year from starvation? Would advances in cloning research enable us to produce genetically engineered plants as benign alternatives to our dwindling fossil fuel resources? Forget the arguments that this goes against nature--the fact of the matter is that in reality we already select which natural processes to manipulate for the benefit of humankind. You'll provide specific examples to the judges so that they fully appreciate the extent to which humans have been manipulating nature since the advent of agriculture 10,000 years ago and more recently with the accelerated development of bioengineered plants, medicines, and selectively bred livestock. It's important to acknowledge that scientific and technological breakthroughs aren't achieved without some risks. If cloning dinosaurs could yield tremendous insights into how and why certain manipulations of cellular material are successful, as an ethicist you need to thoughtfully assess if the benefits outweigh the risks. The judges may also wish to have clear assurances that the dinosaurs will be managed under carefully monitored, humane conditions. It's time to quit demonizing science--you plan to urge the judges to approve the cloning of dinosaurs because of the many potential benefits to society.