Biotech's interaction with art

In this week’s topic, a video from Craig Venter speaks about synthetic life and the development of a cell “whose parent is a computer and the first species to have its own website encoded in its genetic code.” This idea of biotechnology manipulating life has had much debate in recent years. Many people think that its unethical, such as the group NOVA, who recently set fire to an agricultural research center to reject the genetic manipulations happening to food. In order to get fish to grow quicker, corn to combat parasites and other similar genetic changes, researchers are manipulating the genetics of plants and animals. There are problems already associated with biotech but we won’t know the long-lasting effect until later. As Wenk mentions in his article, there is a fine line between a drug and a food. Even now, some of the foods we eat come from popular plants and animals that are used to make psychoactive drugs. By genetically manipulating food,  these chemicals could cause changes in our brain chemistry and we still don't fully understand the interactions that could result from an increase or decrease in the neurotransmitters in our system.

This is not the first time we have seen biotechnology manipulate its environment. An extreme example is from the movie Jurassic Park. In the movie, scientists have genetically reengineered dinosaurs to bring them back to life to use in a theme park. Like with genetically manipulating dinosaurs, manipulating food begins with excitement as researchers find a way to create more food at a lower cost. However, it can take a turn for the worst, like in Jurassic Park when the dinosaurs break out of their environment. This is seen when a genetic manipulation of a food turns into an invasive species. Biotechnology's interaction with art will continue to be observed in the future as it continues to be a topic that does not have all the answers. 

Works Cited:

"NOVA/Frontline Harvest of Fear 1/12." YouTube. YouTube, n.d. Web. 10 May 2015.

"POV | Food, Inc. | Interview with Michael Pollan | PBS." YouTube. YouTube, n.d. Web. 10 May 2015.

"Seed Magazineabout." This Is Your Brain on Food § SEEDMAGAZINE.COM. N.p., n.d. Web. 10 May 2015.

"'Super Weed' Taking Strong Hold in Utah | KSL.com." 'Super Weed' Taking Strong Hold in Utah | KSL.com. N.p., n.d. Web. 10 May 2015.

"Swank Motion Pictures, Inc." Swank Motion Pictures, Inc. N.p., n.d. Web. 10 May 2015.

Vesna, Victoria. BioTech and Art Lectures. DESMA 9. Web.

"Watch Me Unveil "synthetic Life"" Craig Venter:. N.p., n.d. Web. 10 May 2015.