on a HIV vaccine could save many livesand possibly eliminate the disease. This biotechnology makes it possible for more people to live the livesthat would not have been available without genetic engineering. Plants are also being genetically engineered. This type of genetic engineering is more commonlyaccepted, but why? It is no different for a plant to be able to fight off pests then it is for a human to be ableto fight off diseases. This is a contradiction, because society is saying that it is all right for a plant to begenetically engineered but not a human. This new technology of genetic engineering dates back to the 1950s. IN 1951 three scientists,Francis Crick, Maurice Wilkins, and James Dewey Watson, were credited with the discovery of DNA. Laterthey were presented the Nobel Prize in physiology and medicine in 1962. (Lewin 1) DNA is also known asdeoxyribonucleic acid and it carries a living organisms genetic code. The discovery of DNA was the verybeginning of genetic engineering. Today the science of biotechnology has evolved to a much higher level,but is still many steps away from completely correcting damaged or diseased genes. The reason is partly toblame on the ignorance of society, because it believes that genetic engineering is wrong. The part of geneticengineering that is wrong is holding back the natural process of science evolution. Some benefits are used in medicine today, but the real benefits will come as genes can be alteredmore. The real benefit that will help mankind is when bioengineers will be able to replace a cancer ordefective gene with a gene that does not have an error in its genetic code. The new science of geneticengineering aims to take a dramatic shortcut in the slow process of evolution (Stableford 25). What ismeant by the previous quote is that scientists hope to take a gene from an organism and change it so that itwill be immune to certain diseases and free from cancer. For example...
