In the current world, significant theoretical shift in the link between scientific exploration and ethics has taken place. The time difference between ethical consideration and parallel scientific inventions is slowly vanishing. This simply means that ethics has set up its own cadence. This change has been unfalteringly led to the current bioethics of developing sciences. Currently, as science has continued to pursue its endeavours, bioethics has on the other hand continued with its contemplations.
In the video by Craig Venter, scientists have gone a step ahead to create an artificial life. Genetic components designed by computers are transplanted into a bacterial cell to form an artificial life. Though this has been one of the world’s greatest scientific discoveries, ethicists have raised issues regarding the nature and the inception of life. Proponents of science oppose ethics on the grounds they only speculate and never come up with concrete answers. Hence, ethicists believe that creation of artificial life plays God, while scientists think that this is a breakthrough.
The video was so perfect in the changing the attitude held towards life. Questions of life are prevalent in people’s minds and a definite answer has not been reached. Since the time of Aristotle, philosophers, theologians and scientists have made numerous attempts to explain the nature and the inception of life. Some have argued that life emanates from the soul, while others think that life involves a nontrivial force that differentiates life from lifeless. The video by Craig has come with a new dimension towards the nature and the inception of life. It is now apparent that with the correct composition of inorganic chemicals to create DNA series, and the correct broth within the cell that accepts the DNA, living organism comes out as a result (Synthetic Life Video Presentation).
The most persuasive information given by Craig’s video concerns the question of life. For long scientists, theologians and philosophers have unsuccessfully made attempts to come up with a clear explanation of the nature and the inception of life. This video gives an overt signal that the concept is not alien. Man can now use biology to explain the nature and the inception of life. The video gives a tick to proponents of mechanistic reductionists of inanimate life.
The video manifests the existence of a wide trend in biological and physical sciences. This is the trend that has over the last few decades mutated to empower humanity to manipulate the inorganic and the organic component at its most fundamental levels (Synthetic Life Video Presentation).
Craig never created an actual life, but a form of life. His experiment only works in bacteria and not in humans. In his experiment, a living bacterium is integrated from synthetic materials. Critics have termed the experiment as unauthentic, tedious and maladroit. In the new form of life learned from this experience, required components are produced through the synthesizing and sequencing of DNA. Hence, Craig’s discovery promises cheaper and quick improvement, simplification and synthesis of new creatures. Maybe in the future Craig’s followers will discover real life by use of technology.
Through this discovery and its practice, scientists for sure are now crossing the boundaries. Though many people would see it as a big scientific step, it would also be viewed as an achievement that degrades an elementary belief about the inception and nature of life. The alteration of this belief would lead to further distortion of the view towards life and human role in the universe.
Therefore, though technology is important and has lessened human problem, helped discover the nature, scientists should limit their pursuit to a certain level. Some discoveries that may undermine the law of nature or work against God should be avoided. In as much as humans seek to understand the world, it should be realized that human knowledge is very limited and cannot surpass the supernatural.
Work cited
Synthetic Life Video Presentation. Ex. Prod. Craig Venter. YouTube, Vic.: Video Education U.K. 2008. DVD.