This week’s assignments were very familiar
to me. With today’s talk on genetically modified food or animal testing I feel
that this lesson is something anyone can benefit from. For centuries now animal
testing has been a topic that has been very controversial.
On one side we have
the scientist that think without subjects to test new drugs or new recombinant
DNA on there will be no cures to the diseases our loved ones are suffering
from. On the other hand we have groups like animal activist that think
performing experiments on any source is unjustified and wrong.
I myself am
stuck in the middle as I recently acquired a job in a laboratory that does
animal testings on rats. My role in this lab is to both take care of the rats
and to euthanize them when needed. Artists
like Eduardo Kac and George Gessert have been using living subjects to
biologically experiment on them to create new pieces of art. I however would
argue that a line must be drawn where animal lives are interfered with for the
good of humanity.
I believe that while the sciences touch the border of
justified reasons to meddle with the lives of the living, the artistic
reasoning behind genetically modifying genes is wrong. For this reason, this
week’s lessons have made me believe animal lives are far too precious to
interfere with for the purpose of art. While I do believe art is incredibly
important, I do not think the lives of other living organisms should be used.
Works Cited
Kac, Eduardo. “Natural History of the Enigma.” Ekac. 2009. Web. 10 May 2017.
Victoria. “Biotechnology and Art Part 1” 1280x720." YouTube. UC Online Program, 18 Sept. 2013. Web. 08 May 2016. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PaThVnA1kyg
Vesna, Victoria. "Biotechnology and Art Part 2." Uc Online Program, 17 Mar. 2012. Web.https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PaThVnA1kyg
Vesna, Victoria. "Biotechnology and Art Part 3." YouTube. UC Online Program, 17 May 2012. Web. 08 May 2016. https://www.youtube.com/watch?list=PL9DBF43664EAC8BC7&v=3EpD3np1S2g
Vesna, Victoria. "Biotechnology and Art Part 4." YouTube. UC Online Program, 17 May 2012. Web. 08 May 2016. <https://www.youtube.com/watch?list=PL9DBF43664EAC8BC7&v=2qSc72u9KhI
Vesna, Victoria. "Biotechnology and Art Part 5." YouTube. UC Online Program, 17 May 2012. Web. 08 May 2016. <https://www.youtube.com/watch?list=PL9DBF43664EAC8BC7&v=z7zHIdsFS3A>.
http://www.naturalnews.com/gallery/640/GMOs/GMO-Bell-Pepper-Injections.jpg
http://www.naturalscience.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/01/GVO-1-e1422464053924.jpg
http://i2.wp.com/discoveryeye.org/wp-content/uploads/GMO-Orange.jpg
Daniela,
ReplyDeleteI like your input and your personal experience involving the testing of animals in the lab. Even though I do partially agree that testing should be reserved solely for the betterment of the human race, mainly by development and progress in the sciences, this brings about the conversation of the division of two cultures. By allowing the scientific community to perform certain tasks while restricting the art community in same or similar activities, this can be seen as unequal treatment of the two disciplines. It now raises the question of who determines the ethics of scientific vs. art reasons for a controversial experiment?