Connection to Course/Group
The team theme of the brain trust declares the goal of discussing the ways in which humans have improved their lot in life through the use of genetic manipulation which directly relates to the topic of genetically modified organisms. Genetically modified organisms are created through genetic manipulation making the similarities quite obvious. Genetically modified organisms have been used to positively influence the realm of agriculture by allowing for the creation of crops which are more resistant to pests and produce a higher yield. This change in agriculture has improved humanities lot in life by improving the lives of farmers as a result of less energy expended upon crops. Also it has decreased the need for the spraying of chemicals onto fields which is advantageous to communities surrounding these areas and the overall health of humanity. Genetically modified organisms have also allowed for the improvement in nutritional value of certain foods. This use of genetic modification has not become as common and influential as the changes in agriculture, but in the near future its impact will increase substantially. The increase in nutritional value of foods will allow for an overall improvement in diet for humanity. The consumption of more essential vitamins and nutrients will make the human race healthier and with a more healthy body comes a more positive attitude. Thus by utilizing genetically modified organisms to increase humanities intake of essential vitamins and nutrients a happier human race will result.
Throughout the semester in the honors course entitled The Ideal we have been actively striving towards attaining a better understanding of what the ideal actually is, and taking an in depth look at a variety of avenues humanity has chosen to utilize in their pursuit of this ever illusive entity. In order to effectively discuss humanities pursuit of the ideal we had to reach a basic group conclusion of what the ideal consists of. The general consensus that was reached is that reaching the ideal is very similar to the obtainment of perfection, which led to the determination that the two words were pretty much interchangeable in the context of our discussions. Then came the difficult task of defining what exactly constitutes perfection/the ideal. The conclusions we reached were purposefully vague in order to avoid restricting our pursuits. We decided, at least in my eyes, that the ideal is personified by a maximization of happiness. One has reached the ideal when they are completely satisfied and happy with every aspect of their life. Thus the attainment of the ideal is comparable to striving for the impossible, but humanity desires to come as close to this impossibility as possible. The maximization of happiness involves the “fulfillment of our deepest human desires: perfect health, superior performance, younger bodies, happy souls, better children, and more.” Now that one has a better understanding of the context in which humanities quest for the ideal was inspected it is possible to draw the connection between this quest and the role of genetically modified organisms.
As humanity dredges along on its quest for perfection its trusty side kick technology never leaves its side. Most advances that bring humanity closer to the ideal are done as a result of the powers of technology. Technological advancement is the catalyst that drives humanity closer and closer to the attainment of the unattainable, the ideal. One must keep in mind that not everyone shares the same view upon what should be considered advances toward the ideal, and when a statement pertaining to advancement is made it is referring to the views shared by the majority of people. Due to the strides forward in the quest for perfection which have been taken as a result of technology its power and importance continues to grow. One of these more recent technological advancements is the creation of genetically modified organisms. This discovery, in some people’s eyes, has allowed humanity to come a few steps closer to the ideal. While others argue that genetically modified organisms are resulting in humanity getting further from the ideal.
A healthier human being is a happier human being. Genetically modified organisms could play a major role in the creation of a healthier humanity. By increasing the nutritional value of foods through the use of GMO’s a more healthy humanity could be created. The amount of vitamins and minerals one gets in a day has a major affect upon their mental and physical health. A person who gets all of their required nutrients will be in a better mood, partly due to an increase in the amount of energy, and thus they will have a higher mental health. At the same time a person who gets all of their nutrients will be more physically fit and will have a stronger immune system thus making them a more physically healthy person. Better physical and mental health is a definite step towards perfection and the grasping of the ideal. The use of genetically modified organisms could help humanity obtain better health, younger looking bodies, and happier souls.
The use of genetically modified organisms can also play a major role in the improvement of the less fortunate members of human society. By improving the lives of the poor and hungry humanity as a whole will be improved and thus human society will be closer to reaching a state of idealism. Genetically modified organisms have the potential to allow for the growing of certain foods in areas never before possible, thus allowing for an economic and nutritional benefit to hunger and poverty stricken people worldwide. Also genetically modified crops which are richer in nutrients could replace the same non-GM crop resulting in the ability to attain more nutrients and live a healthier life. Some people fear that GMO’s will never be beneficial to third-world countries but instead will just become another hand that developed countries can utilizes to keep them down. But nonetheless one must recognize the potential advantage genetically modified foods provide to hunger and poverty stricken people across the world.
Genetically modified organisms can assist humanity in their quest for the ideal through the obtainment of a healthier diet and ridding the world of some of those people who are stricken by hunger and poverty. But one must keep in mind the fact that these advances could result in catastrophic damage to the environment and its biodiversity.
This site was created as part of the honors course: The Idea at Monmouth Collegel in Fall 2005