Genetic engineering could be a blessing or a curse in the future depending on how it is used. Genes determine the characteristics of plants, animals and microorganisms. In humans these characteristics include eye, hair and skin color, height, strength and other physical and mental characteristics. For most of mans history the only genetic engineering he was able to do was through selective breeding. In farming we have breed cattle and horses for thousands of years, only breeding those animals with desirable characteristics. We have done the same thing with plants such as corn. But now things have changed. Now we have the ability to insert a gene from one species into another entirely different species. The human gene responsible for the production of insulin has been inserted into bacteria. Now this bacteria produces insulin for diabetics. Before this, diabetics used hog insulin. Another bacteria has been modified to be an "oil eating bacteria" and can be used to clean up oil spills. Genetically altered bacteria has been created that produces a growth hormone for cows. This hormone is injected into cows to increase their milk production. Another potential use for genetic engineering is to insert genes into food plants such as corn, tomatoes, beans and other plants to make them immune to weed killers. That way the farmer could spray his crops to kill weeds without harming his crops. But this could backfire if those same weedkiller resistant crops are able to breed with closely related weeds. "Super weeds" might come into existence that couldn't be killed with regular weed killers. What kinds of "miracles" or "monsters' might be produced with genetic engineering in the future? The possibilities seem to be anything you can imagine. Just ask yourself what characteristics you would like a certain plant or animal to have and then use genetic engineering to produce that plant or animal.
Below are links to other web sites with more information on genetic engineering.
FDA-
This Food and Drug Administration article talks about transgenic animals and
how they are made.
Sierra Club-This web site supplies more good information on transgenic plants and
animals and how they affect our food supply.
Mothers For Natural
Law-This organization is concerned about the safety of our foods. Check out their
web site for the pros and cons on genetically modified foods.(Mostly Cons)