BIOETHICS

The First Scientist to “Play God” Was Not Craig Venter

Critics of synthetic biology who fear that scientists are overstepping boundaries should have raised their objections in the 19th century.

Bioethical Marching Orders

President Obama wasted no time sending a letter to Amy Gutmann, chair of the Presidential Commission for the Study of Bioethical Issues, requesting a report on how the administration can support the growth and appropriate governance of synthetic biology. The [...]

GENOMICS

Synthetic Biology Grows Up

The emerging technology is cause for celebration but risks overreaction that could inhibit innovation.

LIFE SCIENCES

Ribosomes Rising

Advances in basic science and in engineering education are propelling the field forward at breakneck speeds. The progressive response is more, not less, science.

Tell Me a Story About Synthetic Biology

More Americans know about synthetic biology, according to a survey from the Wilson Center Project on Emerging Nanotechnologies. Some 22 percent of adults indicate they have heard a lot or some about synthetic biology—that’s up from only 9 percent last [...]

The Coolest Platform Raises the Hardest Questions

So who is speaking here, an ethicist, a scientist, or a policymaker? It’s very hard for me to have a conversation about these issues, because people adopt incredibly defensive postures…The scientists on one side and civil-society organizations on the other. [...]

WONK LAB PODCAST

All Together Now

How many bioethics subfields do we really need to grapple with the issues at the cutting edge of contemporary science? Maybe just one.