Biotechnology- science for the new millennium outline Pages 27-29

Biotechnology Reading #1
Biotechnology with a Conscience--Bioethics
Pages 27-29 BT
Vocabulary:
-Morals: a conviction or justifiable position, having to do with whether something is considered right or wrong.
-Ethics: The study of moral standards and how they affect conduct
-Bioethics: the study of decision making as it applies to moral decisions that have to be made because of advances in biology, medicine, and technology
-Microbial Agents: synonym for microorganisms; living things too small to be seen without the aid of a microscope; includes bacteria, most algae, many fungi
Notes:
I. Moral Standards
i. People have different morals than one another
ii. Many of the new biotechnologies are controversial because they force people to think about what they believe is right or wrong
a. Harvesting embryonic stem cells, genetically modifying foods, and testing for genetic diseases or conditions are a few hot debates
iii. New technologies generate ethical ethical questions that cannot be answered using scientific methodologies
a. It is based on a persons opinions
iv. Agencies primarily responsible for regulating biotechnology in the US are the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)
II. Strategy for Values Clarification
i. Identify and understand the problem or issue
ii. List all possible solutions to the issue
iii. Identify pros and cons of adopting each solution. Consider legal, financial, medical, personal, social and environmental aspects
iv. Based on the pros and cons, rank them from best to worst
decide if the problem is important enough to take a position