Friday, July 9th, 2010

The Ethics of Synthetic Biology

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A schematic of the proceess for creating a synthetic cell. Image courtesy Science/AAAS.

The Presidential Commission for the Study of Bioethical Issues took up the idea of synthetic biology this week. Prompted by the recent reports of researchers 'booting up' a synthetic cell, the Obama Administration asked the presidential commission of bioethics advisers to examine the possibilities for creating artificial lifeforms, and the ethical issues posed by that ability. We'll talk about the field and where it's headed.

Guests

George M. Church
Director of the Personal Genome Project
Professor of Genetics, Harvard Medical School
Harvard University
Cambridge, Massachusetts

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Segment produced by:Aleszu Bajak

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