Email
Print
by 
Have you ever thought to yourself “Wouldn’t it be great if I could be the mother of the next pop sensation ala Lynne Spears?” Do you want a child that naturally maintains a svelte size 6 frame while pounding rocky road fudge or can bulk up like the Governator without the use of anabolic steroids? Or maybe you are so in love with the crooning of Frank Sinatra that you want to gaze up into those baby blues every year when your greater than or equal to 6 ft tall son comes home for the holidays?
If so then I invite you to check out the UCLA Center
for Society and Genetics Sixth Annual Symposium, “Babies by Design: Redefining Humans?” on Sunday January 27, 2008.
The symposium will cover complex issues such as selection of embryos to ensure that they will avoid devastating genetic diseases, have superior musical or athletic ability, or simply for gender. From the sounds of it might be able to have a son that not only looks like Frank Sinatra…but could actually belt out the classic "Just The Way You Look Tonight" as his little sister and her new husband take to the dance floor for the first time.
In all seriousness though…this is the wave of the future and could be an interesting and informative way to spend a Sunday morning. It certainly sounds interesting to me…but I’ve been called a nerd on more than one occasion so perhaps you’d rather read sleep off your Saturday night intoxications or head down to your local farmers market. All worthy endeavors in my book.
If you do decide to go, the program which begins at 9:30am and concludes at 1:00pm will include the following speakers:
Edward R.B. McCabe, Professor in the Departments of Pediatrics and Human Genetics, David Geffen School of Medicine, and Bioengineering, Henry Samuel School of Engineering and Applied Science at UCLA will discuss the science of reproductive cloning followed by Lisa Nash who with her husband Jack Nash successfully used the expanding field of genetic screening to have a second child whose cord blood was used to treat a devastating genetic disorder, “Fanconi Anemia”, suffered by their first child.
The legal aspects of emerging reproductive technologies will be discussed by visiting professor at the UCLA School of Law, Judith F. Daar, who has served as a member of the Harbor-UCLA Hospital Institutional Review Board, and the ABA Coordinating Group on Bioethics. Ms. Daar is also the author of numerous articles and recently published a new casebook entitled “Reproductive Technologies and the Law”.
Paul Steven Miller director of the UW Disability Studies Program and Henry M. Jackson Professor of Law at the University of Washington Seattle will present a talk entitled “Respecting Diversity”
Rounding out the afternoon will be a panel discussion on “Redefining Humans” which will feature the event speakers and include questions from the audience.
The event will be held January 27, 2008 from 9:30 am - 1:00 pmat the UCLA Sunset Village Covel Commons Grand Horizon Room. Admission is free and open to the public. A sign language interpreter will be provided for the hearing impaired.
Nearby parking will be available for $8.00.
Print
Report abuse
Report abuse
"Designer babies" are featured in the futuristic Ethan Hawke/Uma Thurman 1997 film Gattaca filmed at the Marin County California Civic Center. Won't these designer babies bring with them there own subtle or maybe not so subtle discrimination for them and against those not so designed? Can genetics truly and perfectly predict a person's life?
Interesting story nevertheless.