Question

1. Describe at least one societal issue that scientists will be able to address using the sequence of the human genome.

Answer 1

1. Scientists may be able to give potential parents information that effectively filters out the birth of any Downs Syndrome descendants. This could be seen as a societal problem in that people with this condition may require extra help from wider society to support them with their developmental challenges.
2. A key ethical concern arising out of the research is who decides and why which areas of potential impact are the ones that should be developed into processes or 'treatments'. Also who decides at what cost these processes are made available to the public?
3. A commissioner appointed by elected representatives of the public with access to specialist resources from the judiciary and medical world should be in place to direct the research. This would hopefully force the analysis to be done on a practical foundation.
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Answer 2

Answer:

1. Scientists may be able to give potential parents information that effectively filters out the birth of any Downs Syndrome descendants. This could be seen as a societal problem in that people with this condition may require extra help from wider society to support them with their developmental challenges.

2. A key ethical concern arising out of the research is who decides and why which areas of potential impact are the ones that should be developed into processes or 'treatments'. Also who decides at what cost these processes are made available to the public?

3. A commissioner appointed by elected representatives of the public with access to specialist resources from the judiciary and medical world should be in place to direct the research. This would hopefully force the analysis to be done on a practical foundation.

Explanation: