How Does Biotechnology Affect Individuals, Society, and the Environment?

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How Does Biotechnology Affect Individuals,
Society, and the Environment?

• Grade 8 Science and Technology

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What is Biotechnology?

• Some Ideas?

• Some examples?

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What is Biotechnology?

• In its most simple form, biotechnology is the use
  of living systems (organisms) by people to make
  products.
• Biotechnology uses many different sciences, such
  as biology, chemistry, physics, engineering,
  computers, and information technology to develop
  tools and products.
• Biotechnology changes genes of organisms for
  specific purposes.

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What are some common examples of biotechnology
use?

• Pollution-eating microbes (oil spills)
• Laundry detergents and dish soaps
• DNA finger-printing
• Bio-pesticides for crops
• Vaccines for illnesses and diseases
• Genetically Modified Foods like cheese
• These are just to name a few!

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So... How Can or Does Biotechnology Affect us as
Individuals?
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What does it mean? Biotechnology affects our
everyday lives!

• It provides medicine, and can detect and treat
  diseases
• Diabetes, sickle-cell anemia, antibiotics, etc.
• It has and continues to change what we are able
  to eat
• Baking bread, making cheese, etc.

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SAMPLE Biotechnology of Corn

• Scientists have successfully been able to change
  the genes of corn for more desirable traits
• Biotech (Bt) corn may be insect protected (no
  need for pesticides), herbicide-resistant, or
  both
• Another type of corn is able to grow in times of
  drought (no or low rain seasons)
• As well, corn has been engineered to contain more
  healthy ingredients

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How does corn affect us as individuals?

• PROS

• CONS

• Many products we rely on contain a corn base
  (high fructose corn syrup) such as fast food,
  batteries, candy, pop, cereal, etc.
• Genetically modified corn adding nutrition and
  medicines both increase quality of, and help to
  prolong, human life especially in third world
  countries

• High fructose corn syrup, made from corn, is
  linked to diabetes in kids and other health risks
• For those who have or may develop an allergy for
  corn or corn products, will have a very short
  list of foods they can eat!
• Some genetically modified corn have led to signs
  of organ damage in rats...

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How can or does biotechnology affect our society?
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What does it mean?

• Pros
• Industrial Biotechnology can help generate a new
  greener economy with countless new jobs.  
• May solve world food shortage (agriculture and
  livestock)
• Helps with discovery of new medicines
• Solving crimes with DNA and forensic testing
• Cons
• There are safety and ethical debates
• How far do we draw the line?
• Perfect babies and cloning
• Accidental immunity of pests, weeds, viruses, and
  bacteria
• Engineering even more foods
• Biological warfare

• It changes the quality of life in our world!

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How does corn affect our society?

• When compared to original unchanged corn, the
  amount of biotech corn being able to be produced
  is much higher.
• This is important for farming economies, like
  Canada, which therefore is able to feed more
  people while also requiring less work and time
  overall.

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How does biotechnology affect the environment?
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What does that mean?

• Public Environment

• Natural/Physical Environment

• We will have the ability to find ways to use our
  garbage to create new needed products.
• Agricultural biotechnology will help us to use
  our lands more efficiently (no loss of crops and
  money)

• By 2030, the WWF estimates that biotechnology
  has the potential to save the planet up to 2.5
  billion tons of CO2 emissions per year.
• Biotechnology will aid in the removal of
  pollution from our soils, water, and air

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Advantages of Biotechnology

• Are all of these biotechnology solutions safe?
• As we move towards a greener society,
  biotechnology is the leading force to help us
  solve problems that we, as humans, were
  responsible for creating.
• We are able to understand the world that we live
  in on a microscopic level.

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Why or How is Corn Biotechnology Good?

• http//www.youtube.com/watch?v-lI9zrDGX1o Corn
  production bills from FOOD INC.
• May solve declining oil issue and provide us with
  new energy form
• Third world countries especially prone to insect
  infestation, nutrition deficits, and drought no
  longer have to worry

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Disadvantages to Biotechnology

• Are we planting new problems that may haunt us in
  the future?
• Unknown/unintended harm to environment
• Food Labelling and consumer choice
• Dependency
• Cost

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Why or How is Corn Biotechnology Bad?

• http//www.youtube.com/watch?v3q5tjKU-Ixsfeature
  related
• Insects may become immune to pest-tolerant Bt
  corn and become more harmful (already seen in
  mosquitoes) as well as creating superweeds

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References

• Biotechnology Institute, 2005, What is
  Biotechnology lthttp//www.biotechinstitute.org/wh
  at_is/gt
• Monsanto Company, 2001, Biotech Basics
  lthttp//www.biotechknowledge.com/biotech/bbasics.n
  sf/biotech01_corn.html?OpenPagegt
• Gewin, Virginia. Genetically Modified Corn
  Environmental Benefits and Risks October 13,
  2008. Public Library of Science
  lthttp//www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC21268
  9/gt