Difference between revisions of "Team:Goettingen/Practices"

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Human Practices

For our human practice we wanted to think about the implications associated with our Flexosome tool. We consulted Dr. Volka von Hoyningen-Huene about his professional perspective on our project. During the interview we talked about synthetic biology, genetically manipulated organisms (GMOs) and a scenario with the Flexosome as an optimized product.

SYNTHETIC BIOLOGY

To construct new biological features from basic components, even if they are artificial components, such as reconstructed genetic information which is then expressed and produced as completely new functions.

GMOs

Any organism that has its genetic material altered by human influence. Not through breeding and selection but through molecular biology. They can be applied in industry, fuel, environment, health, energy and in the elaboration of nutritional products for example.

GMO’s worst case scenario

A worst case scenario can be found in science fiction films. I don’t think such a thing has ever happened. In a worst case scenario somebody would use your system in order to produce a very efficient poison as a misuse for war purposes. Such a complex protein could be put into water of a city and therefore cause damage without causing realisations.

GMOs perception

Publicly they have a bad reputation, but personally I see it more differentiated. I see the concern in the public of depending very strongly on individual firms like, e.g. Monsanto, in the total exploitation for commercial means rather than applications that pursues the society as a whole.

iGEM teams are unique and leading the field because they "go beyond the lab" to imagine their projects in a social/environmental context, to better understand issues that might influence the design and use of their technologies.

Teams work with students and advisors from the humanities and social sciences to explore topics concerning ethical, legal, social, economic, safety or security issues related to their work. Consideration of these Human Practices is crucial for building safe and sustainable projects that serve the public interest.

For more information, please see the Practices Hub.

Some Human Practices topic areas

• Philosophy
• Public Engagement / Dialogue
• Education
• Product Design
• Scale-Up and Deployment Issues
• Environmental Impact
• Ethics
• Safety
• Security
• Public Policy
• Law and Regulation
• Risk Assessment

What should we write about on this page?

On this page, you should write about the Human Practices topics you considered in your project, and document any special activities you did (such as visiting experts, talking to lawmakers, or doing public engagement).

Inspiration

Read what other teams have done:

• 2014 Dundee
• 2014 UC Davis
• 2013 Manchester
• 2013 Cornell

Integrated Human Practices

Do you want to be considered for the Best Integrated Human Practices award? Make it easy for the judges to find any wiki content that is relevant to this prize. Highlight this content with a header or separate section.

Education and Public Engagement

Do you want to be considered for the Best Education and Public Outreach award? Make it easy for the judges to find any wiki content that is relevant to this prize. Highlight this content with a header or separate section.