After more than 40 years of parallel development, theinformation and life sciences — compu

After more than 40 years of parallel development, the

information and life sciences — computing and biology — are

fusing into a single, powerful force that is the foundation for

the biotech century. Increasingly, the computer used to decode, 【S1】______

manage and organize the vast amounts of genetic information

that will be raw resource of the new global economy.

The biotech century promises great riches: genetically

engineered plants and animal to feed a hungry population; genetically 【S2】______

derived sources of energy and fiber to build a renewable society;

wonder drags and genetic therapies to produce healthier babies,

eliminate suffering and extended human lifespan. But a question will 【S3】______

gaunt us: at what cost？

The new genetic commerce raises more troubling issues than

any economic revolution in history. Will the artificial creation of cloned 【S4】______

and transgenic animals mean the end of nature and substitution of a 【S5】______

bio-industrial world？ Will the mass release of thousands of genetically

engineered life forms into the environment cause catastrophic pollution

and reversible damage to the biosphere？ What are the consequences of 【S6】______

the world's gene pool become patented intellectual property, controlled 【S7】______

exclusively by a handful of corporations？ What will it mean to live in a

world where babies are genetically engineered in the womb, and that 【S8】______

people are increasingly identified and stereotyped on the basis of their

genotype？

The debate is not about the science but about how we apply them. 【S9】______

Until now the debate has engaged a very broad group of molecular 【S10】______

biologists and government policy-makers, though the biotech

revolution affects us all. With the new technology flooding into our

lives, the moment has come for a much broader debate, one that involves

the whole society.

【S1】