EDST 391 Ethics
& the Human Genome
Name:
Date:
"Calendar"
P/F Writing
Assignment for Day 2 (Day 2 means turn in the assignment on Day 2 of the
course)
Media portrayals of
human genome research and technology
Assigned reading:
Writing assignment:
Question 1 (your list): Which human genome issues have
the major
newspapers been
focusing on during
the last two years? Please email me your list before class.
- You may pick one media outlet to search.
Search its archives for relevant news
reports, editorials, features, etc. (HELPFUL HINT: Morris Library has excellent
electronic resources, especially its “databases” page. The reference librarians
would be glad to help if you can’t figure something out. Or, just put the name
of a newspaper in your browser --washingtonpost.com —and then do your
search. )
- Create a list of those articles. Make
sure you have complete references, so someone else would be able to locate
them. Include the URLs if you have them. Please email me the list so I can
click on the URLs.
- Briefly
describe the sorts of genomic topics these articles
covered (e.g., 2 news articles on cloning, 3 on genetic screening, 1 feature
covering a whole lot of issues, etc.)
Question 2 (your analysis):
For the most interesting articles, please describe the emotions and ethical
issues they raise. (Turn in or email the articles. Print and turn in your analysis.)
- Pick 2 or 3 (2 if long, 3 if short).
- For
each, briefly describe the hopes and fears
and rights
and
wrongs
that it raises. The article
may not raise them explicitly, but just tug at your heart. Watch your own
reactions: "Oh, that would be good (or bad)." Or, "Something about this
makes me
uneasy."
- Concise is good. Concise and to the
point is even better.
Be prepared
to discuss your results in class.