Dilemma Cards for West Camp

Questions:

1. A tobacco company is planning to develop a strain of tobacco resistant to pests. This plant would help farmers use less pesticide and therefore reduce the cost of production. Less cost for plant production means that the company could be able to sell cigarettes at a lower price. Yet, this may also encourage people to smoke more. Do you think this tobacco should be produced? -- 7

2. You have just successfully developed a tomato plant through genetic engineering which deters tomato caterpillars. This plant would likely help farmers reduce crop loss from caterpillar damages, and therefore increase their tomato production. Many companies are interested in your newly-developed tomato plant; you could make a fortune if you sell the right to produce it. However, there are a few studies by scientists suggesting that this plant may make this particular caterpillar species extinct. What would you do? Would you market the plant? -- 3

3. Three months ago, your mom lost her beloved dog for 15 years. She is still mourning over her loss. Just recently, you have learned that her dog could be cloned. Your mom could have her beloved dog back. What do you think? Would you suggest that your mom’s dog be cloned? How much should your family be willing to pay? -- 1

4. Your sister, last year’s Homecoming Queen in her high school, was in a car accident which left her a horrible scar on her face. Her face is very difficult to repair with common methods of skin grafting. Her doctor wants to experiment bioengineered skin substitutes to repair her face. Although this may restore your sister’s face, the procedure may also shorten her life. What would you suggest your sister to do? -- 6

5. You are pregnant for the first time after you have tried many years to have a baby. This week, you and your husband have just learned from ultrasound that you are expecting a boy. But, your family members have been carriers of Hemophilia A, a type of genetic disorder that causes severe, recurring bleeding, typically among boys. In fact, your brother has died from this disorder when he was very young. According to your doctor, you child will have a 50/50 chance of being a Hemophilia carrier. Your doctor recommends that you have genetic testing and that your child go through gene therapy after birth. What would you do? If you discover from genetic testing that your son indeed has a severe level of Hemophilia A, what would you do? Would you still have this baby? – mainly an issue of abortion; not much related to biotech

6. You son is in an eighth grade student and one of the top basketball players in the state in his age group. Although he has always been shorter than other boys of his age, the height difference between them has recently become more dramatic. This fall, you noticed that your son was performing very poorly at school, getting in a lot of fights with his friends. When you asked him about school, he said that he was very worried that he would not be able to play basketball at all in high school. According to your son’s doctor, he has a problem with his pituitary gland which would likely prevent him from growing any taller than 5’3”. Although this is not a medical problem, his doctor said that your son could take human growth hormones to increase his height up to 6’2”. What would you do? Would you put your son on growth hormones? -- not much relevance to biotech

7. Three years ago, your father’s farm was contaminated by a massive spill of toxic chemicals from a factory in your town. Your father has not been able to farm at all. Last night, a group of scientists visited your father to request if they could use his farm to experiment a new method of treating contaminated soil that involves the use of genetically-engineered microorganisms to “eat” toxic chemicals in soil. Although this method may restore your father’s farm, it may negatively affect wild animals and plants in the area. What would you suggest your father to do? -- 2

8. Your family runs a small tobacco farm. For the last three years, your father has been gradually converting his farm for growing organic vegetables. Last week, however, he went to a meeting among tobacco farmers and learned about a new genetically-engineered tobacco plant which was to be used as a raw material for pharmaceutical products. At the meeting, he was invited by the company, which plans to market this plant, to sign a contract to grow it. If he decides to sign the contact, he would be able to use his knowledge and experience with tobacco. But, signing a contact with a relatively new company is a risky business. If the market of this new tobacco plant does not perform well as the company forecasts, then your father may lose money. Moreover, once he plants this genetically-engineered tobacco plant, he won’t be able to grow organic vegetables for a few years. What would you recommend your father do? – too complicated

9. According to the World Health Organization, at least one million children per year are dying of diseases related to vitamin A deficiency. Through genetic engineering, a group of scientists developed “Golden Rice” varieties which are to be made freely available to farmers in developing countries. While some people supports this development as an example of how biotechnology could help developing nations, other people opposes it for both uncertain health (including Golden Rice may not improve vitamin A deficiency) and environmental effects. Moreover, Golden Rice may be largely consumed by those who don’t have vitamin A deficiency. As a volunteer in an organization who works with people in a developing country, what would you recommend your organization to do? -- 4

10. Your beloved cat is in chronic kidney failure and keeps losing weight despite all the medical and dietary treatments she has undergone. Without a kidney transplant, she will die soon. So, your vet asks you to adopt the donor cat and provide a life-long home. The success rate of this operation is 75-80 percent. Your cat will undergo chemotherapy for a while after the operation. Of course, the life of this donor cat will be sacrificed to save the life of your cat. What would you do? -- 5