Hoffman 1 Cole Hoffman Professor O’Neal English 1113 11 March 2020 Genetically Modified Organisms: Unnecessary Panic? Research Question: Does genetically modifying organisms for improved performance and resilience pose a health risk to the individual or the United States’ cropland? Ervin, David E, et al. “The Impact of Genetically Engineered Crops on Farm Sustainability in the United States.” National Academies Press, 2010, www.nap.edu/resource/12804/genetically_engineered_crops_report_brief_final.pdf. This source discusses the impact of GMOs on the cropland of the United States. “GE Food & Your Health.” Center for Food Safety, www.centerforfoodsafety.org/issues/311/gefoods/ge-food-and-your-health. This national non-profit organization which is selfdescribed as an entity “working to protect human health and the environment by curbing the use of harmful food production technologies and by promoting organic and other forms of sustainable agriculture”. In this source, they discuss the health risks that they believe are associated with “genetically engineered food products”. “How Do GMOs Affect Insects?” How Do GMOs Affect Insects?, ag.purdue.edu/GMOs/Pages/GMOsandInsects.aspx. This source discusses the benefits of Hoffman 2 GMOs being engineered to have a natural pest resistance and how this is beneficial to other insects such as bees and butterflies. “How GMOs Benefit The Environment.” Modern Agriculture, Modern Agriculture, 18 Oct. 2018, modernag.org/innovation/gmo-solutions-benefit-environment/. This source discusses multiple benefits of genetically modified organisms, such as protecting the food supply, reducing greenhouse gases, and much more. James, C., et al. “GMOs in Animal Agriculture: Time to Consider Both Costs and Benefits in Regulatory Evaluations.” Journal of Animal Science and Biotechnology, BioMed Central, 25 Sept. 2013, jasbsci.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/2049-1891-4-37. Discusses the study of long-term effects on specific animal populations such as mice and other farm animals which were fed genetically modified crops. Discusses the health implications and how the animals responded both short term and long term to ingesting these items. Marris, Claire. “Public Views on GMOs: Deconstructing the Myths.” EMBO Press, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd, 1 July 2001, www.embopress.org/doi/pdf/10.1093/embo-reports/kve142. Claire Marris, a sociologist of science from the French National Institute for Agronomy Research, discusses genetically modified organism and the common misconceptions that are presented with them. She provides detailed deconstructions of these myths and provides the factual, correct, information. McLure, Jason. “Genetically Modified Food.” CQ Researcher, CQ Press, 31 Aug. 2012, library.cqpress.com/cqresearcher/document.php?id=cqresrre2012083100&type=hitlist&n Hoffman 3 um=0. This source discusses the overall history and gives a general overview of genetically modified organisms, as well as movements against it and for it. Norero, Daniel. “GMO Crops Have Been Increasing Yield for 20 Years, with More Progress Ahead.” Alliance for Science, Cornell, 23 Feb. 2018, allianceforscience.cornell.edu/blog/2018/02/gmo-crops-increasing-yield-20-yearsprogress-ahead/. This source discusses the common misconception that GMOs do not increase crop yield for the country, while also discussing the context in which a US report was written and how it was taken out of context. Norris, Megan L. “Will GMOs Hurt My Body? The Public's Concerns and How Scientists Have Addressed Them.” Will GMOs Hurt My Body? The Public’s Concerns and How Scientists Have Addressed Them, Harvard University, 19 Jan. 2017, sitn.hms.harvard.edu/flash/2015/will-gmos-hurt-my-body/. Discusses other studies over the health concerns of GMOs and draws conclusions from those other sources. These health risks include offspring, toxicity, and our genes. “What Are Genome Editing and CRISPR-Cas9? - Genetics Home Reference - NIH.” U.S. National Library of Medicine, National Institutes of Health, 17 Mar. 2020, ghr.nlm.nih.gov/primer/genomicresearch/genomeediting. The source discusses genome editing techniques, specifically CRISPR-CAS9. Discusses the benefits of gene editing which includes possible health improvements and disease prevention. Along with the benefits, the possible ethical dilemmas that come along with editing the genes of a human being.
