Jurassic Park: A Cinematic Example of Bioethics
Have modern leaps in medical technologies made Jurassic Park a reality?
By Roan Fair
In the final stretch of the fall semester at Grove City College, the Institute for Faith and Freedom hosted a showing of Jurassic Park with an introduction given by Dr. Jan Dudt. The brief discussion focused on the advancements in medical technologies which could make cloning dinosaurs a reality. But what does this technology mean for human medicine and how should Christians respond to scientist who “play God.”
Science Fact or Fiction?
In the 1993 film, John Hammond (Richard Attenborough) founded Jurassic Park by using dino DNA found in a mosquito preserved in amber. After the DNA was extracted, the scientists from Jurassic Park were able to sequence the DNA and give the dinosaurs a second chance at life on earth. While this process was seemingly impossible at the time of its release, technologies have advanced rapidly in the last 30 years which could make this work of science fiction a reality.
In 2021, scientists in China claimed the ability to successfully extract DNA from the fossilized bones of a dinosaur. Similarly, the DNA from the long extinct woolly mammoths have been isolated by scientists.
Although technology exists to isolate the DNA of extinct creatures, do we have the capability to revive them? Modern advancements say yes.
Modern Technologies
By 1996, technologies had advanced enough to allow scientists to clone animals such as Dolly the sheep. Dolly’s cloning combined mammary cells with egg cells to create an embryo and brought to term in a surrogate sheep. Medical technologies have come a great way since the days of Dolly.
In 2012, a British scientist utilized the same methods used in the Dolly experiment to clone himself. International regulations on cloning, however, forced the scientist to destroy his cloned embryos a few days after.
The ability to edit genes was developed the same year through CRISPR-Cas9. The CRISPER tool allows scientists to input small sequences of RNA which serve as guides which reshape the DNA in a nucleus. This powerful tool has the potential to give scientists the ability to alter DNA in plants, animals, and even humans.
The Ethics Problem
The development of cloning and gene editing technologies have created many ethical dilemmas in the scientific community. Beyond the ethical concerns surrounding the use of embryos for the research is the major issue of “playing God.”
Ethical concerns surrounding these technologies came to a head in 2018 when a Chinese scientist claimed to have used CRISPR to genetically alter baby girls. Scientists supposedly altered the DNA of these babies to increase their immunity to HIV. The scientific community met this claim with severe criticism, calling it “premature” and a breach of scientific norms and international limitations on human research.
The Christian Response
While the pushback from the scientific community focused on the violation of scientific standards, the ethical issues surrounding cloning and gene-editing presents many dilemmas for Christians.
Christians should approach these questions by first viewing the issue through the Imago Dei. Every person is made in the Image of God. Unlike anything else in creation, God created mankind with a soul and the ability to commune with God Himself through worship and prayer.
Christians have a moral responsibility to view these scientific developments in a way that reflects our acknowledgement of the Imago Dei. We should not view these monumental discoveries as a matter of “Can we do such things?” but rather “Should we?”
Although the writers of Jurassic Park did not know at the time of writing that their film would one day be a possible reality, the “Should we?” question is briefly championed by Dr. Ian Malcom (Jeff Goldbum).
“God creates dinosaurs. God destroys dinosaurs. God creates man. Man destroys God. Man creates dinosaurs.” – Dr. Ian Malcolm.
In the eyes of Dr. Malcom, the resurrection of the dinosaurs went against everything in nature. The development of human cloning and claims of genetically engineering children reflect the troubling reality of this movie quote.
As society and the scientific community drift further away from religion and the Creator of all things, they are pushing the boundaries of nature further and further. Without the moral convictions of the Imago Dei, the distinction of man and animal continues to blur. The question of “Should we?” is losing ground to the question of “Can we?”
Christians must not forget the importance of the Imago Dei and its implications in all aspects of our lives.
About the Author
Roan Fair is a History and Political Science double major at Grove City College. On campus, he is the Senior Articles Editor for the Grove City College Journal of Law and Public Policy, serves as a student executive for the BEST Robotics Competition, a high school program hosted by the college, and is the Vice President for the college’s Federalist Society chapter. Additionally, Roan serves as a TA for Dr. Verbois in the political science department. His interests include early American history, political theory, and the legal field. After graduation, Roan plans on attending law school and pursuing a career in private practice.
READ MORE BY ROAN FAIR: STEM Education: Thriving or Dying?
Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed are those of the writer alone and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of Grove City College, the Institute for Faith and Freedom, or their affiliates.
Cover Image: Photo by Winston Chen on Unsplash