Alexa Corsey

Human Origins 1020

Reflection Assignment (respond to all questions/prompts)
What was the ethical issue you wrote about for your signature assignment? Why did you
choose this ethical issue? What did you know about the issue before doing any research?
How did your research (including the evaluation of the viewpoints, evidence, and logical
fallacies) impact your thinking?
I wrote about genetically modified babies and the two points of the issue and also my
own opinion. I chose to write about this topic because I think that it is insane that it is possible to
have the power to change your childs DNA. I cannot see the logic or the thought process of
trying to make your baby perfect because there is a fine line between fixing something over
completely changing an issue. Some of us wear classes to improve our vision, or hearing aids to
improve our hearing, but I think it is going against Mother Nature and fate to completely change
a gene in order for your child to not end up with a fault. I didnt know a whole lot of information
on the issue. I was searching for an interesting topic and this was calling my name. Im glad I
didnt know a lot because it helped me understand both sides and I probably read over 15 articles
on the subject because it was interesting to see the different sides of the topic. The research made
me see both view points and had ethos, pathos and logos to make me see the logic and also feel
the pain of some of the parents who have to deal with horrible diseases that come with genetics. I
thought about what I would do in the situation and it made me sick. I would have no idea what I
would do in that situation and that made me realize that I cant judge people who decide to make
the decision to play with their childs DNA to make sure they do not receive a specific gene that
would give them a life-threatening disease. What would you do if you were told that your own
child was going to have a high chance of having a disease that couldnt ever be fixed? It is
overwhelming thinking about being in that specific situation. I found that many mothers do this
process when they are infertile and cannot have children biologically and it has been very
successful. It talked about how soon we would have super humans who had the ability to have
super strength, intellect and also perfect DNA, free of any disease. I can definitely see the pros
and cons of the matter and how you can save your child, but I also see how many people would
take complete advantage of it. The logical fallacies were so true about the different opinions and
assumptions others have about certain topics. I had the viewpoint that it was going against
nature-which meant it wasnt okay. This is a fallacy that I see many people fall into, but what
would you do if a loved one was in a life-threatening situation? It was a huge eye opener for me.
This prompt is very controversial and I dont think anyone can justify it on being good or bad. It
is mostly dependent on the situation.

How might you apply the critical thinking and communicating about ethical issues skills in
other learning contexts (e.g. other courses, home, work, elections, Thanksgiving dinner,
etc.)? Offer and explain at least three specific examples of where and how you used or
might use the critical thinking and communicating skills (one example should be from this
course).
From what I learned, this was a complete life realization. I sit here and say I dont judge
other people based on how they look, how they dress and how they act but I was definitely
judging the people who have used genetic modification for their child. My first example is I can
learn from my research and I shouldnt jump to conclusions. I need to base my opinions off of a
full story with both sides of the matter. Even though I dont think it is right, doesnt mean I
wouldnt use it if my child had a high chance of receiving MS or Tay-Sachs disease. If you were
in the situation, I think anyone would take that opportunity. Overall, I need to be more
understanding as a person. Second, getting all the information is also important. There are
always fights that you will face in your lifetime; whether it be with a family member, friend or
foe. We need to make sure we listen and get the whole story. This goes hand-in-hand with not
judging others and their decision. I feel like at times I have assumed something I heard was
correct and it ended up blowing up in my face and being false. You need to always listen before
you can voice an opinion. Last but not least, we can adapt to our environments. This can go both
with our attitudes and also with natural selection. It has been insightful and interesting to learn
about evolution and how we have adapted to our environment because of natural selection. It
taught me that we have the power to control how we adapt and also react to situations.

Hmm Moment: What content are you still perplexed about and why? Explain how you
will apply the skills used in the essay (e.g. research skills, writing skills, etc.) to grapple with
this content?
I have found natural selection the most interesting concept of this course. I never thought
about how we adapt to our environments. It is crazy to think that people can adapt to stronger
UV rays, hypoxia and also diseases. The articles that I specifically read and wrote my paper on
were based on our way of speeding up the process of natural selection. This doesnt make it
natural at all. I find the whole concept interesting and I understand he circumstances where it
could be useful, but after understanding how natural selection works, it only makes sense that we

would be able to speed up the process because of the technology we possess. I think many people
can have their opinions on the matter, but unless you research the content from both sides and
write down all of your opinions and weigh them out, you cant suggest that it is bad or good.
You should not have an opinion period. It is upsetting to me when it is easy for people to see one
side of a story and immediately judge based off of one side.

AHA Moment: What specific AHA moment have you had in this course about human
evolution (broadly defined)? (This does not have to be the same as your Hmmmm
moment).
I have always wondered why people have colored skin, or why some people are more
prone to receiving a certain disease. I have been absolutely fascinated with natural selection and
how it helps us adapt to our environments. The article Curse and Blessing of the Ghetto was
without a doubt my favorite article. It amazed me that this population with a saturated amount of
traces of Tay-Sachs disease was less likely to receive the gene for TB. This is because this
population lived in the ghettos where TB was highly distributed and the population was able to
adapt to where they were resistant of the gene. It is the same concept of Sickle Cell Anemia and
Malaria. Most Africans with Sickle Cell Anemia are less likely to have Malaria because they are
resistant to it. It is incredible what humans are capable of and it is truly incredible how we can
adapt to horrible situations. Human evolution continues to amaze me the more I learn about it.
This is one concept where I understand all parts of why and how we adapt and grow over the
years. It made the most sense to me and intrigued me the most throughout the semester.