Creating Future People The Science And Ethics Of Genetic Enhancement
1 Introduction
[R] Start (around) 5:30 PM EST, 2025-12-07.
[A] BOOK for Anomaly-CFPTSAEOGE-ED2-2024.
[R-Q] A thought you had before even opening this book was “How self-selecting is the intellectual space surrounding genetic modification?” and then “A left-leaning individual might be inclined to first look up the author, to form a judgement of them before or, possibly, rather than contending with the contents of the work itself” and then “By how much do the personalities (e.g. OCEAN) of those working with genome engineering (and related technologies) in laboratories differ distributionally from those ‘working with’ genome engineering (and related technologies) in ethics and philosophy?”.
[R] The Ultimatum and Public Goods game and the Prisoner’s Dilemna are the only elements of game theory in the table of contents; I imagine there is more in game theory that can be discussed in context of individual and collective decisions concerning assisted reproduction technology and genetic modification.
[Q] Which aspects or examples (perhaps 10) in game theory are most relevant to genetic enhancement of humans (besides the Public Goods and Ultimatum game and the Prisoner’s Dilemna)?
[T] Look these terms up using Perplexity and Claude. Engage with them until you can define the terms and explain their significance.
[Q] How many people actually take to heart the desire for their children to be happy and healthy? How can one evaluate how much a parent cares (intentions and outcomes) for their children? How much leeway do other people (individuals, governments, etc…) have in controlling the behavior of parents with their children? I imagine there are lifestyle decisions (e.g. smoking tobacco) that are made prior to one having children but consequential for the welfare of the child (genetically). What are some examples of these lifestyle choices? How are you personally failing your future children today?
[Q] What does human flourishing actually look like? As in, how have scholars defined or described different scenarios of human floushing? Regarding this last question, how much consensus or convergence is there concerning visions of human flourishing?
[E] What are some examples of interventions for societal good?
Altering ecosystems, modifying crops, imposing vaccines, imposing antibiotics, and imposing compulsatory education.
[Q] Which biological traits are, in expectation, most and least difficult to modify and why?
[Q] What are some examples of monogenic and polygenic diseases?
[P] As an exercise, you should plot fertility data (by demographic factors in the US, by country, etc…; in eggs produced via IVF procedures).
[Q] How are embryos in IVF genetically sequenced? How much damage if any is incurred on the embryo in performing the genetic sequencing?
[I] Once you upload and clean your notes, have Claude and Perplexity go through the questions and generate answers using a template.
[T] Download studies with a (.) next to them (in the notes section of the preface).
[Q] How would one go about improving polygenic scores or devising some other method that is more deterministic?
[Q] What existing theories are there surrounding SNPs? What are the fundamental natural drivers of mutation? Regarding the last question, might something as simple as temperature be involved?
[Q] Besides genetics “being young” (as a field) and the small number of eggs women produce in IVF cycles, are there other limiting factors in embryo selection? Regarding adoption, obviously policy and regulation might be a barrier (whether this is generally beneficial or harmful seemingly remains undetermined).
[Q] How have machine and deep learning improved embryo selection and assisted reproduction technologies? Regarding the last question, what are some major studies or repositories in this space and what are some emerging and or yet-to-be-test methods?
[R-Q] There are some major questions huamns must contend with concerning in vitro gametogenesis: How should governments regulate this? What traits would people prefer their children to have? How might relationships and marriage change? How much value is there in the bionormative mode of human reproduction and development?
[T] Consider donating to a sperm bank and or freezing your sperm (possibly over time, for experimentation purposes). At a minimum, download any datasets on selection preferences for sperm banks.
[Q] What datasets exist involving sperm banks and the traits of donors that are preferred or selected for by receivers?
[Q] What are some fundamental questions humanity must contend with in genetics, assisted reproductive technology, and related fields (or related methods)?
[Q] What work remains to be done to realize in vitro gametogeneis? How DIY or inexpensive might in vitro gametogenesis be one day? A limiting factor for some scenarios seems to be womb availability or capabilities with ectogenesis.
[T] With each new headline, the pressure to finish GET grows. Work on this!
[R] Tentatively, you believe that, at a minimum, in your lifetime, you will experience some highly unnerving developments in human genetic modification prior to the (possible) curtailing or realization of human flourishing via AI. Oftentimes, feelings of “inevitability” coincide with your thoughts of future involving immense transformation of human civilization engendered by AI or genetic engineering (especially, genetic engineering humans).
[T] Define sperm, egg, ovulation, PGT, GWAS, polygenic disease, monogenic disease, in vitro gametogenesis, embryo, SNP, pluripotent stem cell, somatic cell, gamete, and IVF.
[I] An investment strategy for some futures in this space might be collecting biological material from the individuals in possession of highly sought out traits.
[R] You want “human flourishing” but something feels so “off” (as though you are stepping into the depths of completely novel but dark abyss, on the edge of drowning but also of discovery) with the genetic enhancement of humans. The words or phrases “erasure”, “human dignity”, “extinction”, “unnatural”, “left out”, “tragedy”, and “unfair”, are some that come to mind. Some futures seem to include the mass erasure of “flawed” genetic lines (and also of familial heritage or the “family” in general). Although, today, the “unfairness” latent in certain trait distributions (e.g. height for men, IQ, etc…) is mostly tolerated by humanity without much pause.
[R] End (around) 7:00 PM EST, 2025-12-07.