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The late physicist and author, Professor Stephen Hawking, has sparked controversy by suggesting that a new breed of superhuman could develop from wealthy individuals choosing to alter their DNA and that of their children.
Hawking, the author of A Brief History of Time, who died in March, made the latest predictions in a collection of articles and essays.
The scientist presents the possibility that genetic engineering could create a new superhuman species that could destroy the rest of humanity. The essays, published in the Sunday Times, were written in anticipation of a book to be released Tuesday.
"I'm sure that during this century, people will discover how to change both intelligence and instincts such as aggression," he wrote.
"Laws are likely to be passed against genetic engineering in humans. But some people will not be able to resist the temptation to improve human characteristics, such as memory, disease resistance, and length of life. "
In his brief Answers to Big Questions, Hawking's latest thoughts on the biggest questions in the universe, the physicist suggests that wealthy people would soon be able to choose to modify their genetic makeup and that of their children to create superhuman with improved memory, increased disease resistance, intelligence and longevity.
Hawking suggests that breakthroughs in genetics will make it attractive for people to try to improve, raising problems for "unimproved humans".
"Once such superhumans appear, there will be significant political problems with unimproved humans, who will not be able to compete," he wrote. "They will disappear or become irrelevant. Instead, there will be a race of self-designed beings that improve at an ever increasing pace. "
The comments refer to techniques such as Crispr-Cas9, a DNA editing system invented six years ago, allowing scientists to modify harmful genes or add new ones. London's Great Ormond Street Children's Hospital has used gene editing to treat children with an otherwise incurable form of leukemia.
Crispr, or to give it its full name, Crispr-Cas9, allows scientists to precisely target and edit fragments of the genome. Crispr is a guide molecule made up of RNA that makes it possible to target a specific site on the double helix of DNA. The RNA molecule is linked to Cas9, a bacterial enzyme that acts as a pair of "molecular scissors" to cut DNA to the exact point required. This allows scientists to cut, paste and delete unique letters of genetic code.
However, questions have been raised about whether parents might use such techniques for fear that the improvements will have side effects.
Astronomer Lord Rees, Hawking's friend at the University of Cambridge but often disagreeing with his colleague, said that a sperm bank located in California offering only sperm "d & # 39; elite ", including the Nobel laureates, had closed for lack of demand.
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