Lisa Palmer: Genetically Modified Mosquitos→

Yale Environment 360:

“When people think of genetically modified organisms, food crops like GM corn and soybeans usually come to mind. But engineering more complex living things is now possible, and the controversy surrounding genetic modification has now spread to the lowly mosquito, which is being genetically engineered to control mosquito-borne illnesses.

A U.K.-based company, Oxitec, has altered two genes in the Aedes aegypti mosquito so that when modified males breed with wild females, the offspring inherit a lethal gene and die in the larval stage. The state agency that controls mosquitos in the Florida Keys is awaiting approval from the federal government of a trial release of Oxitec’s genetically modified mosquitos to prevent a recurrence of a dengue fever outbreak. But some people in the Keys and elsewhere are up in arms, with more than 155,000 signing a petition opposing the trial of genetically engineered mosquitoes in a small area of 400 households next to Key West.”

Tinkering with Nature can have unintended consequences. See Nassim Nicholas Taleb's concerns with GMOs:

The Precautionary Principle with Application to the Genetic Modification of Organisms

EconTalk Episode with Nassim Nicholas Taleb; Hosted by Russ Roberts

Genetically Modified Organisms (GMOs) Are High Risk→

Mark Buchanan, reporting for Bloomberg:

OLIVIER MORIN/AFP/GETTY IMAGES

“Like many people, I’ve long wondered about the safety of genetically modified organisms. They’ve become so ubiquitous that they account for about 80 percent of the corn grown in the U.S., yet we know almost nothing about what damage might ensue if the transplanted genes spread through global ecosystems.

How can so many smart people, including many scientists, be so sure that there’s nothing to worry about? Judging from a new paper by several researchers from New York University, including “The Black Swan” author Nassim Taleb, they can’t and shouldn’t.

The researchers focus on the risk of extremely unlikely but potentially devastating events. They argue that there’s no easy way to decide whether such risks are worth taking — it all depends on the nature of the worst-case scenario. Their approach helps explain why some technologies, such as nuclear energy, should give no cause for alarm, while innovations such as GMOs merit extreme caution.”

The Precautionary Principle (with Application to the Genetic Modification of Organisms)

Many of the truths that we cling to depend on our point of view. Where low probability, high consequence, and systemic risk are, the precautionary principle must be applied. Impossible to see the future is. Risk is a function of both probability and consequence. Discount potential consequences will help you not.