In this class, we will discuss man’s vision and endeavor to
control and engineer life. This ambition goes as far back as
3500 BC, when the biological process of fermentation was first
harnessed to produce beer. However, it was not until 1954 that
the term bioengineering was coined to describe the practical
application of biological knowledge to construct novel
technologies by mimicking or controlling biological systems.
Recent advances related to stem cells, cloning, and genetic
engineering have brought the field into the arena of public
discourse and politics. There are some who believe that applying
engineering methods to biological systems leads to progress and
the betterment of mankind, a sentiment epitomized by Francis
Bacon’s statement: “Conquer nature, relieve man’s estate.” On
the other hand, bioengineering also conjures up images of
eugenics, organ harvesting, and overmedication. And as the
bioethicist Leon Kass warns, our ability to engineer life means
that the very question of what it means to be h