Hall of Infinite Doors

The evolution of biotechnology can be viewed as continuous or discontinuous. Continuity refers to the nature of the progression of biotechnological advances and the development of new biotechnological practices. A continuous model holds that this advancement is made up of many small steps so that the process as a whole may be viewed as a seamless or smooth progression. On the other hand, a discontinuous model holds that recent developments in biotechnology represent massive leaps into fundamentally different territory than past biotechnological advancements. A discontinuous progression is not smooth but instead contains abrupt jumps and spikes initiated by certain technological breakthroughs. Both critics and supporters of cutting edge biotechnologies may espouse a view of either continuity or discontinuity. This is because continuity is independent of perceived correctness of biotechnology. The continuous standpoint, whether taken with a critical or supporting lens, provides a more accurate depiction of biotechnological advancement in modern society.
Psychopharmacology is one branch of biotechnology involving the use of drugs to impact perception, mood, thought and ultimately behavior. Carl Elliott examines the recent rise in development and sale of these types of drugs and finds that the demand for these drugs is driven by cultural forces that have existed for well over a hundred years. He describes how different cultures have different "selves" that individuals are pressured to aspire to. In the United States, extroversion is cherished and therefore shyness has been pathologized and drugs have been produced to treat it. In contrast, Japanese culture pathologizes social anxiety in the opposite manner, as individuals fear being to extroverted and possibly offending others. In both cases, the cultural perception is not new and attempts to "treat" individuals who feel they are not close enough to this ideal date back over a century. Before psychopharmacology became popular, self help books in as well as other therapeutic methods were used. It is in this way that the use of these drugs does not represent a new paradigm but is instead continuous, representing the next step in a long standing cultural trend.
The shift in public attitude towards cloning humans also supports the idea of continuity. Kolata describes how initially when the first sheep, Dolly, was cloned the scientific community rejected the idea of cloning humans. Months later, this attitude began to shift from an attitude of "horrific negation" to considering the practice. This shift in attitude had been seen before, with many other practices such as in vitro fertilization. This shift is able to occur because human cloning doesn't unexpectedly become a reality. Instead, there are many small intermediate steps including cloning of animals, mapping the human genome, and cloning somatic cells. The change between each advancement seems small and acceptable, and ultimately allows individuals to come to accept practices that, if developed abruptly without the intermediate steps, they would have surely rejected. It is the continuous nature of the progression of biotechnology that allows public opinion towards certain practices to change so easily. The distance between practices being condemned and accepted is diminishing though, because technological progress is accelerating. The seamlessness of the progression is maintained though, because the distance between each innovation remains the same, it is only the distance between innovations that is diminishing.
The continuity of biotechnology is displayed in both its driving factors and widespread acceptance. The motives that drive it have existed culturally long before the technology itself. The acceptance of technology itself is due to the fact that these technologies do not come about abruptly, but instead are the result of an insidious process of small steps.

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