"Frankentrees"

We are all familiar with genetically engineered foods. What we may not know is that plants have been tinkere with for about as long as science has been around. Remember Gregor Mendel??
Nowadays technology is making plants do things that nature never intended. It seems this may all benign to us now. We will not know what evolution will do with these engineered plants.

� The UN has approved use of genetically engineered trees that take in more carbon than normal trees, and so help to offset industrial emissions.

� Hawaiian officials have approved pest-resistant papaya trees in response to infestations that nearly wiped out native populations. The new class of trees has already provided a critical economic boost.

� The Department of Defense has ordered research into arboreal warning systems - for instance, trees with foliage designed to change color in reaction to a biochemical attack.

Trees, the ultimate survivalists, will express only those genes that are necessary for their longevity. "When they escape, the [new genetic material] may act differently or it may not express at all," says Jim Hemrick, a tree-genetics expert at the University of Georgia in Athens.

www.csmonitor.com...

A very interesting and thought-provoking topic

More info:
www.organicconsumers.org...
www.organicconsumers.org...

[edit on 29-11-2004 by DontTreadOnMe]

I've heard about the genetically engineered trees that grow half the time the regular trees do when I was in the 5th grade.

That is amazing. They should make more trees only if they are not harmful to the ecosystem....But caterpillars eat leaves and if there aren't any caterpillars there wouldn't be butterflies.

[edit on 29-11-2004 by CookieMonster000]

Another approach would be to stop cutting all the tree's down. I guess they will never stop until there are none left?

More arrogant tampering. And we wonder why we as humans cause so many problems for our natural enviroment...

I like the idea of trees that grow twice as fast.....Could help slow down or stop global warming.....