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> Can CRISPR be weaponized and permanently damage the genes of a large area of people? Old Bill Burroughs went on about that, sort of. That is, race-specific v
by mirimir 8y ago
> Can CRISPR be weaponized and permanently damage the genes of a large area of people?
Old Bill Burroughs went on about that, sort of. That is, race-specific viruses for efficient genocide. It's probably also an SF trope, but nothing comes to mind.
- kbaker 8y ago<spoiler>The Utopia TV series from BBC channel 4.</spoiler> Amazing show. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Utopia_(UK_TV_series) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Utopia_(UK_TV_series)
- dane-pgp 8y agoNote: The name of the channel that the TV series was broadcast on is "Channel 4". There is a British channel called "BBC Four", but not all British television channels are operated by the BBC.
- daveFNbuck 8y agoThe Mass Effect series explores that sort of idea with a species-specific mutation that dramatically reduces birth rate.
- isoskeles 8y agoPerhaps Old Bill Burroughs should have concerned himself with something more realistic, like not murdering his wife, rather than hypothetical genocide.
- mirimir 8y agoYes, he shot Joan Vollmer in the head, in Mexico City. Using a .38 snub, as I recall. He variously claimed that it was an accident. Or that they were playing William Tell. But he fled to the US, to escape prosecution, and was eventually convicted of manslaughter. Later, after doing Scientology, he claimed that he'd been possessed by an evil spirit. For an interesting take on the aftermath, see Rudy Rucker's Turing & Burroughs.