Monday, November 20, 2006

Annan Warns of "Catastrophic" Biotech Danger

UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan warned that potential dangers from the rapidly growing biotechnology industry were increasing exponentially and urged creating global safeguards.

Annan, speaking on Saturday in the Swiss university town, warned of "catastrophic" results if recent advances in biotechnology, including gene manipulation and work with viruses, fell into the wrong hands.

"As biological research expands, and technologies become increasingly accessible, this potential for accidental or intentional harm grows exponentially," he said in the text of a speech.

"Even novices working in small laboratories will be able to carry out gene manipulation."

1 comment:

Chris said...

And thanks to the miracle of exponentially accelerating technology, we'll all die sooner than we ever would have dreamed possible! We're heading for a singularity all right, just not the one we hoped for.