Imagine what it would mean to understand and prevent Alzheimer s, to tailor drugs to our individual genetic constitutions, to unravel aging and learn to retard key aspects of it. Such possibilities are full of promise, but somehow troubling too. We are unraveling our biology not out of idle curiosity, but to use the knowledge to improve our lives. It might seem prudent to slow down until we can determine our safest path. But the only way to gain the necessary wisdom may well be to push ahead as best we can and learn from whatever mistakes we make.
Caution too carries great risks.
In 2010, over a million of us in this country will learn we have cancer. No one can say what treatments will arrive by then, but needless delay will sentence many to early death. It is our privilege to be alive today to witness the deciphering of biology. Future generations will point back to this moment. The practical spinoffs of the Human Genome Project will not be instantaneous, but today s trickle of applications will soon be a torrent.