The Orb 42: Unpredictable Variables

Implications of Genetic Enhancement. Ever since “Space Seed” the idea of genetic enhancement has been something that is viewed almost universally as a negative within the Star Trek universe. After the devastation wrought by Khan and his fellow enhanced humans in the Eugenics Wars, genetic enhancement was outlawed by the Federation. But then came Deep Space Nine and Julian Bashir to cast shades of grey on the subject. In this episode of The Orb hosts Christopher Jones and Matthew Rushing follow up their commentary for “Doctor Bashir, I Presume” with a broader discussion of genetic enhancement and the implications of altering the natural course of evolution. Using the episode “Statistical Probabilities” as a basis for discussion, we delve into both the negative and positive aspects of genetic manipulation, the Asimov-inspired plot that gave us one possible solution to the Dominion War, and whether or not people like Julian Bashir are the likely future of mankind.