--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Fears of creating new kinds of plagues or…" description: "\"Fears of creating new kinds of plagues or of altering human evolution or of irreversibly altering the environment were only some of the concerns that w..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/56b/paul-berg-36362_concern_fears-of-creating-new-kinds-of-plagues-o_1483447.jpg" --- # Fears of creating new kinds of plagues or of altering… ![“Fears of creating new kinds of plagues or of altering human evolution or of irreversibly altering the environment were only some of the concerns that were rampant.” quote by Paul Berg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/56b/paul-berg-36362_concern_fears-of-creating-new-kinds-of-plagues-o_1483447.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/56b/paul-berg-36362_concern_fears-of-creating-new-kinds-of-plagues-o_1483447.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/56b/paul-berg-36362_concern_fears-of-creating-new-kinds-of-plagues-o_1483447.jpg) > “Fears of creating new kinds of plagues or of altering human evolution or of irreversibly altering the environment were only some of the concerns that were rampant.” [Paul Berg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-berg/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Concerns arise about creating new diseases, altering evolution, and environmental impacts, highlighting ethical dilemmas in scientific advancement. **In simple terms:** Science raises worries about new plagues, evolution changes, and environmental harm. Key Takeaway Consider ethical implications before advancing science. Themes ethics science environment Mood cautious thoughtful Type ethical analytical When to use this quote - policy making - research planning - public health strategy - environmental regulation Key Concepts risk assessment bioengineering future consequences Questions to Reflect On - What safeguards are needed for new biotechnologies? - How do we weigh benefits against risks? A Different Perspective Balancing innovation with precaution is challenging. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Concern](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/concern/) [Concerns Rampant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/concerns-rampant-5412135/) [Creating](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/creating/) [Environment](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/environment/) [Evolution](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/evolution/) [Fear](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fear/) [Fears Creating](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fears-creating-5412133/) [Human evolution](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/human-evolution/) [Humans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/humans/) [Kind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/kind/) [Kinds Plagues](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/kinds-plagues-5412136/) [Plague](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/plague/) [Plagues](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/plagues/) [Plagues Altering](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/plagues-altering-5412134/) ## Related quotes > [It seems to me the worst of all the plagues is the slug, the snail without a shell. He is beyond description repulsive, a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/celia-thaxter/it-seems-to-me-the-worst-of-all-the-plagues-is-the-slug-the-snail/) [Celia Thaxter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/celia-thaxter/) > [“Michael Oldstone, in his book Viruses, Plagues, and History, wrote: “The obliteration of diseases that impinge on our health is a regal yardstick of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/molly-caldwell-crosby/michael-oldstone-in-his-book-viruses-plagues-and-history-wrote-the/) [Molly Caldwell Crosby](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/molly-caldwell-crosby/) > [Even in those cities which seem to enjoy the blessings of peace, and where the arts florish, the inhabitants are devoured by envy, cares…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/voltaire/even-in-those-cities-which-seem-to-enjoy-the-blessings-of-peace-and/) [Voltaire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/voltaire/) > [“Or he’d watch the news: more plagues, more famines, more floods, more insect or microbe or small-mammal outbreaks, more droughts, more chickenshit boy-soldier wars…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/or-he-d-watch-the-news-more-plagues-more-famines-more-floods-more/) [Margaret Atwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-atwood/) > [What plagues people is not those who don't love them, but those who do.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-gilbert/what-plagues-people-is-not-those-who-don-t-love-them-but-those-who-do/) [Michael Gilbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-gilbert/) > [“Plagues were nothing new to Europe…. They were recorded as far back as 1347, and continued on until 1750. In 1649, a terrible epidemic…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/captain-hank-bracker-the-exciting-story-of-cuba-2/plagues-were-nothing-new-to-europe-they-were-recorded-as-far-back-as/) [Captain Hank Bracker, "The Exciting Story of Cuba](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/captain-hank-bracker-the-exciting-story-of-cuba-2/) > [“There have been as many plagues as wars in history; yet always plagues and wars take people equally by surprise.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-camus/there-have-been-as-many-plagues-as-wars-in-history-yet-always-plagues/) [Albert Camus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-camus/) > [As for AIDS, it's a plague. We are human, we get plagues. They come along every so often, kill off two thirds of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/larry-niven/as-for-aids-it-s-a-plague-we-are-human-we-get-plagues-they-come-along/) [Larry Niven](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/larry-niven/) > [And of all plagues with which mankind are curst, Ecclesiastic tyranny's the worst.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-defoe/and-of-all-plagues-with-which-mankind-are-curst-ecclesiastic-tyranny/) [Daniel Defoe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-defoe/) > [“Verse 12 \[of Ex. 12) tells us that the judgment of Yahweh is not only on the Egyptians but also on their deities. This…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-witherington-iii/verse-12-of-ex-12-tells-us-that-the-judgment-of-yahweh-is-not-only-on/) [Ben Witherington III](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-witherington-iii/) > [I have lived to see the greatest plague on earth -- the condemning of God's word, a fearful thing, surpassing all other plagues in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-luther/i-have-lived-to-see-the-greatest-plague-on-earth-the-condemning-of/) [Martin Luther](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-luther/) > [Close your eyes. Pray for plagues. Oh Lord cleanse this earth And bring upon our doomsday.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bring-me-the-horizon/close-your-eyes-pray-for-plagues-oh-lord-cleanse-this-earth-and-bring/) [Bring Me The Horizon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bring-me-the-horizon/) > [There are plagues, and there are victims, and it's the duty of good men not to join forces with the plagues.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-camus/there-are-plagues-and-there-are-victims-and-it-s-the-duty-of-good-men/) [Albert Camus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-camus/) > [Every conflict plagues the peace that follows it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-l-carter/every-conflict-plagues-the-peace-that-follows-it/) [Stephen L. Carter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-l-carter/) > [“If in some radical miracle, the Abrahamic God revealed his existence to the world, I’d accept the belief in the deity — but I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-g-mcafee/if-in-some-radical-miracle-the-abrahamic-god-revealed-his-existence/) [David G. McAfee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-g-mcafee/) ## More by Paul Berg > [But the prospects of designing chemical plants for industrial scale chemical processes seemed far less interesting than the chemical events that occur in biological…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-berg/but-the-prospects-of-designing-chemical-plants-for-industrial-scale/) [Paul Berg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-berg/) > [Looking back, I realize that nurturing curiosity and the instinct to seek solutions are perhaps the most important contributions education can make.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-berg/looking-back-i-realize-that-nurturing-curiosity-and-the-instinct-to/) [Paul Berg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-berg/) > [Paradoxically, no such embargo exists for the drugs and therapies that have revolutionized the treatment of serious diseases although many of them were created…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-berg/paradoxically-no-such-embargo-exists-for-the-drugs-and-therapies-that/) [Paul Berg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-berg/) > [By that time I was hooked on a career in academic research instead of one in the pharmaceutical industry that I had originally considered…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-berg/by-that-time-i-was-hooked-on-a-career-in-academic-research-instead-of/) [Paul Berg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-berg/) > [That work led to the emergence of the recombinant DNA technology thereby providing a major tool for analyzing mammalian gene structure and function and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-berg/that-work-led-to-the-emergence-of-the-recombinant-dna-technology/) [Paul Berg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-berg/) > [By then, I was making the slow transition from classical biochemistry to molecular biology and becoming increasingly preoccupied with how genes act and how…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-berg/by-then-i-was-making-the-slow-transition-from-classical-biochemistry/) [Paul Berg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-berg/) > [But I felt it necessary to be part of the war effort and I enlisted in the Navy to be a flyer.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-berg/but-i-felt-it-necessary-to-be-part-of-the-war-effort-and-i-enlisted/) [Paul Berg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-berg/) > [Novel technologies and ideas that impinge on human biology and their perceived impact on human values have renewed strains in the relationship between science…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-berg/novel-technologies-and-ideas-that-impinge-on-human-biology-and-their/) [Paul Berg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-berg/) > [With time, many of the facts I learned were forgotten but I never lost the excitement of discovery.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-berg/with-time-many-of-the-facts-i-learned-were-forgotten-but-i-never-lost/) [Paul Berg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-berg/) > [Today, it is research with human embryonic stem cells and attempts to prepare cloned stem cells for research and medical therapies that are being…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-berg/today-it-is-research-with-human-embryonic-stem-cells-and-attempts-to/) [Paul Berg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-berg/) > [Yet the effort to inform the public also encouraged responsible public discussion that succeeded in developing a consensus for the measured approach that many…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-berg/yet-the-effort-to-inform-the-public-also-encouraged-responsible/) [Paul Berg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-berg/) > [Moreover, the concern of some that moving DNA among species would breach customary breeding barriers and have profound effects on natural evolutionary processes has…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-berg/moreover-the-concern-of-some-that-moving-dna-among-species-would/) [Paul Berg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-berg/) [Explore all 13 Paul Berg quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-berg/) ## More Concern quotes > [This brings me back to the image of Kafka standing before a fish in the Berlin aquarium, a fish on which his gaze fell…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-safran-foer/this-brings-me-back-to-the-image-of-kafka-standing-before-a-fish-in/) [Jonathan Safran Foer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-safran-foer/) > [It is not my intention to explain Turkey, its culture and its problems. My literature has a universal concern: I want to bring people…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/orhan-pamuk/it-is-not-my-intention-to-explain-turkey-its-culture-and-its-problems/) [Orhan Pamuk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/orhan-pamuk/) > [I'm a vegetarian - I think there's a strong possibility, had I not become a vegetarian, I would not be working now. I became…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-barker/i-m-a-vegetarian-i-think-there-s-a-strong-possibility-had-i-not/) [Bob Barker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-barker/) > [What really concerns me is for Christians to understand the fundamentals of evangelism in a way that is helpful in the contemporary scene.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-dever/what-really-concerns-me-is-for-christians-to-understand-the/) [Mark Dever](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-dever/) > [I'm not interested in making a diagnostic novel or a concern. I'm 100 percent committed in fiction to the pleasure principle - that's what…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-amis/i-m-not-interested-in-making-a-diagnostic-novel-or-a-concern-i-m-100/) [Martin Amis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-amis/) > [I am sympathetic to developing countries’ concerns: because of our emissions it’s their crops that will disappear; because of our inaction, it’s their fields…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-f-kerry/i-am-sympathetic-to-developing-countries-concerns-because-of-our/) [John F. Kerry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-f-kerry/) > [Meanwhile, the trees were just as green as before; the birds sang and the sun shone as clearly now as ever. The familiar surroundings…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-hardy/meanwhile-the-trees-were-just-as-green-as-before-the-birds-sang-and/) [Thomas Hardy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-hardy/) > [It concerns me when people frame the conversation about equal pay about the entertainment business. I don't want the wage gap issue to be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patricia-arquette/it-concerns-me-when-people-frame-the-conversation-about-equal-pay/) [Patricia Arquette](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patricia-arquette/) > [The Patriot Act is certainly a concern; all of those things are dangerous. I think more important than me preaching is that we as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-clooney/the-patriot-act-is-certainly-a-concern-all-of-those-things-are/) [George Clooney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-clooney/) > [More compassionate mind, more sense of concern for other's well-being, is source of happiness.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dalai-lama/more-compassionate-mind-more-sense-of-concern-for-other-s-well-being/) [Dalai Lama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dalai-lama/) > [Show your contempt for the problem and your concern for the person.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-rohn/show-your-contempt-for-the-problem-and-your-concern-for-the-person/) [Jim Rohn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-rohn/) > [When I was in my teens I had a series of intensely religious experiences. They deepened my sense of God as the creator of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-linzey/when-i-was-in-my-teens-i-had-a-series-of-intensely-religious/) [Andrew Linzey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-linzey/) > [If you are trying to live a life in accordance with the Bible, the concept and call to justice are inescapable. We do justice…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/timothy-keller/if-you-are-trying-to-live-a-life-in-accordance-with-the-bible-the/) [Timothy Keller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/timothy-keller/) > [ I just have to deal with it \[injuries\] if and when problems happen. It's obviously a concern and I've been very careful with my… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/greg-james/i-just-have-to-deal-with-it-injuries-if-and-when-problems-happen-it-s/) [Greg James](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/greg-james/) > [Much has been said and continues to be said of what little concern the Turks had for the Acropolis treasures.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/melina-mercouri/much-has-been-said-and-continues-to-be-said-of-what-little-concern/) [Melina Mercouri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/melina-mercouri/) [Browse all 3,297 Concern quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/concern/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Fears of creating new kinds of plagues or of altering human evolution or of irreversibly altering the environment were only some of the concerns that were rampant.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Paul Berg" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-berg/fears-of-creating-new-kinds-of-plagues-or-of-altering-human-evolution/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Concern" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-berg/fears-of-creating-new-kinds-of-plagues-or-of-altering-human-evolution/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/56b/paul-berg-36362_concern_fears-of-creating-new-kinds-of-plagues-o_1483447.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/56b/paul-berg-36362_concern_fears-of-creating-new-kinds-of-plagues-o_1483447.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/56b/paul-berg-36362_concern_fears-of-creating-new-kinds-of-plagues-o_1483447.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Fears of creating new kinds of plagues or of altering human evolution or of irreversibly altering the…” — Paul Berg", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Paul Berg", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-berg/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Fears of creating new kinds of...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-berg/fears-of-creating-new-kinds-of-plagues-or-of-altering-human-evolution/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-berg/fears-of-creating-new-kinds-of-plagues-or-of-altering-human-evolution/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```