Comments on: The oracle of personal genomics

By: Chad

Chad — Wed, 02 May 2012 15:58:07 +0000

What is the reason for all the animus against personal genomics? There is a large group of educated individuals who are very opposed to it for reasons other than privacy/insurance. They argue from the standpoint of its “ineffectiveness” but even the more sophisticated examples of these are overall ignorant of the science or exaggerate the failures.

Is it because geneticists hyped the promise too much, too early? That everyone is just disappointed by the fact that we haven’t cured Diabetes and Heart disease? I’ve seen this in some scientists. In some cases it seems almost like a bitterness (perhaps having been stuck on a failed PhD project?) which makes me think that maybe they were a bit naive when they jumped in. I don’t think that simple disappointment of this type can explain such widespread and seemingly active opposition. I somehow doubt that the people who write these sorts of articles are the type who are moved by wasteful government spending on something they deem a failure…….they don’t strike me as the type who are concerned with National debt or anything like that.

So is there a deeper motivation? Is ideology? Maybe they are wedded to a Blank Slate view and ideologically oppose any form of genetic determinism?

Thoughts?

By: Razib Khan

Razib Khan — Wed, 02 May 2012 14:51:13 +0000

#2, he had the ton fashionable in some ironic/hipster circles.

By: Charles Nydorf

Charles Nydorf — Wed, 02 May 2012 12:58:04 +0000

I don’t understand why the Awl author feels the need to exhibit his lack of scientific curiosity and unwillingness to participate in scientific research.

By: Keith Grimaldi

Keith Grimaldi — Wed, 02 May 2012 10:12:25 +0000

Good comments – it’s true and logical, if you think about it, most people will get unexceptional results, of course, it has to be like that… except where the genetic aspect (vs other contributors like diet etc) is strong, as in AMD, and for this most common form of blindness in the elderly, there will be a significant number in the young, with quite a high risk – (including me!)

There is a lot of trashing of these companies for “exploiting ignorance about genetic determinism for profit” but maybe the researchers spending hundreds of millions of taxpayer $$ for yet more GWAS of common diseases have been rather more exploitative, and costly to us all?