Cloning Versus Identical Twins

1 Pages 197 Words

Cloning Versus Identical Twins


A century ago no one considered implanting embryos, surrogate parenting, manipulating DNA, or cloning. Now, these are not merely ideas, they are reality. But unless you have kept up to date in scientific circles, the specifics of these procedures may be unclear. This paper is not an attempt to explain genetic engineering, it is simply for those of us who are not educated in this field and wish to see how all these new scientific breakthroughs may effect us in the future.

Identical twins are formed when one egg is fertilized by one sperm. After fertilization, the egg splits. No one knows why this happens, but it does. Each twin will share exactly the same DNA. They will look alike right down to hair color and eye color. According to Charles Arthur and Jeremy Laurance, “Identical twins have identical DNA, because they start as a single cell- a fertilized egg - which then divides into two.”

The thing about identical twins that sets them apart is the fact that they are not “identical”. Just like you and me, every individual is different. Identical twins may have different personalities, prefer different activities and may also behave differently....