"Why improve our genomes?"

"Because some stuff in them is just broken. We all have harmful mutations. They are called genetic load. The problem is that evolution can not select harmful mutations out of existence at a fast enough rate to prevent them from surviving, in some cases for many generations. So every one of us might have hundreds or even thousands of mildly harmful mutations."

"Even worse for future generations, our rate of accumulation of harmful mutations has accelerated as a result of industrialization and modern medicine. People who are less healthy due to lousy genes are more likely to survive and reproduce. We should not let our genomes decay across generations." (read the whole thing)

Via Instapundit, where the top comment reads...

Having programmed a few computers in my day - and having had to fix trash heaps of bad code in legacy programs left by previous programmers - I'd actually be more worried about unintended consequences of editing the genetic code (which is after all just a huge computer program). I can hear the conversation now.

"Gee, when we changed that base pair in order to give the kid a genius intellect, it also took away the blood vessels to his kidneys. I wonder how _that_ happened?"

And another thing... weren't the Nazis condemned for something similar to this?

"The Human Genome Is In Stalemate in the War Against Itself"

"There’s a sense of futility about this. Much of our genome seems to be engaged in an ultimately pointless duel whether neither side can give or gain any ground. But these battles aren’t quite as fruitless as they might seem."

"The team found that KZNFs partly suppress the genes around a retrotransposon too. When the cops finds their target, they tell all the bystanders to the lie on the ground too. This is important because it seriously affects the activity of many human genes, beyond retrotransposons. It means that KZNFs can eventually be used to control the activity of genes that jumping genes land next to. (“Excuse me, officer, but while you’re manhandling your suspect, would you mind also rescuing my cat?”) This arms race could have given rise to more complicated networks of genes, and perhaps more complicated bodies or behaviours." (read the whole thing)