Conceiving a Clone : Introduction

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Welcome to Conceiving a Clone. Before you begin to dig deeper into our site, we would like to offer some basic information about the site, the subjects it covers, and the field of cloning itself.

Cloning in the most basic sense is the production of an organism that is identical to another. In the cloning process, a scientist takes the genetic information of an organism and inserts it into an unfertilized egg cell from a member of the same species. The egg then begins to develop, functioning under the direction of its newly acquired genetic code., and eventually, an genetically identical organism is created.

In addition to cloning, we have included information on molecular biology and genetics. It is the combination of these studies with cloning techniques that will lead to the development of valuable biotechnology applications that some day will improve many aspects of our daily lives. These related fields will reap the practical benefits from cloning, and are the areas where knowledge gained from cloning research will be put to use.

Beyond the scientific benefits of cloning there are the moral and ethical questions that have developed with the realization of the power cloning will bestow upon mankind. Those against cloning believe that it interferes with the natural process of reproduction, and fear the possible societal abuses of the technology. For those supporting it, cloning offers a chance to gain insight into heredity, cell development, and genetic traits that far outweighs any negative social consequences. These views, and the debate between them can be found in greater detail in the Reactions section.

Our site is divided into areas that not only contain these ethical concerns, but historical and scientific facts as well. The Details section contains these items, centered around a timeline. The Details also contains scientist biographies, technical explanations of cloning an biotechnology processes, and animations of various techniques. In addition to the topics mentioned above, the Reactions section contains information on the possible future uses of cloning, as well as views of people and organizations on both sides of the cloning debate. The Interactions section features a poll, a discussion area, a cloning quiz, and our science lab, where you can perform your own cloning experiment. These sections, and the web site as a whole, are designed to educate and enlighten the public about all aspects of the powerful technology that is currently being developed. We hope you will find "Conceiving a Clone" a valuable resource.